Education
Reimagining Schools at Maker Faire Kansas City
Organizers call Maker Faire the Greatest Show (And Tell) on Earth, and Kansas City held its eighth annual version of the international event at Union Station in June. The two-day faire drew crowds to celebrate all things creative — from science to art and anything in between. As part of our Take Note education project,…
Moving Out But Struggling to Move On
When it comes to education and work, many foster kids are already at a disadvantage when they enter the system, often coming from families beset by generational poverty. Unfortunately, their circumstances are not much improved once they “age out” of foster care, according to findings in a national survey by the organization Child Trends. The…
Don’t Count Out Human Workers Just Yet
“Robots may be taking over the world, but there’s got to be someone who builds them,” Meg Reinhardt says. And, thanks to on-the-job training she began in high school, Reinhardt plans to be one of the people who keep those robots going. Think you need a four-year college degree for that? Well, think again. Reinhardt,…
From the Frying Pan of Foster Care to the Fire of Adulthood
Finally becoming old enough to drink legally is often accompanied by a night out on the town, but the experience can be quite different for foster kids in Missouri. “We’ve heard stories of kids who were dropped off at City Union Mission by their social worker because it’s the kid’s 21st birthday,” said Nathan Ross,…
Making The Case For ‘Workforce Development’
Is it possible to establish a link between the U.S. civil rights movement and the fall of the Berlin Wall? You can, as it turns out, when it comes to job training and career readiness. The video above traces that history, and brings into focus the nebulous term “workforce development.” This introductory piece kicks off…
A Pathway is to a Major …
As a newly minted graduate of Truman High School, Shelby Fordham already has her career path set: earn a doctorate in economics, and then help guide the nation’s economy by working at the Federal Reserve. She attributed that clarity to her experience with the Independence School District’s high school academies, which the district implemented in…
How Do Schools Prepare Students For The Digital Economy?
Jeremy Bonneson, vice principal of Summit Technology Academy in Lee’s Summit, Missouri, asked curiousKC: “How do schools adapt to the ever-changing and disruptive nature of the workforce landscape for today’s digital economy?” The question was right in our wheelhouse because Kansas City PBS is examining local workforce development efforts through its participation in the national…
Connected, Collaborative, Personalized: Hear KC’s Ideas for the School of the Future
The Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation recently hosted the Rethink Ed conference in Kansas City, a gathering that drew more than 300 attendees from throughout the region, including business leaders, educators, and high school students. The central question of the conference was this: “What are the skills, abilities, and mindset high school students need before graduation…
Take Note: Education Series Returns with a Focus on the Future
In the Kansas City region, the story of education has many chapters. And with the publication of this video, Flatland picks up that story again through the Take Note project we launched last year. We will build on many of the themes we explored through our initial content, including health, safety and school choice. Our…
Career Education in Fourth Grade?
Holland 1916 is a North Kansas City, Missouri, manufacturing company with a history that dates back to the earliest years of the 20th century. But it has not shied away from a new approach to recruiting employees and preparing the workforce of tomorrow. The company regularly hosts fourth-graders at its Burlington Street headquarters to illustrate…