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Jersey Shore Area School Board is in the midst of an important conversation.
While we understand and respect that the board members should be thorough in examining and possibly amending a proposal to expand career and technical education and offer a wider variety of programs, we hope they – and all of our school boards in the region – are able to find the best way to better include career training as part of the curricula.
Of particular note is that this expansion, detailed in reporting in the Feb. 28 edition of the Sun-Gazette, includes health careers education, an important and too frequently understaffed sector of the economy.
Data with the National Council of State Boards of Nursing and the American Hospital Association indicates that about 100,000 registered nurses left the vocation between 2021 and 2023 and expects more than 610,000 to leave by 2027. And polling by AMN Healthcare has close to a third of surveyed nurses saying they are likely to leave the profession for another career, according to npr.org.
The fact that our society needs and will need nurses and other health care professionals means this sort of program also offers today's students and tomorrow's workforce something valued by many – stability and security.
"Nursing has a low unemployment rate -- and is therefore a very stable occupation -- compared to most professions," The U.S. Chamber of Commerce notes on its website. "Almost 99% of individuals with nursing expertise and training actively seeking employment are able to secure jobs.
We believe more emphasis on health careers education would benefit both students and their communities, and we hope Jersey Shore Area School Board and all the region's school boards can find the most effective way to incorporate such career-oriented efforts into their selections of programs.