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Moving down to the elementary level from the high school level, I was surprised to see the amount of foundational learning that is done from the ages of five to 11. In reflecting on my years in the upper grades, I would say there are three main pillars of success that can set students up well for middle and high school, and ultimately a stance of lifelong learning.

The best part about these pillars is that at the elementary level they are often taught through fun and engaging activities, like number talks or puppet shows, but the lessons that lie within them are extremely valuable throughout a student’s life.

I think the first level of support for students’ mental health, anxiety, and stress management is teaching them that mental health is health, and how to recognize problems early, just as we would with physical health. Teaching kids about their brain and body connection at a young age gives them the knowledge and planning to deal with stressors as they get older. Anxiety is a normal response that helps our body react appropriately to different stressors, like taking an exam or public speaking, but it becomes an issue when it is all-consuming and interferes with their ability to engage in daily tasks.

 
Teaching simple strategies and learning how to implement breaks is definitely a mental health support that can be taught to students to build resiliency, but teaching assertiveness and how to speak up for their needs when their anxiety becomes intrusive is also critical. Even before the pandemic, our students have been placed in prolonged stressful situations with little to no preparation in how to cope with them. As a school counselor, helping a high school student understand that taking a rigorous academic course load while neglecting their overall wellness may not be in their best interest.

 
Then, supporting students as they have tough conversations with caregivers and college coaches about the potential challenges that some expectations may pose to their mental health is likely just as important as teaching them progressive muscle relaxation techniques. This is why hiring additional student support personnel in schools is crucial, as it would allow for more time to get to know students and their capacity for the stressors that are placed on them, along with giving counselors more time to truly educate on mental health matters and prepare students to better handle issues that may arise.

 
There are so many different pathways that go in the direction of the same dream. My mom and I may have landed in the same place, but our journeys here shared few similarities. I think the best way to inspire students to set education and career goals is to enlighten them on the vast array of options. I have spoken with helping adults who are concerned that all students want to be vloggers or gamers or professional athletes, but if you think about it, those are the options that they are most exposed to and most intrigued by. Adolescents are now spending their free time on apps or watching sports stars, so of course that is who they will likely want to be when they grow up. It’s the same reason I wanted to be the next Brianna Scurry while playing recreation soccer or a crime scene investigator despite my weak stomach.

 
I think trusted adults can best inspire students to set their own education and career goals by not discounting their current aspirations, but exposing them to the multitude of options, especially through hands-on experiences, if possible. Helping students find and explore different careers that may fit their interests and skills is a great starting point. Then, setting education and career goals that match with where they want to go is an easier conversation.

The word unprecedented has been thrown around a lot, but the recent pandemic truly was just that. All of the people I sought guidance from in my daily career were just as new to this as I was, and we were all just doing the best we could for a while.

 
Reflecting back on it, I think the first step of my response was just listening to what exactly the diverse needs were, especially in a rural setting, and keeping “Maslow before Bloom” at the forefront of my mind. We had so many well-intentioned interventions being put into place in record time in 2020 but some of them did not always pan out in keeping people connected. For example, when you don’t have the systemic structure for internet connection in your area, a hotspot to connect does not necessarily help you. Advocating for the actual needs was crucial, and my district and county did a great job at stepping back and looking at the issues from a systemic standpoint and then adjusting quickly.

 
The second step is showing up where you can. I made a personal decision that I was willing to go to students while still putting measures in place to ensure our safety during the pandemic. The porch hangouts or door-to-door check ins helped to continue and deepen the connections I had made over the years with our school community, as well as allowed me to meet any immediate needs that may be barriers to my students connecting to school and learning.

 
The final step is trying to connect students and their families with more sustainable resources to reduce those barriers. I cannot provide food and clothing or childcare for every student in my caseload with the donations given to our school, but our local food banks, clothing closets, and community programs certainly can. Educating myself on the resources that are already in place and then sharing that out gave me more capacity to serve more immediate needs and step back into reducing barriers to learning in the classroom setting.

 
All of these response efforts have benefitted me in our return to learning. I forged invaluable relationships with our community and parents and know which students may need to be connected with tutoring services or need lessons on self-efficacy because they struggled to stay plugged in during virtual learning. It allowed me to get a jump on useful data points to serve students' needs more efficiently.

The school counselor role is incredibly unique, as we often have to know a little bit about all of the components of a school, along with knowing a lot about how to support the whole student and not just their academic endeavors. In my opinion, the role of a school counselor remains steady when dealing with learning loss: We are, as we always were, meant to reduce barriers to learning, whatever those may be.

 
If the learning loss is based on the lack of time spent with the content, then connecting students to additional tutoring services, or even creating those programmatic structures, may be the best course of action. Controlling variables that could be barriers is still crucial in those actions. For example, speaking with a teacher from each subject and working to coordinate a day to stay after school in exchange for an additional stipend could be a great plan, but you may also need to advocate for a late bus ride for students who may not have transportation, and probably a snack option, as growing bodies can rarely focus when they are hungry!

 
I also believe that we must remember that there are still barriers to academic success outside of the school building that were exacerbated by the pandemic, whether it be mental health matters, familial issues, food and housing insecurity, or a plethora of other issues that our students may be dealing with. Again, academic recovery and growth can only occur when Maslow’s hierarchy of needs has been fulfilled, so walking with students to help ensure their basic needs are met remains a critical part of the school counselor's role and can support the long process of learning recovery moving forward. I always tell my students that they are going to have to do hard things, but they will not have to do them alone!

This Black History Month, ACT is revisiting our recent research findings in which African American students stood out from their peers in ways that are promising for their education and career success. From preparing for college to looking far into the future, Black students are identifying and seizing opportunities to fulfill their potential.

Last year, research on disparities in college preparation opportunities for students related to the pandemic, led by Dr. Joyce Z. Schnieders, revealed a direct link between participating in college preparation activities and the college application process. Black students were more likely to participate in college preparation activities than white students, and – consistent with other research on the topic –their engagement in these activities did not appear to be significantly disrupted by the pandemic. This indicates that Black students either started the college preparation process earlier or they were more active in these activities.

College preparation activities are the first steps on a student’s college-going journey, and the report showed how participating in these activities is directly linked to positive college application behaviors. The findings affirm that coordinated college application efforts are providing Black students with what they need to be successful and feel prepared for the college-going process. This is critical as enrollment estimates indicate that the number of Black undergraduate college students declined by 6.9% between fall 2020 and fall 2022, with the number of Black freshmen shrinking by 7.4%.

In another report, ACT Lead Research Scientist Jeff Schiel found that high school students were generally optimistic about the future, and Black students especially so. Black students reported higher estimated chances, on average, of experiencing 15 of 17 future life outcomes -- including having a well-paying career, owning a home, and having good health – than did students in other racial/ethnic groups. And irrespective of family income category, Black students reported the highest estimates, on average, of the chances of having a better life than their parents had or of their children having a better life than they have had. In fact, for all future outcomes, Black students from low-income families were more optimistic about their futures than were students of other races/ethnicities in that same income category.

For nine of the future outcomes – career that pays well, career you enjoy, steady employment during career, live wherever you want to in the country, hobbies you enjoy, financial resources to retire comfortably, better life than parents had, children will have a better life, and life turns out well overall – Black students had statistically significantly higher estimates, on average, of experiencing each outcome than did students of other races/ethnicities.

It is reassuring that -- despite the challenges and stress of the pandemic – Black high school students are hopeful of achieving the kinds of outcomes that define a successful life. However, we also know from other ACT research that Black students reported more challenges relative to students of other racial/ethnic groups during the pandemic: higher levels of distress for problems with neighborhood violence, bullying, cyberbullying, microaggressions, and discrimination.

As a research-based organization, ACT will continue to examine our wealth of data to help inform policies and practices for helping all students navigate the journey through education and into the workplace. Understanding how Black students perceive and prepare for the future can help educators, policymakers, counselors, and other advocates support them along the way.

Neil Reddy is co-founder and CEO of the Manufacturing Skill Standards Council (MSSC) — an industry-led, nonprofit training, assessment, and certification organization focuses on the core technical competencies needed by the nation’s frontline production and material handling workers.

Last October, we talked to Neil at ACT’s Workforce Summit in New Orleans. Listen in as he talks about the importance of:

• a community-based approach to economic and workforce development;
• focusing on skill development and its benefit to employers and individuals alike; and
• aligning skills and competencies for both employer needs and student needs to build excellent career paths.
  
  

Learn more from Neil and others on a live webinar, Turning Digital Badges into Career Currency. Join us Feb. 15, for an enlightening discussion around:

• the true value of stackable, quality credentials;
• digital badges and why they are important to students;
• the importance of building partnerships with your community and local employers; and
• the value of digital badges beyond the workplace.

Additional links:

Get notified when the 2023 Workforce Summit registration opens.

Register for the webinar.

Listen to the Ready For Work podcast with Neil Reddy, CEO and co-founder, MSSC.

Read our blog post on credit for prior learning and experiences.

Listen to the Ready for Work podcast with Pat Leonard, vice president, Credly by Pearson.

I had finally achieved some stability in my life; I had some free time, and I had always wanted to be a Big. I have always wanted to give back to the community and make a difference in someone's life, the way people in my life did for me. I also wanted to make a new friend and grow my family circle. To my surprise, I did not know all this would happen in such a short time, and for that I am extremely grateful.

I joined BBBS in September of 2019 and was matched with Natalie, who was eight years old at the time. Natalie was shy but inquisitive and not afraid to try something new, if someone showed her how.

How can mentors ensure that their mentorship is supportive and meaningful?

It is very simple. I’ve found a few things to be helpful.

• Be consistent, specific, and follow through – for example, say, “See you next Saturday!” or, “Let’s run a race together on Sunday; what do you think?” and then do it. This builds trust and shows your Match you care.
• Be a good listener and listen without judgement.
• Display positive behaviors when you interact with each other – and with others – and encourage your Match to practice, too. It’s as simple as saying thank you to a waitress when she brings your food, or politely asking for help at the grocery store.
• Encourage your Match to teach you an activity that’s new to you – or find one that’s new to both of you, and do it together.

How have you seen mentorship open opportunities for students from underserved backgrounds?

I’ve seen Natalie’s confidence grow firsthand. She crushes it on the basketball court and does well in school. We are working to improve her skills in some academic subjects, and she is getting more comfortable trying new things, even if she is afraid.

How can communities and organizations support successful mentorship programs?

Postsecondary credits earned outside the college classroom play an important but often overlooked role for students seeking to reduce their time to degree. Transferring credits from different sources can help students save valuable time and money on the road to postsecondary completion. However, the various processes for evaluating and formally recognizing these credits – known as credit for prior learning (CPL), prior learning assessment (PLA), recognition of learning, or experiential learning – can be difficult for students to navigate, especially students of color and those from low-income backgrounds.

That is where organizations like the Council for Adult and Experiential Learning (CAEL) and Complete College America come in. These organizations advise on how to help students get the most out of their prior learning, which is evaluated in different ways by different institutions, and even by different departments within the same institution.

“Credit for prior learning provides multiple ways for colleges to recognize what students already know and the skills they possess, whether that comes from prior high school coursework, military experience, or on-the-job training,” said Yolanda Watson Spiva, president of Complete College America. “Lived experience matters! We all gain valuable learning from multiple ways both inside and outside of the classroom. Students shouldn’t have to take classes for what they already know.”

Credit can also be awarded for independent study, non-credit courses, volunteer or community services, and non-college courses or seminars. Students can show their skills and abilities through different ways, including portfolios, exams, certifications, and evaluations.

In one example, the American Council on Education (ACE) recommends that institutions award up to six credits to students who earn the ACT WorkKeys National Career Readiness Certificate (NCRC) at certain levels by completing and ranking scores in the Applied Math, Graphic Literacy, and Workplace
Documents WorkKeys assessments. The NCRC is a stackable credential indicative of the recipient’s possession of skills that employers want, such as the ability to solve technical problems, identify data trends, and sort through materials to find critical information. When an institution awards credit for the WorkKeys NCRC, it is not just accelerating students’ progress but also building their confidence.

In a 2020 study of 72 postsecondary institutions, CAEL and the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education (WICHE) found that credit for prior learning boosted adult students’ completion rates by 17%. These students earned an average of 15 CPL credits, saving them up to a year or more in time to degree and anywhere from $1,500 to $10,200.

However, just 11% of entering adult students earned any credit for prior learning. And among those who did, CAEL uncovered an “equity paradox”: Students with lower incomes and Black students were the least likely to have these credits – even though they delivered a large “boost to completion.” Fifty-five percent of Pell Grant recipients and 40% of Black students with CPL credits completed a credential, compared with 27% of Pell recipients and 17% of Black students without CPL credits. In fact, Black students benefited the most from these credits.

“Institutions should focus more intentionally on improving credit-for-prior-learning usage among Black and lower-income students,” said Chris Guidry, vice president for community affairs at CAEL. “Unfortunately, from our experience, it can be challenging and frustrating for adult learners to navigate CPL systems at institutions.”

Along with Black students and Pell recipients, female and American Indian/Alaska Native students were least likely to have CPL credits, according to the study.

CAEL’s more than 3,300 members demonstrate that the institutions that are most successful at awarding credit for prior learning pay close attention to adult students’ needs, Guidry said. They encourage faculty and staff to collaborate to create “student-friendly” CPL policies while maintaining academic rigor, and frequently establish relationships with employers to link work experience and job training to CPL programs.

Spiva said there are a number of steps colleges and universities can take to strengthen their prior learning assessment – first and foremost, eliminating institutional silos and integrating the program across different areas.

“This means having institutional policies combined with practices to support credit for prior learning,” she said. “For example, a college can specify the different methods that students have to assess their learning, the associated costs, the support that is offered by the institution in the process, and limitations to either degrees or transfer for the number of credits that may be earned.”

Colleges should also more frequently and widely market the opportunities for students to earn credit for prior learning, Spiva said. Proactive communication is also essential, as many students arrive at college without even knowing that prior learning assessment exists. They can be made aware through orientations, advising sessions, department and faculty outreach, websites, and other campus communications.

Lack of information is a top obstacle to accessing credit for prior learning, according to a WICHE survey of undergraduate students. Despite the opaqueness, an ACE survey of learners, conducted to support a new network of colleges focused on improving CPL, found that transfer credit acceptance is “just as important a factor” as tuition when choosing a college program.

As college completion rates stagnate, student debt escalates, and calls intensify to get learners with some college but no degree across the finish line, credit for prior learning is an important tool for helping all students reach their postsecondary goals.

In 1960, Dr. King addressed the Golden Anniversary Conference of the National Urban League about the rising resistance to racial justice with this call to action:

The great challenge facing the nation today is to solve this pressing problem and bring into full realization the ideals and dreams of our democracy. How we deal with this crucial situation will determine our political health as a nation and our prestige as a leader of the free world. The price that America must pay for the continued oppression of the Negro is the price of its own destruction. The hour is late; the clock of destiny is ticking out. We must act now! It is a trite yet urgently true observation that if America is to remain a first-class nation, it cannot have second-class citizens.

Sixty years later, his call for urgency is even more necessary. With the passage of time, we cannot allow the “great challenge” he acknowledged then, to become something we accept and live with today. We cannot allow gaps in equity, access, and opportunity to continue creating second-class citizens. We cannot afford to wait another 60 years to address the systemic barriers to success that sit squarely in the path of so many. The time to act is now.

In fact, when it was suggested to Dr. King that he let time do its work and that eventually Black people would achieve racial justice, he pushed back. He wrote in his Letter From a Birmingham Jail:

More and more I feel that the people of ill will have used time much more effectively than have the people of good will. We will have to repent in this generation not merely for the hateful words and actions of the bad people but for the appalling silence of the good people. Human progress never rolls in on wheels of inevitability; it comes through the tireless efforts of men willing to be co workers with God, and without this hard work, time itself becomes an ally of the forces of social stagnation. We must use time creatively, in the knowledge that the time is always ripe to do right.

It’s in this spirit of urgency and action that I reflect on Dr. King’s work and words today. We cannot simply rely on the “wheels of inevitability” to roll as we seek to make ACT even stronger and more meaningful for all individuals, and especially Black, brown, and individuals from low-income communities. As Dr. King said, “the time is ripe.”

This year, ACT is working intentionally, integrating Equity by Design across our organization, as we aim to address the systemic barriers that hinder success for so many. This intentional focus includes:

• a way of approaching education reform that puts the learner at the center of the policies and practices contributing to disparities in education achievement and abstains from blaming students and educators for those accumulated disparities;
• a commitment to design solutions that honors the input from diverse stakeholders, meets the needs of all learners, and is achieved through collaboration where influence is distributed and shared; and
• the practice of purposefully involving those being served as key players throughout a design process ensuring that diverse voices directly affect how the solution will address inequities and achieve the prescribed goal.

In order to successfully embrace, embody, and engage in a commitment to Equity by Design, we must approach all we do with an asset-based mindset. I’ve learned so much from Trabian Shorters, the CEO of BMe Community, who consistently challenges leaders, philanthropy, and people of good will to develop an “Asset-Framing” approach – which seeks to “defin[e] people by their aspirations and contributions before noting their challenges and investing in them for their continued benefit to society.” By engaging Equity by Design and using the lens of Asset-Framing to inform our thinking, we can be more intentional and successful in serving the needs of all students.

It is with this intentionality, 60 years on from Dr. King’s “I Have a Dream” speech, that we remain determined to carry forward his tireless work and strive to bring King’s dream to life. As King admonished the crowd so many years ago, we at ACT recognize that, “We cannot walk alone. And as we walk, we must make the pledge that we shall always march ahead. We cannot turn back.” So, on behalf of ACT, we look forward to walking with you, the equity and justice leaders and champions in the field. May our combined dedication, conviction, and disciplined action encourage, inspire, and motivate us all to march ahead.

Join ACT for a virtual event honoring Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Join ACT’s Center for Equity in Learning for a webinar on Jan. 31 at 10 a.m. CT with Dr. Valerie Purdie-Greenaway, an American social psychologist and Professor of Psychology at Columbia University, who will discuss the effects of unconscious bias and stereotype threat in education. Register here.

• the apprenticeship program’s success;
• why a community-based approach to economic and workforce development is important and effective; and
• post pandemic, how focusing on skills helps with workforce resiliency and recovery.

Additional links:

VIDEO: Watch and learn more about the WoodWorks program from RoyOMartin leaders.

VIDEO: See what WoodWorks graduates have to say about their time in the program.

Check out ACT’s apprenticeship toolkit.

Listen to ACT’s Ready for Work podcast about RoyOMartin and their apprenticeship program.

Learn more about RoyOMartin.

Watch the Workforce Summit 2022 recap and register to be notified when registration is open for 2023.