Boosting Go-On Rates: Idaho Press Club Awards Entry, Editorial Writing

014

Kelci Lynn Lucier, Brian Cronin, Casey Bender, Nicole Kinney

In partnership with: Don Soltman, Blake Youde, Molly Lenty, Rick Youngblood, and Christine Stoll

Idaho Press Club Awards | Public Relations Division | Editorial Writing

Boosting College Go-On Rates

Executive Summary

THE CHALLENGE

Strategies 360’s growing education practice served multiple organizations working to increase Idaho’s col-lege-going rate.

• Educate Idaho is a statewide network of resources promoting education and career readiness for success.

• Next Steps Idaho is a website that helps students, parents, and college counselors prepare for and navigate the college application process.

• IDeal is Idaho’s state-sponsored college savings plan, which offers savings and investment vehicles to help families save for college in a tax-advantaged way.

Each of our clients called on us to ensure that educators, policy makers, stakeholders, the media, and the general public know about existing and emerging tools and programs that help make higher education more accessible. As part of larger public relations efforts for each organization, Strategies 360 sought to draft compelling opinion pieces that offered a clear explanation of our clients’ initiatives and issued a strong, posi-tive call-to-action for readers.

THE STRATEGY

The opinion pieces were placed in the Idaho Statesman or Idaho Education News in order to reach the greatest number of policy makers and education stakeholders. The pieces emphasized Idaho’s dire need to improve its college-going rates. At the same time, we maintained a positive outlook and offered concrete, actionable information on how to improve. We believed it was imperative that we avoid a negative or critical tone, and instead recognize the hard work put in by countless individuals and organizations across the state while also prompting those same individuals to take advantage of these valuable resources.

THE SUCCESS

While our clients’ ability to impact Idaho’s college-going rates is yet to be seen, the opinion pieces helped our clients create a “splash” at critical junctures. IDeal’s piece ran during College Savings Month, the orga-nization’s annual effort to raise awareness for the plan. IDeal went on to have a record year for number of accounts opened. The piece about Educate Idaho ran a few days prior to the network’s launch conference, which attracted nearly 400 people, and jump-started regional collaboratives throughout the state. Finally, the piece on Next Steps Idaho helped fuel traffic to the site (more than 10,000 unique visits in the first three months), as well as stakeholder awareness of the resource. Governor Otter recently mentioned Next Steps Idaho in his annual state-of-the-state speech.

Let’s Innovate to Educate: Maximizing Our Collective Impact

The latest State Board of Education report on the number of students going on to college presents a clear challenge: only 50% of our students are enrolled in a 2- or 4-year institution a year after high school.

Through funding from a national College Access Challenge Grant, the State Board of Education established the Educate Idaho Network, a statewide collaboration of resources promoting education and career readi-ness and success. College access network models have strengthened the college-going culture in other communities facing similar challenges.

The Educate Idaho Network is innovatively approaching Idaho’s college go-on numbers. Our membership represents the state’s K-12, higher education, business, policy, early childhood education, and non-profit communities, thereby providing better coordination among sectors that may not interact during a typical day. Our goal is to serve as the statewide network of resources promoting education and career readiness for success along the full continuum of learning.

So how will we do it?

We will provide regional collaboration, collective partnerships, and support systems for those who know Ida-ho best. Our 50% go-on rate does not mean there are no successful go-on programs in the state. Rather, it means that the successful—and potentially successful—go-on programs that do exist need to be better shared and expanded. The cross-disciplinary collaboration inherent in the Educate Idaho Network will sup-port the innovation, testing, and monitoring of strategies and programs so that we can see and share best practices.

We need tailor conversation to different regions and communities to better meet local needs. We are excited to be learning about and sharing the successes of many organizations and collaborations throughout the state that are making a difference.

The conversation around Idaho’s college enrollment and graduation rates is not new. Some efforts to im-prove those rates have worked while others have fallen short; still others need to be given more time.

One key element sometimes missing from these conversations has been how to support those working day in, day out to promote college and career preparation and success. How do we, a broad cross-section of Idahoans, support the supporters? How can constituencies in diverse sectors work in partnership, given that our collective success depends on a well-prepared citizenry and workforce?

On September 1, Educate Idaho will host a conference in Boise to build collaborative efforts across the state. By bringing educators, policymakers, business leaders, community members, and education advo-cates together, we will highlight issues and initiatives, inform, share resources, and advocate—both regional-ly and statewide—for the purpose of improving education outcomes. Dynamic speakers will spark innovative thinking around big challenges. If you want to participate in this critical conversation, please join us. If you know of others from across the state who could contribute to and benefit from this event, please tell them to come. The conference will begin at 7:30 a.m. at the Riverside Hotel; more information and registration can be found at http://bit.ly/1gNxkY2.

We already share the best of intentions; let’s share our best ideas and practices, too. Let’s maximize our collective impact. Let’s innovate to educate. Let’s Educate Idaho.

Molly Lenty is VP, Community Affairs Officer for Wells Fargo and Co-Chair of the Educate Idaho Network. Rep. Rick Youngblood (District 12, Nampa) serves on the Educate Idaho Steering Committee.

11/4/2015 Guest Opinion: Innovation, collaboration can maximize education impact | Idaho Statesman

http://www.idahostatesman.com/opinion/readers-opinion/article41566059.html 1/3

GUEST OPINIONS AUGUST 26, 2015

Guest Opinion: Innovation, collaboration can maximize education

impact

i

By Molly Lenty and Rep. Rick Youngblood

The latest State Board of Education report on the number of students going on to college presents a clear challenge: Only 50 percent of our students

are enrolled in a two- or four-year institution a year after high school.

Through funding from a national College Access Challenge Grant, the State Board of Education established the Educate Idaho Network, a statewide

collaboration of resources promoting education and career readiness and success. College access network models have strengthened the college-going

culture in other communities facing similar challenges.

The Educate Idaho Network is hoping to improve Idaho’s college go-on numbers. Our membership represents the state’s K-12, higher education,

business, policy, early childhood education, and nonprofit communities, thereby providing coordination among sectors that may not interact during a

typical day. Our goal is to serve as the statewide network of resources promoting education and career readiness for success along the full continuum

of learning.

So how will we do it?

We will provide regional collaboration, collective partnerships and support systems for those who know Idaho best. Our 50 percent go-on rate does

not mean there are no successful programs in the state. Rather, it means that the successful — and potentially successful — go-on programs that do

exist need to be better shared and expanded. The cross-disciplinary collaboration inherent in the Educate Idaho Network will support the innovation,

testing, and monitoring of strategies and programs so that we can see and share best practices.

We need to tailor conversation to different regions and communities to better meet local needs. We are excited to be learning about and sharing the

successes of many organizations and collaborations throughout the state that are making a difference.

The conversation around Idaho’s college enrollment and graduation rates is not new. Some efforts to improve those rates have worked while others

have fallen short; still others need to be given more time.

The latest State Board of Education report on the number of students going on to college presents a clear challenge: Only 50 percent of our students are

enrolled in a two- or four-year institution a year after high school.

HIGHLIGHTS

11/4/2015 Guest Opinion: Innovation, collaboration can maximize education impact | Idaho Statesman


One key element sometimes missing from these conversations has been how to support those working day in, day out to promote college and career

preparation and success. How do we, a broad cross-section of Idahoans, support the supporters? How can constituencies in diverse sectors work in

partnership, given that our collective success depends on a well-prepared citizenry and workforce?

On Sept. 1, Educate Idaho will host a conference in Boise to build collaborative efforts across the state. By bringing educators, policymakers, business

leaders, community members and education advocates together, we will highlight issues and initiatives, inform, share resources, and advocate —

both regionally and statewide — for the purpose of improving education outcomes. Dynamic speakers will spark innovative thinking around big

challenges. If you want to participate in this critical conversation, please join us. If you know of others from across the state who could contribute to

and benefit from this event, please tell them to come. The conference will begin at 7:30 a.m. at the Riverside Hotel; more information and

registration can be found at http://bit.ly/1gNxkY2.

We share the best of intentions; let’s share our best ideas and practices, too. Let’s maximize our collective impact. Let’s innovate to educate. Let’s

Educate Idaho.

Molly Lenty is vice-president, community affairs officer for Wells Fargo and co-chair of the Educate Idaho Network. Rep. Rick Youngblood (District

12, Nampa) serves on the Educate Idaho Steering Committee.

MORE GUEST OPINIONS

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New Partnerships to Build College-Going Culture

Summer is coming to a close, high school graduates are starting their post-secondary journeys, and Idaho received yet another reminder of one of our biggest challenges: only half of Idaho’s Class of 2014 enrolled in post-secondary education. While the news is unsettling, initiatives brewing in Idaho give us hope that the state’s education stakeholders are still making headway in solving this vexing challenge. It’s no secret that Idaho’s educators, education stakeholders, and higher-ed advocates are laser-focused on increasing our postsecondary enrollment rates. However, we’re learning that the best results come when we engage stakeholders across sectors, disciplines, and areas of expertise. Research commissioned by the State Board of Education last year confirmed this growing sentiment: students need to hear the go-on message from every corner of their communities, and they (and their parents) need positive, actionable ad-vice about how exactly to “go on.” Raising Idaho’s go-on rate hinges on educators, policymakers, nonprofits, businesses, and families creatively joining forces to shoulder the weight of Idaho’s go-on problem and create a college-going culture.

The exciting news is that several new projects in Idaho are doing just that. The City of Caldwell received national recognition for their program, Caldwell Saves 1st, which provides an Idaho 529 College Savings Program (IDeal) account with up to $50 of community-raised matching money to Caldwell first graders if their parents agree to attend financial literacy classes, taught by community volunteers.

Similarly, the College of Western Idaho announced a new scholarship, CWIDeal Boost, through which they will provide matching scholarships to help cover tuition and fees to qualifying students who use an IDeal College Savings account to pay for college. CWI envisions a future where local stakeholders (including busi-nesses) help fund a growing program. A 2010 study from Washington University in St. Louis shows students with a college savings account are 4-7 times more likely to attend and graduate from college. The message of both programs is that the community is willing to invest in the success of families who themselves invest in post-secondary education and, frankly, have skin in the game.

Finally, the formation of the Educate Idaho Network will bring more voices and resources to the conversation. The Educate Idaho Network is a statewide collaboration of business, policy, community, and education in-terests. Additionally, the State Board of Education invested College Access Challenge Grant funds to create a new website, Next Steps Idaho, which will serve as the state’s hub of college access information and help students and families navigate the process of going on to college and other post-secondary training pro-grams.

On September 1, the Educate Idaho Network is convening a statewide summit in Boise, where we will innovate, collaborate, share best practices, and facilitate critical regional partnerships as we work toward the goal of getting 60% of our high school graduates to obtain a post-secondary degree or certificate.

Idaho’s education stakeholders are fostering new partnerships to build a college-going culture, approach-ing this challenge from many different angles and perspectives. Our shared responsibility as investors and stakeholders in Idaho’s future requires creative solutions and approaches. Idaho’s educational success of tomorrow depends on how we work in partnership today, and I, for one, am excited at the potential our collective impact has to offer.

Christie Stoll is the Executive Director of IDeal—Idaho 529 College Savings Program and the Co-Chair of the Educate Idaho Network. For more information about IDeal visit www.idsaves.org.

(HTTP://WWW.IDAHOEDNEWS.ORG)Idaho's source for education news

NEW PARTNERSHIPS TO BUILD COLLEGE-GOING CULTURE

CHRISTIE STOLL (HTTP://WWW.IDAHOEDNEWS.ORG/AUTHOR/CHRISTIE-STOLL/) () / AUGUST 28, 2015 (HTTP://WWW.IDAHOEDNEWS.ORG/2015/08/28/)

Summer is coming to a close, high school graduates are starting their post-secondary journeys, and Idaho received yet another reminder of one of our biggest

challenges: only half of Idaho’s class of 2014 enrolled in post-secondary education. While the news is unsettling, initiatives brewing in Idaho give us hope that the

state’s education stakeholders are still making headway in solving this vexing challenge.

It’s no secret that Idaho’s educators, education stakeholders, and higher-ed advocates are laser-focused on increasing our postsecondary enrollment rates. However,

we’re learning that the best results come when we engage stakeholders across sectors, disciplines, and areas of expertise. Research commissioned by the State Board

of Education last year confirmed this growing sentiment: students need to hear the go-on message from every corner of their communities, and they (and their

parents) need positive, actionable advice about how exactly to “go on.” Raising Idaho’s go-on rate hinges on educators, policymakers, nonprofits, businesses, and

families creatively joining forces to shoulder the weight of Idaho’s go-on problem and create a college-going culture.

The exciting news is that several new projects in Idaho are doing just that. The City of Caldwell received national recognition for their program, Caldwell Saves 1st

(http://city.cityofcaldwell.com/file_depot/0-10000000/10000-20000/13986/folder/105882/Caldwell%20Saves%201st%20Gets%20National%20Attention), which provides

an Idaho 529 College Savings Program (IDeal) account with up to $50 of community-raised matching money to Caldwell first graders if their parents agree to attend

financial literacy classes, taught by community volunteers.

Similarly, the College of Western Idaho announced a new scholarship, CWIDeal Boost (http://cwidaho.cc/current-students/cwideal-boost-scholarship), through which

they will provide matching scholarships to help cover tuition and fees to qualifying students who use an IDeal College Savings account to pay for college. CWI envisions

a future where local stakeholders (including businesses) help fund a growing program. A 2010 study from Washington University in St. Louis shows students with a

college savings account are 4-7 times more likely to attend and graduate from college. The message of both programs is that the community is willing to invest in the

success of families who themselves invest in post-secondary education and, frankly, have skin in the game.

Finally, the formation of the Educate Idaho Network will bring more voices and resources to the conversation. The Educate Idaho Network is a statewide collaboration

of business, policy, community, and education interests. Additionally, the State Board of Education invested College Access Challenge Grant funds to create a new

website, Next Steps Idaho, which will serve as the state’s hub of college access information and help students and families navigate the process of going on to college

and other post-secondary training programs.

On September 1, the Educate Idaho Network is convening a statewide summit in Boise, where we will innovate, collaborate, share best practices, and facilitate critical

regional partnerships as we work toward the goal of getting 60 percent of our high school graduates to obtain a post-secondary degree or certificate.

Idaho’s education stakeholders are fostering new partnerships to build a college-going culture, approaching this challenge from many different angles and

perspectives. Our shared responsibility as investors and stakeholders in Idaho’s future requires creative solutions and approaches. Idaho’s educational success of

tomorrow depends on how we work in partnership today, and I, for one, am excited at the potential our collective impact has to offer.

Christie Stoll is the Executive Director of IDeal (Idaho 529 College Savings Program) and the co-chair of the Educate Idaho Network. For more information about IDeal

visit www.idsaves.org (http://www.idsaves.org).

1781Like

YOU MAY ALSO LIKE...

(HTTP://WWW.IDAHOEDNEWS.ORG)Idaho's source for education news

NEW PARTNERSHIPS TO BUILD COLLEGE-GOING CULTURE

CHRISTIE STOLL (HTTP://WWW.IDAHOEDNEWS.ORG/AUTHOR/CHRISTIE-STOLL/) () / AUGUST 28, 2015 (HTTP://WWW.IDAHOEDNEWS.ORG/2015/08/28/)

Summer is coming to a close, high school graduates are starting their post-secondary journeys, and Idaho received yet another reminder of one of our biggest

challenges: only half of Idaho’s class of 2014 enrolled in post-secondary education. While the news is unsettling, initiatives brewing in Idaho give us hope that the

state’s education stakeholders are still making headway in solving this vexing challenge.

It’s no secret that Idaho’s educators, education stakeholders, and higher-ed advocates are laser-focused on increasing our postsecondary enrollment rates. However,

we’re learning that the best results come when we engage stakeholders across sectors, disciplines, and areas of expertise. Research commissioned by the State Board

of Education last year confirmed this growing sentiment: students need to hear the go-on message from every corner of their communities, and they (and their

parents) need positive, actionable advice about how exactly to “go on.” Raising Idaho’s go-on rate hinges on educators, policymakers, nonprofits, businesses, and

families creatively joining forces to shoulder the weight of Idaho’s go-on problem and create a college-going culture.

The exciting news is that several new projects in Idaho are doing just that. The City of Caldwell received national recognition for their program, Caldwell Saves 1st

(http://city.cityofcaldwell.com/file_depot/0-10000000/10000-20000/13986/folder/105882/Caldwell%20Saves%201st%20Gets%20National%20Attention), which provides

an Idaho 529 College Savings Program (IDeal) account with up to $50 of community-raised matching money to Caldwell first graders if their parents agree to attend

financial literacy classes, taught by community volunteers.

Similarly, the College of Western Idaho announced a new scholarship, CWIDeal Boost (http://cwidaho.cc/current-students/cwideal-boost-scholarship), through which

they will provide matching scholarships to help cover tuition and fees to qualifying students who use an IDeal College Savings account to pay for college. CWI envisions

a future where local stakeholders (including businesses) help fund a growing program. A 2010 study from Washington University in St. Louis shows students with a

college savings account are 4-7 times more likely to attend and graduate from college. The message of both programs is that the community is willing to invest in the

success of families who themselves invest in post-secondary education and, frankly, have skin in the game.

Finally, the formation of the Educate Idaho Network will bring more voices and resources to the conversation. The Educate Idaho Network is a statewide collaboration

of business, policy, community, and education interests. Additionally, the State Board of Education invested College Access Challenge Grant funds to create a new

website, Next Steps Idaho, which will serve as the state’s hub of college access information and help students and families navigate the process of going on to college

and other post-secondary training programs.

On September 1, the Educate Idaho Network is convening a statewide summit in Boise, where we will innovate, collaborate, share best practices, and facilitate critical

regional partnerships as we work toward the goal of getting 60 percent of our high school graduates to obtain a post-secondary degree or certificate.

Idaho’s education stakeholders are fostering new partnerships to build a college-going culture, approaching this challenge from many different angles and

perspectives. Our shared responsibility as investors and stakeholders in Idaho’s future requires creative solutions and approaches. Idaho’s educational success of

tomorrow depends on how we work in partnership today, and I, for one, am excited at the potential our collective impact has to offer.

Christie Stoll is the Executive Director of IDeal (Idaho 529 College Savings Program) and the co-chair of the Educate Idaho Network. For more information about IDeal

visit www.idsaves.org (http://www.idsaves.org).

1781Like

YOU MAY ALSO LIKE...

Next Steps Idaho: Moving from a 50% Reality to a 60% Success Story

You may have wondered what it means when you see or hear news reports that only 50% of Idaho’s high school graduates are enrolled in college or career programs one year after graduating. Why is this figure so important? More importantly, what is Idaho doing to change these numbers?

The Idaho State Board of Education has been working toward its goal of 60% of Idahoans between the ages of 25 and 34 possessing a postsecondary degree or certificate by 2020. Having 60% of our young citizens with postsecondary training or degrees is no longer just a far-off goal for the future; it is a necessity given today’s economic realities.

I am excited to announce the launch of Next Steps Idaho, an online resource and public outreach campaign designed to prepare Idaho’s students for a successful life after high school. You can access this great re-source—one of several initiatives focused on our postsecondary educational attainment rates—at nextsteps.idaho.gov.

The Next Steps Idaho website helps reduce the confusion and uncertainty that many students and families experience regarding going on to college. It provides free, Idaho-specific advice, with information about Ida-ho colleges, universities, technical training programs, and other postsecondary options. It offers download-able tools, such as checklists for each year your student is in high school. The calendar lets you know about events like College Application Week and financial aid deadlines. It also offers an admissions tracker, where you can keep track of what you need to submit to apply for Idaho schools, and a GPA calculator to ensure you are staying on track academically. And last but not least, the site provides information not only on how to get into college but also on how to pay for it.

Next Steps Idaho was designed based on focus group research we conducted with Idaho students about their needs. It is student friendly and organized with students and their families in mind. It does not intend to tell students what to do; rather, it aims to provide students and families with all of the information (and moti-vation) they need—in one, easy-to-access place—to make the decisions that are right for them.

There has been a lot of collaboration behind the scenes, too. With funding from a College Access Grant from the U.S. Department of Education, the Idaho State Board of Education worked in partnership with Idaho Career Information System, the State Department of Education, the Department of Labor, Idaho Dig-ital Learning Academy, the Idaho Division of Professional-Technical Education, and key community leaders, educators, and policymakers.

I hope you’ll join me in spreading the word about Next Steps Idaho and what it has to offer. Let’s shift the conversation—together—from a discussion about how much Idaho’s go-on rate needs to improve to a suc-cess story that the nation can learn from.

Don Soltman is President of the Idaho State Board of Education.

11/4/2015 Guest Opinion: Next Steps Idaho can improve Idaho’s go-on rates | Idaho Statesman


GUEST OPINIONS SEPTEMBER 24, 2015

Guest Opinion: Next Steps Idaho can

improve Idaho’s go-on rates

i

You may have wondered what it means when you hear news reports that only 50 percent of

Idaho’s high school graduates are enrolled in college or career programs one year after

graduating. Why is this figure so important? More importantly, what is Idaho doing to change

these numbers?

HIGHLIGHTS



By Don Soltman

You may have wondered what it means when you hear news reports that only 50 percent

of Idaho’s high school graduates are enrolled in college or career programs one year after

graduating. Why is this figure so important? More importantly, what is Idaho doing to

change these numbers?

The Idaho State Board of Education has been working toward its goal of 60 percent of

Idahoans between the ages of 25 and 34 possessing a postsecondary degree or certificate

by 2020. Having 60 percent of our young citizens with postsecondary training or degrees is

no longer just a far-off goal for the future — it is a necessity given today’s economic

realities.

I am excited to announce the launch of Next Steps Idaho, an online resource and public

outreach campaign designed to prepare Idaho’s students for a successful life after high

school. You can access this great resource — one of several initiatives focused on our

postsecondary educational attainment rates — at nextsteps.idaho.gov.

The Next Steps Idaho website helps reduce the confusion and uncertainty many students

and families experience regarding going on to college. It provides free, Idaho-specific

advice, with information about Idaho colleges, universities, technical training programs,

and other postsecondary options. It offers downloadable tools, such as checklists for each

year your student is in high school. The calendar lets you know about events like College

Application Week and financial aid deadlines. It also offers an admissions tracker, where

you can keep track of what you need to submit to apply for Idaho schools, and a GPA

calculator to ensure you are staying on track academically. And last but not least, the site

provides information not only on how to get into college but also on how to pay for it.

Next Steps Idaho was designed based on focus group research we conducted with Idaho

students about their needs. It is student friendly and organized with students and their

families in mind. It does not intend to tell students what to do; rather, it aims to provide

students and families with all of the information (and motivation) they need — in one, easy-

to-access place — to make the decisions that are right for them.

There has been a lot of collaboration behind the scenes, too. With funding from a College

Access Challenge Grant from the U.S. Department of Education, the Idaho State Board of

Education worked in partnership with Idaho Career Information System, the State



By Don Soltman

You may have wondered what it means when you hear news reports that only 50 percent

of Idaho’s high school graduates are enrolled in college or career programs one year after

graduating. Why is this figure so important? More importantly, what is Idaho doing to

change these numbers?

The Idaho State Board of Education has been working toward its goal of 60 percent of

Idahoans between the ages of 25 and 34 possessing a postsecondary degree or certificate

by 2020. Having 60 percent of our young citizens with postsecondary training or degrees is

no longer just a far-off goal for the future — it is a necessity given today’s economic

realities.

I am excited to announce the launch of Next Steps Idaho, an online resource and public

outreach campaign designed to prepare Idaho’s students for a successful life after high

school. You can access this great resource — one of several initiatives focused on our

postsecondary educational attainment rates — at nextsteps.idaho.gov.

The Next Steps Idaho website helps reduce the confusion and uncertainty many students

and families experience regarding going on to college. It provides free, Idaho-specific

advice, with information about Idaho colleges, universities, technical training programs,

and other postsecondary options. It offers downloadable tools, such as checklists for each

year your student is in high school. The calendar lets you know about events like College

Application Week and financial aid deadlines. It also offers an admissions tracker, where

you can keep track of what you need to submit to apply for Idaho schools, and a GPA

calculator to ensure you are staying on track academically. And last but not least, the site

provides information not only on how to get into college but also on how to pay for it.

Next Steps Idaho was designed based on focus group research we conducted with Idaho

students about their needs. It is student friendly and organized with students and their

families in mind. It does not intend to tell students what to do; rather, it aims to provide

students and families with all of the information (and motivation) they need — in one, easy-

to-access place — to make the decisions that are right for them.

There has been a lot of collaboration behind the scenes, too. With funding from a College

Access Challenge Grant from the U.S. Department of Education, the Idaho State Board of

Education worked in partnership with Idaho Career Information System, the State11/4/2015 Guest Opinion: Next Steps Idaho can improve Idaho’s go-on rates | Idaho Statesman


Department of Education, the Department of Labor, Idaho Digital Learning Academy, the

Idaho Division of Professional-Technical Education, and key community leaders, educators

and policymakers.

I hope you’ll join me in spreading the word about Next Steps Idaho and what it has to

offer. Let’s shift the conversation — together — from a discussion about how much Idaho’s

go-on rate needs to improve to a success story that the nation can learn from.

Don Soltman is president of the Idaho State Board of Education.

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Boosting Go-On Rates: Idaho Press Club Awards Entry, Editorial Writing