The Maine State Chamber of Commerce and Educate Maine unveiled today an ambitious plan to close the skills gap for Maine employers by doubling in three years the number of students enrolled in hands-on, technical and career-focused educational programs.
The Maine Mathematics & Science Alliance (MMSA) and Educate Maine have been announced as state partners to Google’s Computer Science for High School (CS4HS) program. This grant program will provide resources to allow Maine teachers to strive for excellence in their teaching of Computer Science (CS) – something that will help propel Maine forward in technology education.
Thomas College’s Center for Innovation in Education and Educate Maine’s Maine Teacher of the Year program announce a new partnership to help Maine’s future teachers thrive.
The report by Educate Maine found that although 87% of Maine high school students graduated in 2014, only 48% of Maine students graduated college on time, which is 11 percentage points lower than the New England average. That gap increased by 5 percentage points from 2007 to 2013.
The report, from the business led advocacy group Educate Maine, showed progress in key areas. It also revealed a troubling gap that continues to widen between the achievement of students from low income families, compared to students from higher income families.
“Education Indicators for Maine 2015” reports where Maine students stand within ten education indicators, compares them to students throughout New England, and connects benchmarks to each indicator. This year’s report finds both progress in some areas and a widening achievement gap among students from lower-income families.
