Investing in workforce development programs to prepare students for their future careers

It’s a quintessential Maine scene: a lobster boat cutting through the morning fog toward the sunrise on the horizon, the ship’s engine rumbling steadily. The captain steering the Knot Nau boat has over ten years of experience on the water, 12 years to be precise; but she’s still in high school.

“I love, love, love my job. I love it very much. It’s kind of therapeutic for me,” said Morgan, a sophomore at Region 10 Technical High School in Brunswick. “I come from a long line of really good work ethic, and having that work ethic is helpful, especially when entering the workforce.”

Morgan is one of many Maine students already working at the state level, and she’s using her time at school to launch her career. In Region 10, she is taking welding courses, learning skills that she believes will directly translate into maintaining her lobster boat.

“This is my happy place,” Morgan said of Region 10.

The Maine Department of Education (DOE) has a mission to support such workforce development programs for high school students across the state, ensuring they have access to a wider range of career opportunities after graduation. This work is largely the result of federal emergency funding for the Covid-19 pandemic. Thanks to Governor Janet Mills’ Maine Jobs and Recovery Plan, the Maine Department of State has expanded the Expanded Learning Opportunities (ELO) program to reach 3,368 Maine students. ELO emphasizes community-based career exploration beyond the traditional classroom.

“We are offering expanded learning opportunities in this state because we want young people to have a clearer sense of what they want to pursue after high school,” said Eliza Keniugsberg, career aspirations and ELO coordinator at Gorham High School.

For Maine students like Madison, a senior at Brewer High School who plans to pursue a career in education, this program offers valuable information.

“Most people go to college thinking about what degree they want to pursue, and then they change it,” she said. “(ELO) really helps me know that I really want to teach.”

Maine’s Jobs and Recovery Plan also provided grants to career and technical education (CTE) schools across the state to purchase new equipment. Caribou Technology Center in Aroostook County used the funds to purchase a John Deere tractor with advanced GPS capabilities. We hope that having cutting-edge technology will enable students to transition more quickly from school to work in their field.

“Ninety-five percent of farmers (in Maine) have GPS and a lot of them call me asking for help,” said Scott Moore, an agricultural instructor at the Caribou Tech Center. “They want kids who can jump on tractors and go. Now that I have these tools (at school), I can immediately find work for students on the farm.”

Moore’s program at the Caribou Tech Center is quite popular among students because agriculture is an integral part of the Aroostook County community. Cameron, a Caribou Tech Center student who was born and raised in the area, said he was attracted to the program because it gives him first-hand exposure to the latest agricultural equipment.

“A little bit of everything,” Cameron said. “I’m driving bigger trucks and tractors and learning about something we all grew up around.”

The Maine Department of State used similar federal emergency relief funds to establish the Teach Maine program, another workforce development initiative designed specifically to increase the number of teachers in the state. A new chemistry lab for STEM majors was funded at Thomas College, as well as a summer camp at the University of New England for aspiring teachers.

Additionally, the Maine Department of State used the same funds to supplement early college programs such as Aspirations, which enable high school students to earn college credits. In 2020, during the height of the pandemic, enrollment in these programs increased dramatically. University of Maine Chancellor Dannel P. Malloy called the early college program at the time a “lifeline” for schools.

Together, these employee initiatives, as well as others such as the Maine Solutionaries Project and efforts to expand adult education resources, have resulted in more than 2,000 community partnerships.

“When students create strong community connections, they are more likely to remain in Maine after graduation,” said Maine DOE Commissioner Pender Makin. “This both strengthens our workforce and deepens its ties to our state.”

For Morgan, her Region 10 education is a major reason why she is successful both in and out of the classroom during her time at Knot Nau.

“Run, don’t walk,” Morgan advised other students considering joining the workforce development program. “It’s probably the best thing that will happen to you.”

All these programs are part of The entire student body’s response to the pandemic in Maine. For more information about the Maine Department of Energy’s efforts to strengthen the state’s workforce and how the department has allocated federal funds to do so amid the Covid-19 pandemic, visit Maine DOE website

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