GBIC urges earlier career-technical education and employer partnerships to shore up Vermont workforce

Frank Coffey, executive director of the Greater Burlington Industrial Corporation, told the House Committee on Commerce & Economic Development on Feb. 6 that Vermont should expand career-technical education (CTE) and begin vocational programming earlier than the current junior/senior-year model.

“About 12 years ago, I said to one of my colleagues, I’ll bet half of the students that go to high school go on to nothing when they graduate,” Coffey said, describing research later validated by VSAC and Vermont State University. He converted that into an example: if 5,000 students graduate statewide and roughly half do not continue in postsecondary programs or workforce training, that left an estimated 2,500 students without sustained postsecondary engagement.

Coffey argued for curriculum choices beginning in ninth grade and suggested no preference for which institution should deliver the programs — community colleges, CTE centers or high schools — but said the aim should be to provide skills that lead to meaningful wages. He said business-led efforts to connect students to internships, co-ops and employer networks have helped retain talent and that the Vermont Business Roundtable will lead a two-year initiative to explore how to add value to CTE statewide.

Committee members acknowledged the challenges teachers and schools face and asked about funding and governance changes. Coffey said money and demographic limits complicate rapid reform and urged partnership approaches among employers, higher education and K–12 systems.

No formal legislative action was taken at the Feb. 6 meeting; Coffey asked lawmakers to consider the workforce pipeline as they evaluate education and economic-development proposals.