Education and Labor

Today we have extremely high Unemployment and to create jobs is a high priority. If the jobs created are manufacturing jobs will there be sufficient human resource to keep those position filled?

Criminal activity, illegal drug use, and the problems associated with them plague cities nationwide.  Baltimore is no exception.  Small business employers can find themselves frustrated with the inability to find good local help.

What can be done to create a stronger workforce?

Too often, children attending inner city schools become a product of their environment.  In spite of the taxpayer-funded programs already in place, including before- and after-care, free breakfasts and free lunches, we are still losing these kids.  The pull of their environment is overpowering the good we are trying to do.

We need to do better by our inner city students. Many are already in our care from seven in the morning until five o’clock, which is a huge block of time at our disposal to positively influence their lives.  We need to provide them with a foundation that they can grow on.  We need to restructure their day and our goals.  We need to make a difference.

If we fail to make a difference in the lives of these children, we may find ourselves paying police to arrest them and the courts to prosecute them, paying for their rehab, and housing some of them for the rest of their lives in our prisons.  And of course we have to consider the harm they may do to themselves and others before they enter the system.

We believe that by providing a solid foundation for these at-risk youths, the crime rate will drop substantially, and we will end up with more productive members of our workforce.

Our Education Plan:

We restructure the day, perhaps adjusting school start and end times and blend in program such as Health and Home Economics into the week.  The following is a sample curriculum:

1.          Health and Home Economics: Home Ec courses can be designed for any age, adjusting the topics and activities as children grow. We can start a select day with a reasonable breakfast, preparing it, eating and cleaning up from, emphasizing and good habits and good personal hygiene. With adult assistance, grade school children can learn how to prepare simple meals such as: breakfast (a bowl of cereal or toast), or lunch (a peanut butter & jelly sandwich).  Children, at a young age, can start to build self confidence, learn independence, and take pride in doing something for themselves. (Meals prepared in school may not be a daily school function).

2.          Reading, writing, and math are fundamentals.

3.          Physical Education: PE not only helps students stay in shape, it helps them work out frustrations.  It may be helpful to have more than one session a day.

4.          Communication, Group Discussions, Board Games:

5.          Art, quiet time, homework time, home work assistance time.

6.      Club activities, possibly scouting: Cub Scouts and Brownies.

And how much will this cost?

In some instances we are already providing, before-school daycare, after school day care and in other instances; free breakfast and free lunch, therefore in these schools we would be reallocating resources, but yes there would be an increase in expense.

By providing this foundation, I expect crime rate will drop substantially and we will end with a productive member of our workforce.

For example, it is more empowering for a child to make himself lunch than to have a hot lunch served up by the taxpayers.  Doing things for yourself builds confidence, teaches independence, and instills pride.

We would like to see inner city kids attend schools in a comfortable school uniform, rather than showing up with a pair of jean hanging off his or her butt.  It may be “the style,” but kids need to learn that their appearance says something about them both to teachers and future employers.  Not many employers are likely to give a job to someone who applies for a position dressed sloppily.

We have to do better by these inner city children.