Elkhart County's Horizon Project kicks off Education Initiative

But will the program find funding?

December 20, 2010|By Chad Damp (damp@wsbt.com)

A new Elkhart County education program is aiming to raise the graduation rate and prepare students to enter the workforce. The Elkhart County Horizon Project announced its Education Initiative Monday. It's designed to give students a head start toward a degree while also better preparing the local workforce for jobs.

The price tag for the project is between two and three-million dollars a year. While organizers say it's well worth the money, convincing people to pay for it could be a challenge.

Created in 2002, the Elkhart County Horizon Project brings together business and community leaders to address countywide challenges. The group realized to improve the area's economy, they must improve the workforce. So Monday they announced the Elkhart County Education Initiative.

"It really is focused on our goal of allowing students or helping students be both career and college ready by the time they leave high school," said Elkhart Community Schools Superintendant, Mark Mow.

The plan has seven goals. Those include every student graduates either career or college-ready. Each student finishes high school with a college-accredited Associate's degree or technical certification. Classes with college credit will be offered to students free of charge, cutting college expenses for families by up to two years, just to name a few.

With the county having the highest unemployment rate in the state, organizers say it's time to change the way they prepare students.

"I think that you'll be hard pressed to find someone that doesn't recognize that we need to do something differently in our educational structure than we have in the past," said Horizon Project Chairperson, Dan Boecher.

But who's paying the two to three-million dollars a year to fund the project? Horizon is asking for a tax increase. They suggest a 1 percent food and beverage tax, which they say would adequately fund the program. But that idea is tough for some to digest.

"Right now I do not have one single lawmaker that says he will support any kind of a tax increase,” said Elkhart County Commissioner, Mike Yoder. “So we have a very large hurdle to overcome."

But the group is optimistic that once people understand the entire program, they will gain some support.

"It really gets down to that question of, can we afford not to do it, and we think the answer clearly is no," said Mow.

In order to start the new tax, the state legislature would have to pass a measure allowing the county to that. Then the county council would make the final decision.

The Horizon Group says public support is key to getting this project off the ground. They are encouraging the community to write letters to leaders at every level of government.

For information on the project, click on news links at the top of this page.

|

|

|