Wyoming P-16 Education Council
Dr. Jim Lowham was recently appointed a position on the Wyoming P-16 Education Council (preschool through the fourth year of college). According to the council’s purpose and mission statement, the purpose of the council is to “guide the development of a seamless statewide system of education in which all levels of education coordinate, communicate and educate as one system.” The council aids with “the continuous, coordinated evaluation and improvement of five related P-16 system components: academic standards, curricula, assessments, instructional quality and system accountability.”
“I feel very strongly that we can better prepare students for the 12th- through 16th-grade portions of learning when we know the expectations,” Dr. Lowham said. “We best figure out these expectations when we are able to see the work professors ask of students, and the standards to which they judge the work.”
In a letter written to Dr. Lowham, Gov. Dave Freudenthal wrote that the immediate challenges that the council will address are implementation of the Hathaway Scholarship Program, student academic data collection, the K-12 dropout rate, the relatively low baccalaureate completion rate and the continuing workforce education needs.
Dr. Lowham believes that if we can analyze the work expected of future students and share this information with all, we’ll know how to prepare students for their next step. He said the same also applies to expectations employers have when talking about new and transitioning employees.
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