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ANN A R B O R , Ml 4 8 1 0 6 18 B E D F O R D ROW, L ONDON WC1R 4 E J . E N G L A N D 8106422 O b e r l a n d e r , M a r v in L e m a r A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF THE MOUNT PLEASANT AREA CENTER LONGITUDINAL FOLLOW-UP OF VOCATIONAL EDUCATION GRADUATES WITH THE MICHIGAN DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION ANNUAL FOLLOW-UP OF VOCATIONAL EDUCATION GRADUATES Michigan State University University Microfilms International Ph.D. 300 N. Zeeb Road, Ann Arbor, MI 48106 1980 A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF THE MOUNT PLEASANT AREA CENTER LONGITUDINAL FOLLOW-UP OF VOCATIONAL EDUCATION GRADUATES WITH THE MICHIGAN DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION ANNUAL FOLLOW-UP OF VOCATIONAL EDUCATION GRADUATES By Marvin L. Oberlander A DISSERTATION Submitted t o Michigan S t a t e U niv ersit y in p a r t i a l f u l f i l l m e n t o f t h e requirements f o r t h e degree o f DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY Department o f Secondary Education and Curriculum 1980 ABSTRACT A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF THE MOUNT PLEASANT AREA CENTER LONGITUDINAL FOLLOW-UP OF VOCATIONAL EDUCATION GRADUATES WITH THE MICHIGAN DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION ANNUAL FOLLOW-UP OF VOCATIONAL EDUCATION GRADUATES By Marvin L. Oberlander The purpose o f th e study was to develop a l o n g i tu d in a l follow-up f o r grad ua tes o f th e Mount P l e a s a n t Michigan Area Center. These da ta were compared with th e data c o l l e c t e d by t h e Michigan Department o f Education, Vocational Technical Education S er vices in t h e i r annual follow-up study o f v oc ational education gr adu ates in Michigan. the: The study focused on seven major o b j e c t i v e s . To determine e x t e n t to which s e l e c t e d s tu d e n t c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s e f f e c t t h e i r occupational ch oice, degree to which program grad uates have continued t h e i r involvement in f u r t h e r occupational and/or educa tiona l p r epara ­ t i o n , e x t e n t to which time e f f e c t e d grad uates employed in r e l a t e d o ccu p atio n s , impact o f geographic l o c a t i o n on r e l a t e d employment of g r a d u a te s , e f f e c t of a lo n g itu d in a l model on th e e v a l u a t io n o f voca­ t i o n a l ed ucation programs, co nsis tency in r e l a t e d employment by program, and employment/unemployment of g rad uates. To a t t a i n th e s t a t e d o b j e c t i v e s f o r th e stu dy, a l o n g i t u d i n a l model was developed t o c o l l e c t data from 1285 grad uates o f t h e Mount Marvin L. O b e r la n d e r P l e a s a n t Area Center from 1971 through 1976. The graduate s were surveyed e i g h t months, t h r e e , and f i v e y e a r s a f t e r g r a d u a t i o n . fo llow- up inst rum en t co ntai ned f o u r t e e n i n d i c e s : The employed f u l l tim e, employed p a r t t i m e , not a v a i l a b l e f o r employment, unemployed, s ex, m a r it a l s t a t u s , m i l i t a r y s e r v i c e , co ntinued educa ti on f u l l tim e, con tinue d education p a r t ti m e , geographic l o c a t i o n , program com­ p l e t e r s , program noncompleters, accumulative grade p o i n t average, and English grad es . Conclusions o f t h e s tudy were: 1. Graduates from th e Mount P l e a s a n t Area Center did not p a r a l l e l th e g r ad u ate d a ta compiled by t h e Michigan Department o f Vocational Technical Education S e r v ic e s . a. The average employment r a t e o f t h e s e g r a d u a t e s was 3 p er cen t h ig h e r than t h e S t a t e a verage. Important pro­ grammatic d i f f e r e n c e s were noted in c h i l d c a r e and machine shop, where employment was 22 and 33 p e r c e n t h i g h e r , r e s p e c t i v e l y , than t h e S t a t e aver ag e. b. The d a ta r e v e a l e d t h a t gr a d u a te s m ig rate to t h e s p e c i f i c occupations t r a i n e d f o r r a t h e r than j u s t to employment. c. 29 p e r c e n t o f t h e s e gr ad u ates contin ue d in h ig her edu ca tion compared to t h e S t a t e average o f 4 p e r c e n t . d. The C e n t e r ' s g r a d u a te av erage unemployment r a t e was 7 p e r c e n t compared t o 12 p e r c e n t f o r Michigan. e. While t h e p o p u la tio n in I s a b e l l a - G r a t i o t c o u n t i e s had a h i g h e r per ce nta ge o f Caucasians (98 p e r c e n t ) than t h e Marvin L. O b e rla n d e r S t a t e average (88 p e r c e n t ) , th e graduate placement was equal f o r Caucasians and non-Caucasians. 2. The t h r e e - t o f i v e - y e a r l o n g i t u d i n a l model provided a b e t t e r data base o f vocational ed ucation grad uates than an annual follow-up. a. Related employment in creased from 54 to 74 pe r c e n t. b. Overall employment in c r e a se d from 74 to 81 p ercent. c. The model provided a v e h i c l e t o monitor in dividual c a r e e r pa ths. d. The f i r s t and f i f t h y e a r s a f t e r g r a d u a t io n , 76 and 70 p er cen t of t h e vocational education graduates were in th e lo cal community. 3. Graduates mig ra ting out o f th e local community in crease d t h e i r o p p o r t u n i t i e s in r e l a t e d employment. 4. Female vocatio nal education grad ua tes from t h e Mount P le a s a n t Area Vocational Center had a higher r a t e o f employment in r e l a t e d o c c upations —76 p er cen t compared t o 55 percent f o r th e males. 5. Employment r e l a t e d t o i n s t r u c t i o n was h igher f o r voca­ t i o n a l ed ucation gr aduates who completed a voca tional program than f o r noncompleters. 6. The m a jo r ity of voca tional education grad uates had an o v e r a l l grade p o in t average and English grade of "C," with the ex ce ption o f c l e r i c a l and d r a f t i n g programs, which had 50 pe rcent with a "B" average o r high er . a. The o v e r a l l grade p o i n t average f o r t h e vocatio nal education grad ua tes o f some programs was s i g n i f i c a n t l y Marvin L. O b e rla n d e r lower than th e normal p o p u la ti o n ; however, t h e i r success in gai ni ng employment (93 p er cen t) was s u b s t a n t i a l l y h igher than t h e normal p o p ulation o f t h i s age group. 7. Graduates e n t e r i n g m i l i t a r y s e r v i c e from t h e Mount P le a s a n t Area Center came p r i m a r i l y from t r a d e and i n d u s t r i a l pro­ grams. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The w r i t e r i s very g r a t e f u l to t h e gr ad uates who responded to t h e q u e s t i o n n a i r e and t h e s t a f f a t t h e Mount P l e a s a n t Area Center f o r t h e i r a s s i s t a n c e and co operation in making t h i s d i s s e r t a t i o n p o s s i b l e . A s p e c i a l expr es sion o f a p p r e c i a t i o n i s extended t o Dr. Frank B o b b itt, Chairman of my Doctoral Committee, who has been a source of help and encouragement throughout t h e study. A s i n c e r e thanks i s due Dr. Daniel Kruger, Dr. George Ferns and Dr. C l i f f o r d Jump who gave so generously o f t h e i r time and wise counsel during th e progre ss o f th e study. L a s t l y I d e d ic a te t h i s d i s s e r t a t i o n to my w if e , Nelda, f o r her p a t i e n c e and s u p p o rt , f o r t h e inconvenience and d i s r u p t i o n which she and my family have borne so understand!'ngly on my b e h a l f . TABLE OF CONTENTS Page LIST OF TABLES vi Chapter I. II. III. IV. THE PROBLEM.................................................................................... 1 Background o f the Study .................................................... Statement o f t h e Problem .................................................... Purpose .................................................................................... Objectives ............................................................................. Research Questions .......................................................... S i g n i f i c a n c e o f t h e Study .................................................... D e l im ita ti o n s o f th e Study ............................................. Assumptions of t h e Study ...................................................... Terminology of th e S t u d y ...................................................... 3 7 8 8 9 10 12 13 14 REVIEW OF LITERATURE................................................................. 17 Eva luation in Vocational Education ................................. Need For and Value o f Longitudinal Studies . . . Vocational Education Follow-Up Studies . . . . Labor Market Review ................................................................. Population by Race ................................................................. 18 21 28 39 44 METHODOLOGY AND DATA COLLECTION......................................... 46 P o p u l a t i o n .................................................................................... Programs Studied ....................................................................... Data C o l l e c ti o n Instrument ............................................. Data C o l l e c ti o n Procedures ............................................. Data Analysis ............................................................................. Evaluation Model ....................................................................... 46 47 48 49 51 52 ANALYSIS OF THE D A T A ................................................................. 53 Placement and Unemployment o f Vocational Education G r a d u a t e s .............................................................................. Employment of Graduates .................................................... Other: Including M i l i t a r y S e r v ic e , Homemaker and Not Available f o r Regular Employment . . . . iii 53 54 56 C h apter Page Placement in Continued Education ................................. Unemployment o f Graduates .............................................. Employment of Vocational Education Graduates . . The E f f e c t o f Time on t h e Employment o f Graduates from the Mount P le a s a n t Area Vocational Center. The A f fe c t o f Marital S t a t e s on th e Employment o f Vocational Education Graduates o f th e Mount P le a s a n t Area Center .................................................... Job R e l a t e d n e s s ....................................................................... Employed Graduates in a Related Occupation . . Employed Vocational Education Graduates Complet­ ing a Vocational Education Program and Employed Vocational Education Graduates not Completing a Vocational Education Program and T h e ir Entry in t o a Related O c c u p a t i o n ....................................... A Comparison o f Male and Female Employment in Related Occupations .................................................... Unduplicated Longitudinal Comparison o f Related Employment o f Male and Female Graduates . . . Programatic Longitudinal Comparison o f Vocational Education Graduates Who Were Employed in an Occupation Related t o T h e ir T raining . . . . Vocational Education Graduates Continuing Their E d u c a t i o n ...................................................................... .. . Continued Education by Program Completers and Noncompleters ................................................................. Mobility o f Vocational Education Graduates . . . Geographic Location o f Vocational Graduates by P r o g r a m ............................................................... 79 Related Employment t o Geographic Location . . . Graduates Entering t h e M i l i t a r y S ervic e . . . S c h o l a s t i c Grades o f Vocational Education Gradu­ .................................................................................... ates English Grades o f t h e Mount P le a sa n t Vocational High School Graduates .................................................... V. SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS, RECOMMENDATIONS, AND IMPLICA­ TIONS FOR FURTHER RESEARCH .................................................... Summary o f Question Question Question Question Question Question Question Question Question t h e Findings .................................................... 1 .............................................................................. 2 .............................................................................. 3 .............................................................................. 4 .............................................................................. 5 .............................................................................. 6 .............................................................................. 7 .............................................................................. 8 .............................................................................. 9 .............................................................................. iv 57 58 59 59 63 63 65 68 70 70 70 74 77 79 82 82 85 88 91 92 94 96 97 98 99 99 100 100 101 C h ap ter Page Question 1 0 ............................................................................. Question 1 1 .............................................................................. Question 1 2 .............................................................................. Question 1 3 .............................................................................. C o n c l u s i o n s .................................................................................... Recommendations .............................................................................. I m p l ic a tio n s .................................................................................... 101 102 102 102 103 106 107 APPENDICES....................................................................................................... 110 A. Michigan Department o f Education Vocational Education Job Placement and Continued Education Summary by Program Within S t a t e 1-28-76 ............................................... Ill B. F i r s t Year Follow-Up F o r m ........................................................ 114 C. Third and F i f t h Year Follow-Up Form .................................... 117 D. Follow-Up L e t t e r ........................................................................ 119 ................................................................................................. 121 BIBLIOGRAPHY v LIST OF TABLES Table 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. Page Composition o f t h e S t a t e of Michigan Labor Force and th e I s a b e l ! a - G r a t i o t Counties Labor Force by Occupat i o n s —1970 ........................................................................................... 40 Composition o f th e I s a b e l ! a - G r a t i o t Counties Labor Force in Rank Order Compared t o th e S t a t e o f Michigan ................................ Labor Force Rank Order byOccupation 42 Population Comparison o f th e S t a t e of Michigan by Race with I s a b e l 1a - G r a t i o t Counties Population by Race . . 45 Placement and Unemployment Comparison o f t h e S t a t e o f Michigan Annual Follow-up o f th e 1975 Vocational Educa­ t i o n Graduates and t h e Longitudinal Follow-up o f F i r s t Year Vocational Education Graduates a t th e Mount P le a s a n t Area Center ....................................................................... 55 A One-, T hree-, and Five-Year Comparison o f th e Voca­ t i o n a l Education Graduates That Were Employed Full Time, P a r t Time and Not Avai lab le f o r Employment . . 62 A One-, T h r e e - , and Five-Year Marital S t a t u s Comparison o f t h e Full-Time and Part-Time Employed and Not Av ail­ able f o r Employment Graduates o f t h e Area Center . . 64 A One-, T hree-, and Five-Year Comparison o f th e Employed Vocational Education Graduates by Vocational Education Program That Were Employed in a Related O c c u p a t i o n ...................................................................... 66 A One-, T hree-, and Five-Year Comparison of Employed Vocational Education Graduates Completing a Vocational Program and Employed Vocational Education Graduates not Completing a Vocational Program a t t h e Mount P l e a s a n t Area Center and T h e ir Entry in to Related or Non-Related Employment ............................................................... 69 A One-, T hree-, and Five-Year Comparison o f Related Employment by Male and Female Employed Graduates a t th e Mount P le a s a n t Area Center ................................................ 71 vi T a b le 10. Page An Unduplicated Longitudinal Comparison o f Related Employment o f Male and Female Graduates o f th e Mount P le a s a n t Area Center ...................................................................... 72 A Programatic Longitudinal Comparison of Vocational Education Graduates That Were Employed in an Occupa­ t i o n Related to T h e ir T raining a t t h e Mount P l e a s a n t Area C e n t e r ........................................................................................... 73 A One-, T h r e e - , and Five-Year Comparison of th e Mount P l e a s a n t Area Center Vocational Education Graduates That Continued in Higher Education on a Full-Time o r P a r t Time B a s i s ........................................................................................... 75 Unduplicated Count o f Mount P le a s a n t Area Center Voca­ t i o n a l Education Graduates That Continued in Higher E d u c a t i o n ................................................................................................. 77 A One-, T h r e e - , and Five-Year Comparison o f Continued Education by Vocational Education Graduates t h a t Com­ p l e t e d a Vocational Program and Graduates Who Did not Complete a Vocational Program a t th e Mount P le a s a n t Area C e n t e r ........................................................................................... 78 A One-, T h r e e - , and Five-Year Comparison o f Geographic Location o f Vocational Education Graduates from th e Mount P l e a s a n t Area Center ........................................................... 81 Related Employment Comparison o f t h e Mount P l e a s a n t Area Center Vocational Education Graduates and Geographic Location One, Three, and Five Years L a te r ............................. 83 Comparison of P a r t i c i p a t i o n in th e M i l i t a r y Servic e by Graduates o f t h e Mount P l e a s a n t Area Center Vocational Education Programs .............................................................................. 84 Overall High School Grade P oint Average o f th e Mount P l e a s a n t High School Vocational Education Graduates That Attended t h e Area Vocational Center by Program . . 87 English Grades o f th e Mount P le a s a n t High School Voca­ t i o n a l Education Graduates That Attended th e Area Vocational Center —by P r o g r a m .................................................... 89 A-l. Michigan Department o f Education Vocational Education Job Placement and Continued Education Summary by Program Within S t a t e ........................................................................ 112 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. v ii CHAPTER I THE PROBLEM The a r e a o f ed uca tio nal e v a lu a tio n has provided th e b a s is f o r a s e r i e s of ongoing debates s in c e t h e i n c e p t i o n o f p u b lic e d ucation. Vocational ed uc atio n i s no e x c e p ti o n , f o r i t s h i s t o r y i s in t e r t w i n e d with various e v a l u a t i v e questi ons and co ncerns. The passage of th e Smith-Hughes Act in 1917 provided funds to p u b lic schools f o r voca­ t i o n a l e d u catio n ; i t s values were c h a lle n g e d , not only by e d u c a t o r s , but by s o c i e t y in g e n e r a l. I n i t i a l l y , e v a l u a t i o n techniques in voca­ t i o n a l education were based on the number o f s tu d e n t s e n r o l l e d and in c r e a se d program o f f e r i n g s . Beginning in th e l a t e s i x t i e s and e a r l y s e v e n t i e s , however, emphasis was added to i n clu d e th e e v a lu a ­ t i o n o f th e success o f t h e s tu d e n t s as an o th e r c r i t i c a l component in measuring th e e f f e c t i v e n e s s of the v ocati on al programs. This s h i f t in emphasis was in response to mounting l e g i s l a t i v e mandates and s o c i e t a l p r e s s u r e s c a l l i n g f o r g r e a t e r ed u c a ti o n a l a c c o u n t a b i l i t y , which r e l a t e d s tu d e n t a t ta in m e n t in voca tional ed ucation programs t o t h e i r success in subsequent employment o p p o r t u n i t i e s . While programs con tinu e to be e v a lu a te d in terms o f c o n t e n t , tim e, space, equipment, and var ious e s t a b l i s h e d s t a n d a r d s , t h e s e f a c t o r s do not n e c e s s a r i l y ensure employment success f o r th e s t u d e n t s . 1 In th e Vocational Education Amendments o f 1968* t h e need f o r follow-up o f gr aduates from vocational educ atio n programs was f i r s t c i t e d as a f e d e r a l requ irement. As lo c a l v ocational education d i r e c t o r s began t o c o l l e c t d ata to comply with t h i s f e d e r a l mandate, i t became obvious t h a t s tu d e n t s did not n e c e s s a r i l y e n t e r r e l a t e d occu pations upon g r a d u a tio n . Some continued t o pursue a d d i t i o n a l ed uca tional o p p o r t u n i t i e s , while o t h e r s tu d e n t s e n ter ed employment in u n r e l a t e d occupations . Employment o p p o r t u n i t i e s gained by s t u ­ dents in r e l a t e d occup ation s a l s o ranged from a high l ev el o f under­ u t i l i z a t i o n in some a r e a s t o f u l l y u t i l i z e d employment ex perience in o t h e r s . The use o f data with such broad v a r i a t i o n s to j u s t i f y stu d e n t o r program success emerged as a per plexing problem. The educa tional dilerana in vo ca tional ed uc atio n i s f u r t h e r compounded by t h e ty pe o f e v a l u a t i o n r e s e a r c h t h a t has been completed. For example, general follow-up s t u d i e s have compared voc atio na l educa­ t i o n gr ad u ates with non-vocational ed ucation gradu ates in regard to employment s u c c e ss , annual income, hourly wages, l a b o r market n e t ­ works, and le ng th o f time from gr aduati on t o employment. The l i t ­ e r a t u r e a l s o r ev ea led a c l e a r need f o r a l o n g i t u d i n a l follow-up model t h a t would provide an empirical da ta base on which t o measure s tu d e n t succ es s. ^U.S. Congress, Vocational Education Amendments o f 1968, Public Law 90-576, 90th Congress, 1 s t Sessi on, 1968. 3 Background o f th e Study The l a t e n i n e t e e n t h cen tury and e a r l y t w e n t i e t h cen tu ry pr o­ vided f e r t i l e ground f o r th e growth o f education f o r employment. In th e n i n e t e e n t h cen tu ry demands were made o f h igher educ atio n in a g r i ­ c u l t u r e and en g in eer in g . This need was met with th e passage o f the ? M orr ill Land Grant Act o f 1862. Due t o th e ra pid growth o f popula­ t i o n and th e v a s t expanse of country being s e t t l e d , t h e r e was a wide­ spread i n t e r e s t in s p e c i a l t r a i n i n g f o r vocations by employers, employees,and ed ucators a l i k e . At t h a t tim e, th e public schools were c l e a r l y focused on general ed ucation and c o l l e g e ed uc atio n and did not in clude any s i g n i f i c a n t emphasis on the needs o f in d u s tr y . During th e f i r s t two decades of t h e t w e n t i e t h c e n t u r y , Con­ gr es s enacted a number o f laws providing a id f o r educa tion al programs in or under th e c ontr ol o f h ig h e r e d u c a tio n . I t was not u n t i l the 3 Davis B ill o f 1909, however, t h a t th e term vocatio nal education appeared in t h e s e b i l l s . During th e next e i g h t y e a r s , sev er al b i l l s were in tro d u c e d , none o f which came t o f r u i t i o n , u n t i l th e Commission 4 on National Aid t o Vocational Education p r esen ted i t s r e p o r t to Congress. 2 The culminating r e s u l t o f t h i s r e p o r t was th e passage of The Morrill Land Grant Act o f 1862 provided t h a t pu blic lands be gran ted t o each s t a t e t o provide an endowment and suppo rt o f a t l e a s t one c o l l e g e in each s t a t e t o te ac h l e a r n i n g r e l a t e d t o a g r i c u l t u r e and mechanical a r t s . 3 The Davis B ill o f 1909 included an a p p r o p r i a t i o n f o r th e teach in g o f A g r i c u l t u r e , Home Economics and Domestic Arts in public schools, 4 The Commission on National Aid to Vocational Education in 1914 recommended a id f o r day s c h o o ls , p a r t - t i m e s c h o o ls , and evening schools t o te ac h A g r i c u l t u r e , Trade and I n d u s t r y , and Home Economics. 4 the Smith-Hughes Act of 1917. The primary purpose o f t h e Act was t o provide fe d e ra l a id t o vocational education to prepare persons f o r employment, over f o u r t e e n y e a r s o f age, who had e n te r e d and were pre paring to e n t e r th e occupation f o r which they r ec eived t r a i n i n g . The continued need f o r g r e a t e r support o f voc atio na l ed uca tion during th e ensuing y e a r s prompted Congress t o pass a number o f a d d i t i o n a l acts. The Vocational Education Act o f 1963 a u th o r iz e d g r a n t s to a s s i s t s t a t e s in m a i n ta in in g , ex te nding, and improving e x i s t i n g pro­ grams; developing new programs in vocational e d u c a ti o n , and providing p a r t - t i m e employment f o r youth who needed ea rnings from such employ­ ment t o continue t h e i r p u r s u i t of l e a r n in g in voca tion al e d ucation. The emphasis f o r e v a lu a ti o n and a c c o u n t a b i l i t y f o r vocational educa­ t i o n throughout t h i s period was based p r im a r i l y on in c r e a se d number o f programs and s tu d e n t en rollm en t. The enro llm ent s t a t i s t i c s c o l ­ l e c t e d and compiled by the f e d e r a l government r e s u l t e d in r e p o r t i n g th e q u a n t i t y r a t h e r than q u a l i t y o f programs provided. The Vocational Education Amendments o f 1968® provided a s e r i e s of new dimensions in r e s p e c t to th e e v a lu a ti o n o f vo cational ed uc ati on. A p p licatio n s f o r voc atio na l programs from local d i s t r i c t s r e q u ire d assu ran ce s o f adequate planning to meet the vocational needs ®U.S. Congress, Vocational Education Act o f 1963, Public Law 88-210 88th Congress, 1 s t Ses sio n , 1963. £ U.S. Congress, Vocational Education Amendments o f 1968, Public Law 90-576, 90th Congress, 1 s t S essi on, 1968. 5 o f p o t e n t i a l s t u d e n ts in th e area and a plan r e l a t e d to a p p r o p r i a t e employment needs served by th e agency. While t h e s e f a c t o r s were i n f e r r e d in th e previous l e g i s l a t i o n , they were not mandatory. In order to f u l f i l l t h e s e re quir em ents, th e o t h e r dimensions were added to t h e planning component. These inc lude d e l i v e r y and e v a lu a t io n p r o c e s s e s , assessment of s tu d e n t o r p o t e n t i a l s tu d e n t needs, a s s e s s ­ ment o f employment needs in th e a r e a , and means f o r e v a lu a t in g each area. Follow-up o f gr aduates from vo catio nal education programs, t h u s , became a requirement and a n e c e s s i t y i f s tu d e n t and employment needs were to be a s s e s s e d e f f e c t i v e l y . The Vocational Education Amendments of 1968 a l s o provided funds f o r r e s e a r c h to e v a lu a te voca tion al education programs. Since t h e amount of funds and en rollm ent were i n c r e a s i n g a t a s i g n i f i c a n t r a t e , l e g i s l a t o r s , e d u c a t o r s , and tax pa ye rs were concerned whether d u p l i c a t i o n o f programming and ev e r i n c r e a s i n g ex pen ditures were being a p p r o p r i a t e l y matched to employment needs. In 1971, the Michigan Advisory Council f o r Vocational Education conducted an opinion survey on how im port ant, ad eq uat e, and a p p r o p r i a t e voca tiona l education was to vocational high school g r a d u a te s , p a r e n ts , a n d employers in the S tated The r e s u l t s o f t h i s survey influenc ed th e S t a t e Department o f Education to i n t e g r a t e th e follow-up o f vocational grad ua tes as an e v a l u a t i o n c r i t e r i o n f o r voc at ional education programs. In i t s 1973 annual r e p o r t , th e S t a t e Advisory Council emphasized t h a t 7Michiqan Advisory Council f o r Vocational Education Opinions About Vocational Education in Michigan (Lansing, Mi., 1971), p. 1. 6 " s t u d e n t s , both former o r c u r r e n t , can give information about t h e i r p r e p a r a t i o n and about t h e i r personal and p r o f e s s io n a l o b j e c t i v e s , Q r e l a t i n g the school program t o b o t h ." Also, in 1973 th e Michigan Department o f Education r e p o r te d t h a t t w e n t y - f i v e K-12 school d i s t r i c t s provided placement and follow- up s e r v i c e s f o r t h e i r s tu d e n t s . g Throughout t h e e a r l y s e v e n t i e s , th e Michigan Department o f Education continued t o provide t e c h n ic a l a s s i s t a n c e to schools and Career Edu­ c a t i o n Planning D i s t r i c t s to improve placement and follow-up s e r v i c e s . In 1974-75 follow-up o f s tu d e n t s became a p a r t o f th e S t a t e Plan f o r Vocational Ed ucation. The Michigan Department o f Education then i n i t i a t e d a mandatory follow-up program f o r a l l grad uates from voc atio na l educa tion programs. By 1976, 511 lo ca l d i s t r i c t s were p a r t i c i p a t i n g in th e annual follow-up o f gr aduates from voc atio na l ed ucation p r o g r a m s . ^ In 1976 Congress passed Public Law 94-482, "The Education Amendments of 1976," which amended a l l prev io us vocational l e g i s l a ­ t i o n t o inc lude an occupational information d ata system to e v a lu a te voc atio na l e d u c a tio n . The Commissioner o f Education and th e Adminis­ t r a t o r o f th e National Center f o r Education S t a t i s t i c s were charged to j o i n t l y develop th e occupational information d ata system. The data O Michigan Advisory Council f o r Vocational Education Fourth Annual Report (Lansing, M i., June 30, 1973), p. 20. M ic h i g a n Department of Education D e s c r i p t i v e Report (Lansing, Mi., 1973-74). ^M ich ig an Department of Education, Michigan S t a t e Plan f o r Vocational Education (Lansing, Mi., 1976-77), p. 71. 7 information system includ ed s t u d e n t s , program, program completers and l e a v e r s , s t a f f , f a c i l i t i e s and equipment, and o t h e r information deemed im po rtan t. This d ata system provided loca l schools and s t a t e departments o f ed uc ation with a d ata base to e v a l u a t e o r monitor s t u d e n t p r ogre s s wh ile in school and t o compare th e e f f e c t i v e n e s s to gr aduates t h a t became employed o r continued in h ig h e r ed uc ati on. Throughout th e 1970's t h e supp ort f o r guidance, placement, and follow-up a c t i v i t i e s continued to be in c r e a se d by t h e f e d e r a l , s t a t e , and lo c a l a g e n c ie s . Guidance i s a s e r v i c e provided by t h e educ atio na l system t o a s s i s t s tu d e n t s in s e l e c t i n g t h e most v i a b l e programs to match t h e i r i n t e r e s t and a b i l i t y . Placement i s a n oth er s e r v i c e pro­ vided f o r s tu d e n t s and gr ad u ate s in o b ta i n i n g employment. Follow-up in f o r m a tio n , on the o t h e r hand, i s th e response from s tu d e n t s as to h i s / h e r p e r c e p tio n s o f t h e t o t a l educa tional d e l i v e r y system, and, as such, i t becomes an i n t e g r a l p a r t of measuring s tu d e n t s u c c e ss , o b ta in in g employment d a t a , determining employment o r f u r t h e r educa­ t i o n needs, as well as p r e d i c t i n g t h e success o f f u t u r e g r a d u a te s . Statement o f th e Problem The breadth and complexity o f v ocati onal education has caused many ed ucators and th e p u b l i c in general to q u e s t i o n , a s s e s s , and propose a l t e r n a t i v e methods of e v a l u a t i n g i t s e f f e c t i v e n e s s . As new and d i f f e r e n t approaches a r e used to p la n , fund,and o p e r a t e voca tional ed uca tion programs, o t h e r e v a l u a t i v e q u e s tio n s come t o t h e f o r e f r o n t . For example, what o b j e c t i v e s and c r i t e r i a a r e ap p l ie d to funding? Is th e major emphasis on q u a n t i t y o f o f f e r i n g s o r success o f th e s t u ­ dent? Is t h e annual follow-up study a v i a b l e a l t e r n a t i v e f o r program e v a lu a tio n ? Purpose The purpose o f t h i s study was to develop a l o n g i t u d in a l follow-up model as an e v a l u a t i o n i n d i c a t o r o f success o f s tu d e n t s e n r o l l e d in th e voca tional programs in th e Mount P le a s a n t Area Center, Mount P l e a s a n t , Michigan, and compared with t h e Michigan Department o f Education annual follow- up o f Vocational Education g r ad u ates. O bjectives S p e c i f i c a l l y , the study focused on th e following major o b je c­ tives: 1. To determine th e e x t e n t t o which s e l e c t e d s t u d e n t c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s e f f e c t t h e i r occupational choice . 2. To determine th e degree t o which program graduates have continued t h e i r involvement in f u r t h e r occupa­ t i o n a l t r a i n i n g a n d / o r educa tion al p r e p a r a t i o n . 3. To determine t h e e x t e n t t o which time had a r e l a t i o n s h i p on th e number o f s tu d e n t s employed in r e l a t e d occupa­ tional f ie ld s . 4. To determine th e impact o f geographic l o c a t i o n on the r e l a t e d employment o f program g r a d u a t e s . 5. To determine th e e x t e n t to which a l o n g i t u d i n a l model could be used to provide a data base f o r th e e v a lu a tio n o f voc atio na l ed uca tion programs. 9 6. To determine th e e x t e n t of c o n s is ten cy in r e l a t e d employment by program. 7. To determine th e employment/unemployment l e v e l s of g r a d u a te s . Research Questions 1. How did th e Mount P le a sa n t Area Center lo n g i t u d i n a l study o f f i r s t y e a r vocational ed ucation gr aduates compare t o th e s t a t e annual follow-up o f f i r s t y e a r graduates in employment, o t h e r (not a v a i l a b l e f o r employment), continued ed ucation,and unemployment? 2. What e f f e c t did time have on th e employment o f voca tional educ ation g r ad u ates? 3. What e f f e c t did m arit al s t a t u s have on th e employment of v oca tion al ed uca ti o n grad ua tes? 4. Was t h e r e a d i f f e r e n c e between th e number o f vocational educa tion graduate s who e n ter ed r e l a t e d employment upon gr adu ation t h r e e and f i v e y e a r s l a t e r ? 5. Was the per centage of v oc ational ed uc atio n grad uates employed in r e l a t e d occupations h igh er f o r program completers than f o r noncompleters? 6. Was th e per centage of voca tion al ed ucation grad ua tes employed in r e l a t e d occupations th e same f o r male and female gradu­ ates? 7. Was t h e r e a d i f f e r e n c e between voca tion al ed ucation pro­ grams as to the number o f voc ationa l ed uca tion graduate s who pursued higher educatio n? 10 8. Was th e percentage o f vo ca ti onal education grad uates con tinuing p o s t- h ig h school ed uca tion h ig h e r f o r program completers than f o r noncompleters? 9. Did th e m a j o r it y of voca tional ed ucation grad uates remain in th e lo cal community? 10. Did the geographic l o c a t i o n have an impact on r e l a t e d employment o f voca tional ed uc ation gr ad uat es ? 11. What pe rcentage o f th e voca tional ed ucation grad uates e n te r e d m i l i t a r y s e r v i c e , by vo ca ti onal ed ucation programs? 12. Was t h e r e a d i f f e r e n c e in o v e r a ll high school grade p o in t average a t t a i n e d by v ocatio nal ed uc ation grad uates in d i f f e r e n t vocational ed ucation programs? 13. Was t h e r e a d i f f e r e n c e in English grades earned by voca­ t i o n a l ed uca tion grad uates in d i f f e r e n t voc atio na l education programs? S i g n i f i c a n c e o f the Study Student success in vo ca ti onal ed ucation programs, as measured by th e r e l a t i o n s h i p o f p r e p a r a t i o n and employment has,become one of the major c r i t e r i o n t o e v a l u a t e v ocational e d u c a t i o n ' s e f f e c t i v e n e s s . The mandatory gr ad uat e follow-up included in th e information data system has provoked a major concern, p r im a r i l y because o f th e time frame r e q u ir e d to follow-up s t u d i e s . The c r i t e r i o n o f success f o r persons completing a v ocational t e c h n ic a l program was f u l l - t i m e employment in th e f i e l d t r a i n e d f o r , a r e l a t e d oc cupation, o r employed p a r t time while contin uing t h e i r t r a i n i n g in a r e l a t e d program w ithin e i g h t months a f t e r program co m p le t io n . 1* The requirement t h a t e i g h t months i s adequate time f o r secondary s tu d e n ts to f u l f i l l th e c r i t e r i a o f success makes some assumptions. F i r s t , t h a t a l l s tu d e n t s complet­ ing a p a r t i c u l a r program can be absorbed in th e la b o r market upon completion, o r a r e w i l l i n g to m igrate t o l a b o r markets t h a t a r e open to e n t r y . Second, t h a t th e economy i s ready t o absorb them o r has immediate openings. T h i r d , t h a t t h e s tu d e n t had a firm commitment to an occupation and a c t i v e l y pursued a r e l a t e d occupation r a t h e r than att em pti ng to t r a n s f e r s k i l l s l ear n ed in a s p e c i f i c program to another oc cu pa tion . A v a r i e t y of arguments e x i s t f o r an annual fo llo w-u p. For example, gr ad uates a r e more a p t to respond in a s h o r t e r time pe riod. They a r e e a s i e r to l o c a t e , and data c o l l e c t i o n and s to r a g e can be lim ited. Follow-up, as one component o f a comprehensive e v a lu a t io n model in th e p r e s e n t form, has a l i m i t e d c o n t r i b u t i o n t o make i f based on a s h o r t - te r m respons e. The primary concern seems to be whether o r not th e voca tion al g r aduate s a r e working immediately upon g r a d u a t i o n , th e r e l a t i o n s h i p of school t r a i n i n g t o employment, and th e f i n a n c i a l g a i n s . An a l t e r n a t i v e t o th e annual follow-up i s a lo n g i t u d i n a l follow-up to map th e voc ationa l g r a d u a t e s ' c a r e e r d e c i s io n s as they a f f e c t t h e i r employment. This should reveal both personal d e c is io n s and e x te r n a l f a c t o r s t h a t may d i r e c t l y o r i n d i r e c t l y in f l u e n c e or **The Annual and Long Range S t a t e Plan f o r Vocational Educa­ t i o n in Michigan (Lansing, Mi., 1978), p. 55. 12 shape th e various a l t e r n a t i v e s t h a t a r e followed by grad uates as they migrate through t h e i r i n i t i a l y e a r s o f employment. While s t a t e departments of e d u c a t io n , a r e a c e n t e r s , employ­ ment ag e n c i e s , and l o cal d i s t r i c t s ar e searching f o r a l t e r n a t i v e methods o f e v a l u a t i n g voca tional ed ucation programs to answer the q u es tio n whether o r not i t i s an e f f e c t i v e means o f public ed ucation (and i f so , to what e x t e n t and under what c o n d i t i o n s ? ) , a s e r i e s of o t h e r methods must be c o ns id e re d. Many o f t h e s e may d i r e c t l y or i n d i r e c t l y in f lu e n c e or shape t h e var io u s a l t e r n a t i v e s t h a t a r e f i n a l l y adopted. Findings from t h i s study provide e m p i r i c a ll y based information which s t a t e , re g i o n a l , and lo c a l e ducational age ncies may use to e v a l u a t e e x i s t i n g programs, plan f o r t h e expansion, r e d u c tio n or m o d ific a tio n o f programs, provide a model f o r o t h e r l o n g it u d i n a l s t u d i e s , and provide empirical information on e x te r n a l f a c t o r s t h a t a f f e c t s tu d e n t ch o ic es . D e l i m i t a t i o n s o f th e Study The study was l i m i t e d to 1,285 grad uates who a tte n d e d the Mount P le a s a n t Area Center. Those t h a t graduated with a s a l a b l e s k i l l and /or completed a voc atio na l ed uca tion program in th e 1971 through 1976 gr aduating c l a s s e s were included in t h i s study. Another l i m i t a t i o n of th e study was t h a t only programs t h a t have been in o p e r a tio n s in c e 1971 a t t h e Mount P l e a s a n t Area Center and have met e s t a b l i s h e d s t a t e g u i d e l i n e s f o r an approved voc ationa l education program were in cl uded . Since empirical data was l i m i t e d to th e graduate s o f one c e n t e r , t h e f in d i n g s may be g e n e r a l i z e d only 13 to o t h e r c e n t e r s or local d i s t r i c t s who have s i m i l a r programs. How­ e v e r , th e model developed to c o l l e c t and analyze da ta could be used by o t h e r i n s t i t u t i o n s or s t a t e departments o f e d u c a tio n . Assumptions of th e Study I t was necessary to make c e r t a i n assumptions t o accomplish the o b j e c t i v e s o f the stu dy. These assumptions were based p a r t i a l l y on the expressed needs by l e g i s l a t i o n , e d u c a t o r s , and o t h e r s , t h a t th e p r e s e n t d ata base f o r e v a l u a t i o n o f voca tional educa tion i s l i m i t e d in q u a n t i t y or q u a l i t y . There were f i v e assumptions i n h e r e n t to th e design of th e study. 1. There was a need f o r l o n g i t u d i n a l inform ation t o a s s i s t in e v a lu a ti n g programs o p e r a tin g a t th e Mount P l e a s a n t Area Center. This study would provide a data base f o r expansion o r r e d u c tio n of programs and provide some i n d i c a t i o n of e f f e c t i v e n e s s in grad ua te placement in employment o r f u r t h e r e d ucation. 2. There was a need f o r a lo n g i t u d i n a l model t h a t would provide a p r o f i l e o f grad uat e p a t t e r n s over a per iod o f time to see how e x te r n a l f o r c e s impact t h e i r occupational cho ice. 3. That g r a d u a t e s , in l i g h t o f t h e i r ex periences a f t e r g r a d u a ti o n , would provide a v a l u a b l e d ata base f o r e v a l u a t i n g voca­ t i o n a l education programs and s tu d e n t success in o b t a i n i n g employment. 4. That t h e r e i s an expressed need by t h e S t a t e Department of Education, th e f e d e r a l government,and o t h e r program o p e r a t o r s f o r th e in form ation provided by t h i s study. 14 5. That t h e model developed may be of a s s i s t a n c e t o o t h e r program p l a n n e r s , a d m i n i s t r a t o r s , e d u c a t o r s , and s t a t e department o f f i c i a l s in o t h e r s t a t e s . Terminology of th e Study The followin g d e f i n i t i o n s a r e included to provide c l a r i t y of purpose and a i d in th e i n t e r p r e t a t i o n of th e f i n d i n g s o f t h i s study. Vocational Ed uc ation : Organized ed uca tional programs, s e r ­ v ices , and a c t i v i t i e s which a r e d i r e c t l y r e l a t e d t o th e p r e p a ra ti o n of i n d i v i d u a l s f o r paid and unpaid employment, o r f o r a d d i t i o n a l p r e p a r a t i o n f o r a c a r e e r r e q u i r i n g o t h e r than b a c c a l a u r e a t e o r advanced degr ee. Vocational Education Program: A program of study a t th e e le v e n t h a nd/or t w e l f t h grade designed s p e c i f i c a l l y t o prep are i n d i ­ v i d u a l s f o r employment in an occupation or f o r a d d i t i o n a l p r e p a r a t io n for a career requiring fu rth e r tra in in g . Area C e n t e r : A school o f f e r i n g s p e c i a l i z e d voca tional t r a i n ­ ing to p r o s p e c t i v e s tu d e n t s in a geographical ar ea des ign ated by th e S t a t e Board o f Education u s u a l l y involving more than one school district. S t a t e Department of Education Annual Follow-up: Information c o l l e c t e d by lo ca l ag en ci es w i th in e i g h t months o f completion from gr ad u ate s o f v ocati onal programs as s i g n i f i e d by th e S t a t e Department o f Education. L o c a tio n : The p lace where former gr ad u ates r e s i d e or work. For th e purpose o f t h i s s tu d y , i t included f o u r c a t e g o r i e s : 15 (a) lo ca l community—I s a b e l l a and G r a t i o t c o u n t i e s ; (b) Regional — co u n tie s surrounding I s a b e l l a and G r a t i o t c o u n t i e s , in cluding Mecosta, Midland, Clare, an d Saginaw c o u n t i e s ; (c) I n - S t a t e —l o c a t e d w ith in the s t a t e o f Michigan excluding c o u n tie s given above; and (d) O u t - S ta t e — l o c a t e d in a s t a t e o t h e r than Michigan. Related Occupation: An occupation t h a t r e q u i r e s th e s k i l l s and knowledge lear n ed in a s p e c i f i c vocational ed uca tion program. For example, a s tu d e n t completing an automotive program t h a t i s employed as an auto mechanic, or a s tu d e n t t h a t completed a s e c r e ­ t a r i a l program and i s employed as a s e c r e t a r y . Nonrelated Occupation: An occupation t h a t r e q u i r e s knowledge and s k i l l s t h a t were not ta u g h t in the program th e s tu d e n t completed. For example, a s tu d e n t who completed an accounting program and i s employed as a n u r s e ' s a i d e , o r a s tu d e n t completing a food s e r v i c e program and i s employed as a plumber. Approved Vocational Education Program: An approved program must a s s u r e compliance with the Annual and Long Range S t a t e Plan f o r Vocational Education in Michigan and the Program Standards o f Q u a l i t y . The Standards o f Q u a li ty c o n s i s t s o f an adv is o ry committee properl y c o n s t i t u t e d f o r each program, a system of competency based e d u c a tio n , an annual and long-range p l a n , placement and follow-up a c t i v i t i e s , v o c a t i o n a l l y c e r t i f i e d t e a c h e r s , and compliance with a d m i n i s t r a t i v e regulations. Follow-up: A survey o f v ocati on al educa tion gr ad u ates to provide information r eg ar di ng t h e i r employment, f u r t h e r ed ucation 16 and b e n e f i t s they may have or have not r e c e iv e d from th e programs while in school. Vocational Education Program Graduate: Program grad ua tes f o r th e purpose of t h i s study a r e div id ed i n t o two c a t e g o r i e s : (a) co m plet er s—s tu d e n t s t h a t have completed a l l th e requirements of a s p e c i f i c program and have o bta ined e n t r y lev el s k i l l s in an occu­ p a t io n a l f i e l d . For example, a s tu d e n t who completed two y e a r s of Graphic Reproduction, (b) l e a v e r o r prep s t u d e n t —a s tu d e n t t h a t has completed 50 p e r c e n t o r l e s s o f a vo ca ti onal program but may have acq uir ed b a s ic s k i l l s f o r employment. For example, completing one y e a r o f a two-year program. The Annual and Long Range S t a t e Plan f o r Vocational Education in Michigan: This plan c o n s t i t u t e s t h e b a s i s f o r o p e r a t i o n and admin­ i s t r a t i o n o f th e S t a t e ' s vocational ed ucation programs. I t inclu des th e a d m i n i s t r a t i v e p r o v is i o n s f o r th e S t a t e Department o f Education and a l l program o p e r a t o r s , and th e go als and o b j e c t i v e s f o r vocatio nal education in th e s t a t e on a one- and f i v e - y e a r b a s i s . CHAPTER II REVIEW OF LITERATURE While th e l i t e r a t u r e was l i m i t e d re garding lo n g i t u d i n a l follow-up o f voca tional ed ucation g r a d u a t e s , t h e i d e n t i f i e d s t u d i e s provided an important base f o r t h e r e se a r c h being conducted. The co ntrovers y surrounding th e e f f e c t i v e n e s s o f voca tional educ atio n was and i s p r e v a l e n t ac r o ss t h e na tion as r e p re s e n te d by dialo gue and d i s ­ cussion by local program a d m i n i s t r a t o r s , S t a t e Department o f Education p er so n n el, and l e g i s l a t o r s a t t h e s t a t e and n a ti o n a l l e v e l s . This c h a p te r c o n t a i n s f i n d i n g s o f t h e follow-up s t u d i e s completed in voca­ t i o n a l educ atio n and information found in th e l i t e r a t u r e rega rding th e need f o r l o n g i t u d i n a l d a t a . During th e l a s t several decades, vocational educa tion has taken i t s p la ce in th e educa tion al d e l i v e r y system as a means of pro­ moting in d iv id u a l economic p r o g r e s s , so c ia l advancement, and e q u a l i t y o f o p p o r tu n i t y . H i s t o r i c a l l y , vo ca ti onal e d u c a t i o n ' s major goal was to p rep ar e i n d i v i d u a l s f o r employment. I t i s now charged, l i k e o t h e r segments o f e d u c a t i o n , with a r e s p o n s i b i l i t y f o r addr es sing th e myriad o f so c ia l problems a f f e c t i n g a l l segments o f t h e s o c i e t y . Within the narrow c o n t e x t , th e primary goal o f voca tional education i s d i f f i c u l t to a t t a i n because o f t h e f l u c t u a t i o n o f economic and p o l i t i c a l condi­ tions. For example, t h e r e i s no major means o f p r e d i c t i n g when th e 17 18 l a b o r markets will be amenable to an i n f l u x of prepared g r a d u a t e s , nor i s t h e r e an o ption in postponing or d e f e r r i n g an i n d i v i d u a l ' s edu­ c a t i o n under t h e e x i s t i n g s t r u c t u r e o f mandatory education t o age s ix t e e n and th e corresponding p r e s s u r e s t o complete high school p r i o r to d i s c o n t i n u i n g th e i n i t i a l phase o f e d ucation. W ir tz,* in h i s book, The Boundless Resource, wrote in g r e a t le ngth on th e t o p i c . He pointed out t h a t too l i t t l e i s known about how o r when people decide to e n t e r th e l a b o r market o r even when i t was p o s s i b l e f o r them t o do so. The p r e v a l e n t philosophy throughout t h e n a tio n has been t o allow each person t o plan h i s own d e s t i n y in terms o f l i f e s t y l e o r a tta i n m e n t in l i f e . In o t h e r c o u n t r i e s , s t u d e n t s ' educ atio na l pro­ grams a r e determined a t a much younger ag e, which allows plann er s to match ed uca tion to occupation f o r f u t u r e employment. This o p t i o n , o f course , i s n o t a v a i l a b l e in th e United S t a t e s because o f d i f f e r e n c e s in in d ividual philosophy and s o c i e t a l p r e s s u r e s . Evaluation in Vocational Education While voca tion al educa tion has r eceiv ed i t s shar e of c r i t i ­ cism, i t i s not an easy t a s k to r e s o l v e a l l o f th e i d e n t i f i e d con­ cerns. One ar ea t h a t has compounded t h i s problem has been the d i v e r s i t y o f voc atio na l ed ucation and i t s d e f i n i t i o n by l e g i s l a t i o n . O r i g i n a l l y , i t was defin ed as t h e phase o r component of ed ucation t h a t provided b a s ic s k i l l s f o r e n tr y level employment. This was i n t e r p r e t e d by many as manipulative s k i l l s , o t h e r s as c o g n i t i v e ^Willard W ir ts , The Boundless Resource (Washington, D.C.: The New Republic Book Company, 1975). 19 a nd/or a f f e c t i v e s k i l l s , and t o some, a l l o f t h e s e . Various l e g i s ­ l a t i v e a c t s have a l t e r e d th e o r i g i n a l i n t e n t c o n s id e r a b ly . During the 6 0 's and 7 0 's the d e f i n i t i o n was expanded t o a s s i s t in th e reduc­ t i o n of s o c ia l disad vantages as well as th e development o f s a l a b l e skills. Included in th e expansion were such ar e a s as e t h n i c o r i g i n , slow l e a r n e r s , handicapped, l i m i t e d English speaking, economically disad va ntage d, academically di sadva ntaged, as well as th e unemployed. Meyers p uts i t in p e r s p e c t i v e by noting t h a t : I f vocatio nal e d u c a t i o n ' s s o le r e s p o n s i b i l i t y were to f u l f i l l (employment) needs t r a i n i n g , th e mission would be r e l a t i v e l y simple, but voca tional ed ucation has an e x p l i c i t mandate to serve t h e needs o f th e p o p u la ti o n . Looking a t th e (employ­ ment) needs assessment a l o n e , th e t a s k i s not easy because (employment) demands change r a p i d ly due to economic c o n d i tio n s ( p r o s p e r i t y and r e c e s s i o n o r d e p r e s s i o n ) , continuous tech no­ l o g i c a l advancements, and numerous s h i f t s in th e s o c ia l and p o l i t i c a l o b l i g a t i o n s o f those who purchase (employment) services.2 Over th e y e a r s numerous methods of e v a lu a t io n have been used in vocational e d u c a tio n . Most o f th ese focused on cur riculum asse ssm en t, q u a n t i t y o f o f f e r i n g s , and th e number o f s tu d e n ts e n r o l l e d in var io u s programs. Wentling and Lawson su gg est t h a t t h e r e ar e f o u r major c a t e g o r i e s of program e v a l u a t i o n . 1. Context e v a lu a t io n which should d e f in e t h e environment in which th e program w i l l take p l a c e , to d isc o v e r th e unmet needs of th e community and s t u d e n t s , t o i d e n t i f y the c o n s t r a i n t s and problems O Warren G. Meyers, "Vocational Education and th e N a t i o n ' s Economy," The American Vocational A s s o c i a tio n , I n c . , Year Book (Washington, D.C.: American Vocational A s s o c i a t i o n , 1977), pp. 21-22. Tim L. Wentling and Tom E. Lawson, Evaluating Occupational Education and T raining Programs (Boston, MassT: Allyn and Bacon, 1975), p. 25. 20 underlying t h o s e needs, and th e p o t e n t i a l to meet those needs. Once th e s e a r e i d e n t i f i e d , th e go als and o b j e c t i v e s can be formulated. 2. Input e v a l u a t i o n whose primary goal i s to i d e n t i f y and a s s e s s th e c a p a b i l i t i e s o f th e program agency. The goal o f in put e v a l u a t i o n i s an a n a l y s i s of a l t e r n a t i v e methods as s e s s e d in terms of t h e i r r e s o u r c e s , ti me,an d budget r equire m en ts . 3. Process e v a l u a t i o n should i d e n t i f y and monitor on a con­ tinuous b a s i s i f th e program i s being implemented as planned. 4. Product e v a l u a t i o n through follow- up should provide empirical d ata in r e gard to adequacy o f th e ed uca tional o r t r a i n i n g program in prep arin g f o r an e n t r y lev el s k i l l o r f o r t h e success of an ind iv id u a l who has completed a r e t r a i n i n g o r upgrading program. I t provides some i n s i g h t i n t o th e adequacy o f guidance, counseling*and a n c i l l a r y s e r v i c e s provided t o p a r t i c i p a n t s while in t h e program. It provides inform ation on c a r e e r p a t t e r n s , m o b i l i t y p a t t e r n s , employ­ ment, job s a t i s f a c t i o n and f u r t h e r t r a i n i n g , d ata on th e s o c ia l bene­ f i t s accrued by th e in d i v i d u a l and s o c i e t y , th e c o s t e f f e c t i v e n e s s of th e programs,and t h e t r a n s f e r payments involved in th e p r o c e ss . Glenman observed in e v a l u a t i n g employment programs: There a r e b e n e f i t s t h a t a r e not measurable in d o l l a r terms. Improvements in s e l f image, improved a c c e s s to p u b lic s e r ­ vic e s because of b e t t e r knowledge, l e s s a l i e n a t i o n from th e world o f work o r from o t h e r segments o f s o c i e t y , b e t t e r h e a l t h , improved reading and computational s k i l l s . 4 4Thomas K. Glenman, Evaluating Federal Manpower Programs, Memorandum RM-57430ED (Santa Monica, C a l i f . : Rand Corporation, 1969), p. 21. 21 T r a n s f e r a b i l i t y of s k i l l s from one program or occupation to a n o t h e r , th e a b i l i t y to work and s o c i a l i z e with peers and s o c i e t y as a whole might a l s o be added to t h i s l i s t . All o f t h e s e c o n t r i b u t e to th e o v e r a l l goals o f education and a r e ta u g h t in vo ca ti onal ed ucation programs, but they a r e d i f f i c u l t t o c o n v e r t t o e v a l u a t i o n in the t r a ­ d i t i o n a l manner. Need For and Value o f Longitudinal Studies Longitudinal s t u d i e s t h a t have been completed assume v a r i o u s forms of product e v a l u a t i o n . While product e v a l u a t i o n in voca tional educa tion has been l i m i t e d , i t s p o t e n t i a l use provides a s i g n i f i c a n t r e s e a r c h base f o r t h e p r o f e s s i o n . Weinrich and Weinrich, in t h e i r recommendations to improvement o f l e a d e r s h i p in v o catio n al e d u c a tio n , s t a t e d t h a t "a f r e q u e n t c r i t i q u e o f educ atio na l e v a l u a t i o n i s t h a t i t has too o f t e n focused p r i m a r i l y on pro cess and i n p u t , and only seconda r i l y on c o n te x t and p r o d u c t." 5 Borus and Tash,^ in t h e i r s t u d i e s o f measuring th e impact o f employment programs,addressed th e i s s u e o f time in e v a l u a t i n g programs concluded t h a t "measurements o f impact as d i s t i n g u i s h e d from i n d i ­ c a t o r s of success should occur no sooner than one y e a r o f th e end of th e program." To examine any s h o r t e r p e r i o d would r a i s e problems of c Ralph C. Weinrich and William J . Weinrich, Leadership in A d m in istr atio n of Vocational and Technical Education (Columbus, Ohio: Charles M e r r i l l P ublishing Company, 1974), p. 262. ^Michael E. Borus and William R. Tash, "Measuring t h e Impact o f Manpower Programs," I n s t i t u t e o f Labor and I n d u s t r i a l R e la tio n s (Ann Arbor, Mi.: U n iv e r s ity of Michigan, November 1970), pp. 32-33. 22 s e a s o n a l i t y and put biase d emphasis on f a c t o r s connected with the programs which have only s h o r t run e f f e c t s . "Evaluations should a l s o be made a t t h r e e and f i v e y e a r i n t e r v a l s to demonstrate t h e t o t a l e f f e c t o f t h e program"7 such as employment h i s t o r y s in c e le aving th e program, job s t a t i s t i c s , and t h e p o t e n t i a l o f advancement in th e Q career. Kruger, in a l e c t u r e s e r i e s a t the Center f o r Vocational Education, The Ohio S t a t e U n i v e r s it y def ine d voc ationa l ed ucation as a prime example of s o c ia l i n t e r v e n t i o n . He noted t h a t i t was a process through and by which educa tion i n t e r c e d e s o r i n t e r v e n e s to provide v a r i o u s s p e c i a l i z e d s e r v i c e s t o i n d i v i d u a l s ; t o improve the i n d i v i d u a l ' s e m p l o y a b ili ty so he/sh e can compete in t h e world o f work. These s e r v i c e s includ e c a r e e r guidance, o r i e n t a t i o n to th e world of work, oc cupational s k i l l s , and placement. Social i n t e r v e n t i o n implies t h a t v ocational educa tion a l s o makes a c o n t r i b u t i o n to th e individual as well as s o c i e t y in a d d i t i o n to economic e f f i c i e n c y . Consequently, the outcomes of a given program must be ev a lu a te d a g a i n s t so c ia l goa ls' and o b j e c t i v e s . Providing occ upational s k i l l s t o e n t e r and advance in a c a r e e r , enhancing t h e se lf - im a g e o f s tu d e n ts to r e a l i z e t h a t they can be a s u c c e s s , o r m o ti v a t in g th e u n a f f e c t e d to remain in school to a t t a i n the s k i l l s r e q u i r e d in th e world of work a l l con­ t r i b u t e t o s o c ia l e f f i c i e n c y . 7I b id . Q Daniel H. Kruger, Occupational P r e p a ra ti o n Programs; Impli­ c a t i o n s f o r Vocational Education, Research and Development (Columbus, Ohio: The Center f o r Vocational Education, September 1977), p. 10. 23 S o c i e t y ' s mission i s t o ser ve humanity. The vocatio nal pro­ grams were e s t a b l i s h e d and ar e being expanded t o s erv e the s tu d e n t . These ed uca tional exp er ience s do have an impact on the i n d i v i d u a l . I t i s too s i m p l i s t i c j u s t to look a t p l a c e ­ ments and on th e b a s is o f t h e s e data to make t h e quantum jump to say whether a program i s s uccess fu l o r n o t s u c c e s s ­ f u l . More meaningful l o n g i t u d i n a l s t u d i e s a r e needed t o measure the impact of a vocational program on th e s tu d e n ts over t i m e . 9 Product e v a lu a t io n f o r q u a l i t y c o ntrol has been a tech nique t h a t has been used in th e p r i v a t e s e c t o r f o r many y e a r s t o e v a l u a t e the performance o f a product or s e r v i c e . Leaders in voc atio na l edu­ c a t i o n can use product e v a l u a t i o n f o r maintain ing and improving pro­ grams and to demonstrate th e c o n t r i b u t i o n the programs make to s o c i e t y and th e economy. Smith, in d e s c r ib in g th e b e s t techniques o f e v a l u a t i n g th e q u a l i t y o f vocational e d u c a t io n , endorsed s tu d e n t follow-up s t u d i e s by emphasizing t h a t : A r a t i o n a l a p p r a i s a l o f program q u a l i t y can b e s t be secured through d e l i b e r a t e s c r u t i n y o f th e performance o f th e former s tu d e n t as he/sh e i n t e r f a c e with th e r eal world o f work. . . . Follow-up procedures, in the co n te x t o f q u a l i t y contr ol must be continuous and m u lt i- f o r m e d . 10 The study by J . C. Flanagan e t a l . , ^ in 1960 provides a s i g n i f i c a n t b a s i s f o r th e pr oce ssio n o f educ atio na l e v a lu a ti o n through t h e use o f lo n g i t u d i n a l s t u d i e s in vocational e d u c a ti o n . This study sampled 400,000 secondary school s tu d e n t s in 1,353 public and p r i v a t e schools 9 I b id . ^ W e s le y P. Smith, Placement and Follow-up (Washington, D.C.: American Vocational A s s o c ia tio n , Inc. Yearbook, 1974), p. 213. ^ J . C. Flanagan e t a l . , P r o j e c t T a l e n t. The I d e n t i f i c a t i o n Development, and U t i l i z a t i o n o f Human T a le n ts : The American High School Student ( P i t t s b u r g h . Pa.: U n iv e r s i ty o f P i t t s b u r g h P r ess , 1964). 24 a c r o ss the country. The study was aimed a t o b ta i n i n g an a c c u r a t e invento ry o f th e a b i l i t i e s and p o t e n t i a l o f American youth. Students in grades nin e through twelve were t e s t e d using a wide range o f educa tiona l and psychological measures in cluding a p t i t u d e and a b i l i t y t e s t s , measures o f educa tion al achievement, i n t e r e s t , a n d p e r s o n a l i t y characteristics. All s t u d e n t s were followed approximately one y e a r a f t e r grad uation from high school and then again f i v e and ten y e a r s later. P r o j e c t Ta le nt generated numerous s i g n i f i c a n t r e s e a r c h f i n d ­ ings. I t provided d ata r e l a t i n g school c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s to s tu d e n t outcomes, such as achievement, c o l l e g e atten dan ce and drop out r a t e . The school c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s most c l o s e l y r e l a t e d to s t u d e n t outcomes were t e a c h e r s a l a r i e s , t e a c h e r e x perience, th e number o f books in the l i b r a r y , and per pupil ex p en d itu r e. In a d d i t i o n , i t pr ese nte d a number o f f i n d in g s r eg ar ding s t u d e n t ' s voc ationa l a s p i r a t i o n s and th e a b i l i t y o f schools t o meet vo catio nal planning needs. I t also r ev ealed t h a t many s tu d e n t s had u n r e a l i s t i c plans about t h e i r f u t u r e v o cation. For example, many s tu d e n ts a s p i r e to an occupation t h a t seems i n a p p r o p r i a t e in terms o f i n t e l l e c t u a l lev el r e q u i r e d . Students most f r e q u e n t l y s t a t e d t h a t guidance and cou ns eling was th e l a r g e s t unmet need. In a second lo n g i t u d i n a l stu dy, Herbert Parnes and a s s o ciates 12 surveyed th e behavior o f a l a r g e sample o f t h e l a b o r f o r c e . 12 Herbert S. Parnes, The National Longitudinal Surveys; New Vis tas f o r Labor Market Research (Columbus, Ohio: Center f o r Human Resource Research, The Ohio S t a t e U n i v e r s i t y , 1976), pp. 6-7. 25 This study c o n t r i b u t e d a wealth o f d ata on la b o r market ex perience. Four s u b s e t s o f th e c i v i l i a n pop ulation in t h e United S t a t e s stu die d, were middle-aged men who, a t the in c e p tio n o f t h e study were 45 t o 59 years o f age; women 30 t o 44 ye ar s o l d , 5,000 young men and boys, and 5,000 young women and g i r l s between th e ages o f 14 and 24. These cohorts were chosen because each group was confro nted with d i f f e r e n t la b o r market problems. For example, men in th e 45 to 59 age group were c onfro nted with s k i l l obsoles ce nce , age d i s c r i m i n a t i o n in a t t a i n ­ ing new employment, d e t e r i o r a t i n g h e a l t h , r e t i r e m e n t , e t c . Women in the 30 to 44 age group were q u i t e o f te n faced with r e - e n t r y to the l a b o r market, with l o s t o r o b s o le t e s k i l l s and heavy competition from younger women competing f o r th e same p o s i t i o n s . The youth co ho rts were co nf ronted with occupational choice and e n t r y i n t o the la b o r market. Parnes and a s s o c i a t e s , 13 in t h e i r s tu d y , "Five Years in th e Work Lives o f Middle-Aged Men," found t h a t middle-aged men have c l e a r l y demonstrated t h a t th e degree of job s a t i s f a c t i o n p r e ­ d i c t s th e l i k e l i h o o d o f a vo lu n tary job s e p a r a t i o n . Vocational gradu­ a t e s ar e more l i k e l y than nonvocational graduates t o obtain jobs w i th i n s i x t e e n months a f t e r g r a d u a t io n , doing work in which they expect t o use t h e i r t r a i n i n g , somewhat l e s s l i k e l y than nonvocational 13 Herbert S. Parnes e t a l . , The Pre-Retirement Years; Five Years in th e Work Lives o f Middle-Aged Men (Columbus, Ohio, 1974), Chapters I I I and IV. 26 graduates who a l s o r e c e iv e d t r a i n i n g to b e l i e v e t h a t they could have secured t h e i r job witho ut th e t r a i n i n g . 14 A t h i r d n a tio n a l l o n g i t u d i n a l study o f s i g n i f i c a n c e was the National Longitudinal Study o f t h e High School Class o f 1 9 7 2 , ^ The purpose o f t h i s study was t o determine th e employment and s o c ia l p a t t e r n s o f young a d u l t s a f t e r they lea ve high scho ol, as measured by t h e i r subsequent educa tional and vocational a c t i v i t i e s , p la n s, a s p i r a ­ t i o n s , and a t t i t u d e s a t var io u s p o in ts in time. The study i n i t i a t e d in t h e s p rin g o f 1972 included a sample o f 17,726 s e n i o r s from 1,040 high sc ho ols. Added t o t h i s base y e a r d ata in October of 1973 were an a d d i t i o n a l 4,450 s e n i o r s from 250 schools who were unable t o pa r­ t i c i p a t e in th e base y e a r sample. The f i r s t y e a r follow-up began in October o f 1973 and ended in April 1974 with over 21,350 p a r t i c i ­ pants in th e f i r s t y e a r fo llo w-u p. Data c o l l e c t e d in t h i s study included such areas as p a r t i c i p a t i o n in po st-sec onda ry ed uc ation, academic a b i l i t y , r a c e , s o c ia l c l a s s , s e x , r e g io n , and high school curriculum. Some o f t h e i r f in d in g s were: (1) 56 p er cen t o f th e sample were c u r r e n t l y e n r o l l e d in post- sec ondar y programs; (2) 74 p e r c e n t expected t o f u r t h e r t h e i r ed ucation and 15 pe rcent expected to r e c e i v e advanced de gr ee s; (3) o f th e s tu d e n ts who were e n r o l l e d in 14 William F e t t e r s , A Capsule Des cri pti on o f F i r s t Follow-up Survey Data, National Center f o r Educational S t a t i s t i c s (Washington, D.C.: Government P r i n t i n g O f f i c e , 1966). ^ N a t i o n a l Center f o r Education S t a t i s t i c s , A Capsule Descrip­ t i o n o f F i r s t Follow-up Survey Data, U.S. Department o f H ealth, Educat i o n and Welfare Research T r i a n g l e Pact (North C aroli na: The Research T r ia n g le I n s t i t u t e Cont rac t #0EC-0-73-6666, 1976), pp. 1, 7-8. 27 academic s t u d i e s in a two- o r f o u r - y e a r c o l l e g e during t h e f a l l and w in te r o f 1973-74, 68 p e r c e n t had been e n r o l l e d in a c o l l e g e p r e p a r a ­ t o r y high school program, as compared t o 27 p e r c e n t o f t h e general high school program and 13 p e r c e n t o f th e v o c a t i o n a l - t e c h n i c a l s t u ­ dents pursuing c o l l e g e de gree s; (4) curricu lu m placement appeared t o have v i r t u a l l y no r e l a t i o n t o o t h e r types of p o s t- s econdary education; (5) o f a l l s e n i o r s , 14 p er cen t were e n r o l l e d in v o c a t i o n a l - t e c h n i c a l s t u d i e s a t e i t h e r p u b lic o r p r o p r i e t a r y s chools . Of t h e s tu d en ts e n r o l l e d in v o c a t i o n a l - t e c h n i c a l programs in high s c h o o l, 70 p er cen t were employed in jo bs in October o f 1973, compared t o 68 p er cen t from general programs and 56 p er cen t from academic programs; (6) women who had been e n r o l l e d in v o c a t i o n a l - t e c h n i c a l programs in high school and who were not employed were more l i k e l y to c i t e , "was f u l l - t i m e homemaker" than any o t h e r reason f o r n o t working. One-half (50 p e r ­ c e n t) o f t h e s e gave t h i s response in c o n t r a s t t o 11 p er cen t f o r employed women who had been in academic programs in high school; (7) of th e voc at ional t e c h n ic a l s t u d e n t s , 64 p e r c e n t were much more l i k e l y than o t h e r s to have obtained s p e c i a l i z e d t r a i n i n g in high school which they inten de d t o use t o o b ta in employment upon gradua­ t i o n , compared t o 25 p er cen t o f t h e general educa ti on s tu d e n t s and 12 p er cen t o f the academic s t u d e n t s . These s t u d i e s were on a n a ti o n a l b a s is and supported by e i t h e r fe d e ra l o r foundation funds. The information c o l l e c t e d and analyzed did not s p e c i f i c a l l y address voc atio na l ed uca tion as t h e i r primary goal ; however, the da ta did provide impetus f o r o t h e r s t u d i e s 28 in vocational education and th e use o f voca tion al education as a major ed uca tional d e l i v e r y system in the n a t i o n . This r esear ch als o suggest s th e major c o n t r i b u t i o n t h a t l o n g i t u d i n a l s t u d i e s can have as compared with r e s e a r c h at tem pting t o analyze th e " s t a t e o f t h e a r t . " Parnes most a p t l y d e s c rib e d th e importance o f such s t u d i e s by noting that: "Perhaps th e s i n g l e most important c o n t r i b u t i o n o f l o n g i t u d i ­ nal d a t a i s t h a t they f a c i l i t a t e th e i d e n t i f i c a t i o n o f casual r e l a ­ t i o n s h i p s t h a t cannot c o n f i d e n t ly be i d e n t i f i e d in any o t h e r way."^6 One example was th e r e l a t i o n s h i p between a t t i t u d e and behavior. In c r o ss s e c t i o n a l data such r e l a t i o n s h i p s ar e ambiguous, s in c e one cannot be c e r t a i n whether th e a t t i t u d e produces o r r e f l e c t s th e behav ior. Did job d i s s a t i s f a c t i o n lea d t o tu rn o v e r o r did an a s s o ­ c i a t i o n between th e v a r i a b l e s simply mean t h a t i n d i v i d u a l s who q u i t jobs were l i k e l y to r a t i o n a l i z e t h e i r behavior by r e p o r t i n g ( r e t r o ­ s p e c t i v e l y ) t h a t they were unhappy? When a t t i t u d e s measured a t one p o i n t in time can be r e l a t e d t o subsequent behav ior, i t is more l i k e l y t h a t such ambiguity w ill d is appe ar. Vocational Education Follow-up Studies Numerous s t u d i e s have been completed in comparing nonvoca­ t i o n a l ed uc ation and voca tional e d u c a tio n . T y p i c a ll y , t h e s e s tu d i e s have focused on c o s t e f f e c t i v e n e s s o f vocational e d u catio n , a t t i t u d e s o f grad ua tes and employers, m o b i l i t y , s t a b i l i t y o f vocational 1 fi Herbert S. Parnes, The National Longitudinal Surveys: New Vi s ta s f o r Labor Market Research (Columbus, Ohio: Center f o r Human Resource Research, The Ohio S t a t e U n iv e r s i ty , 1976), pp. 6-7. 29 education g r a d u a te s , and f u r t h e r e d ucation. P r a c t i c a l l y a l l o f the s t u d i e s were based on a s p e c i f i c p o in t in time b a s i s . Only l i m i t e d rese arch has been completed on a l o n g i t u d i n a l b a s is which follows c a r e e r paths and employment p a t t e r n s o f former s tu d e n ts and grad uat es . Eninger 17 conducted one o f th e most comprehensive follow-up s t u d i e s with a sample o f 5,327 former voca tional s tu d e n t s randomly drawn from 100 schools t h a t o f f e r e d programs in t r a d e and i n d u s t r i a l educ atio n. His study was based on t h e major areas o f th e le ngth o f time r e q u i re d f o r graduates t o a t t a i n a f u l l - t i m e j o b , th e r e l a t i o n ­ sh ip o f th e job t o t h e educa tion al program pursued wh ile in school, geographic m o b i l i t y o f th e g r a d u a t e s , and how s a t i s f i e d th e graduates were with t h e i r employment. Data on e a r n i n g s , employment s e c u r i t y , and employee s t a b i l i t y were a l s o included. Some o f h is s i g n i f i c a n t f in d in g s included: 1. A g r e a t m a j o r i t y o f t r a d e and i n d u s t r i a l ed uca tion gradu­ a t e s t y p i c a l l y go d i r e c t l y t o work, 36 t o 40 p er cen t e n t e r u n r e la te d jo b s. 2. About 87 percent o f th e grad ua tes had never moved out o f th e community in which they went t o sch ool. Of th o s e who moved, almost t h r e e - f o u r t h s moved t o a l o c a t i o n w it h in 300 miles o f the community in which they r ec eive d t h e i r s chooling. 3. The grad uates in r e l a t e d occupations r e p o r te d a high degree o f jo b s a t i s f a c t i o n , e x press in g h ig h e r s a t i s f a c t i o n than ^Max U. Eninger, The Process and Product o f Trade and Indus­ t r y High School Level Vocational Education in the United S t a t e T ( P i t t s b u r g h , Pa.: Educational System Research I n s t i t u t e , ' A p r f T 1968), pp. 4 and 17. 30 e i t h e r t h e academic graduates o r those who were in u n r e l a t e d occupa­ tions. In a study sponsored by th e Ohio Advisory Council f o r Vocat i o n a l Education 18 1022 i n d i v i d u a l s , 511 employers, 254 gradu ates o f voca tiona l education programs and 257 graduates o f general and a c a ­ demic programs were interv iew ed . The purpose o f t h i s study was to ob ta in answers to such q u es tions a s : Did approved reimbursable vocational ed ucation programs show any p o s i t i v e r e s u l t s ? Did voca­ t i o n a l ed ucation produce grad uates t r a i n e d f o r meaningful employment? Did voc ationa l ed ucation have any e f f e c t on job a t t i t u d e s o f i t s grad uates as employees? Did employers f in d t h a t voca tiona l education graduates make d i f f e r e n t or b e t t e r employees than Ohio high school grad uates from o t h e r programs? 1. The s t u d i e s noted t h a t : More than o t h e r high school g r a d u a t e s , voc ationa l educa­ t i o n s tu d e n ts decided on t h e i r course program because i t was what they r e a l l y wanted. Vocational ed ucation grad ua tes f e l t t h a t t h e i r high school prepared them to fac e th e r eal problems in l i f e and t h e i r f i r s t f u l l - t i m e job. 2. In t h e i r a t t i t u d e s towards j o b s , voca tional ed ucation graduates f e l t t h e r e was a good f u t u r e in t h e i r j o b . They expected t o r e c e i v e h igher pay f o r promotions and found s u p e rv i s io n more satisfying. They had l e s s d e s i r e to change occu pation s and f e l t b e t t e r tra in e d fo r t h e i r jobs. 1p Ohio Advisory Council f o r Vocational Education, Employers and Young Adults Look a t Vocational Education (Columbus, Ohio, 1973). 31 3. Employers gave vocational education grad ua tes hig he r r a t i n g s in s k i l l s and t e c h n i c a l knowledge f o r e n t r y lev el employment, w i l l i n g n e s s to l e a r n new j o b s , work h a b i t s , p r o m o t a b i l i t y , a t t i t u d e s toward company and management, and concern f o r p r o d u c t i v i t y and safety. Creech e t a l . , 19 in a comparative a n a l y s i s o f th e members of th e High School Class o f 1972, 23,000 p o t e n t i a l respondents f o r th e period between t h e i r grad u atio n from high school in 1972 and th e f i r s t follow-up 18 months l a t e r . They concluded t h a t : (1) th e la b o r f o r c e p a r t i c i p a t i o n r a t e s o f young workers was on th e i n c r e a s e f o r whites and females. Of t h e c l a s s o f 1972, 65 p e r c e n t were employed and 8 p er cen t were out o f work. The employment o f blacks (58 pe rce nt) was lower than t h a t o f whites (66 p e r c e n t ) . Graduates of vocational schools were employed a t a h ig h e r r a t e than o t h e r s (77 p e r c e n t ) , com­ pared to (68 pe r c e n t) f o r general education and (59 pe r c e n t) f o r academic g r a d u a t e s ; (2) o f those who continued t h e i r e d u c a t i o n , 42 p e r c e n t were ta k i n g academic co ur ses in a c o l l e g e o r u n i v e r s i t y . Whites (43 p ercent) were more l i k e l y than blacks (35 p ercent) to be ta k in g academic cour se work, but black s (16 p ercent) were more l i k e l y than whites (14 p e r c e n t) to be ta k in g voc ationa l o r t e c h n ic a l p o s t ­ secondary c l a s s e s ; (3) th e number o f females in th e c l a s s who i n d i ­ c ate d they were homemakers was 29 p e r c e n t. 19 Reid F. Creech e t a l . , Comparative Analysis o f Postsecond­ ary Occupational and Educational Outcomes f o r t h e High School Class o f 1972 ( P r i n c e t o n , N . J . : Educational T e st in g S e r v ic e , U.S. Depart­ ment of H ea lth, Education and Welfare, May 1977). Conroy and Diamond 20 completed a comparative study o f nonvo­ c a t i o n a l and academic s tu d e n t s with voc atio na l s t u d e n t s in Massa­ chusetts. The study made in 1975 included s t u d e n t s who graduated from high school in 1969 and 1973. T h e ir o b j e c t i v e was to examine th e impact o f var io u s secondary school programs on th e l i f e s t y l e o f students. Major a t t e n t i o n was focused upon s c h o o l- l a b o r r e l a t i o n to provide a knowledge base to improve p o l i c y f o r secondary e d ucation. The f in d i n g s emphasized t h a t : (1) There was a s i g n i f i c a n t d i f f e r ­ ence between th e ea rnings o f male and female s t u d e n t s ; (2) Although t h e r e was no s i g n i f i c a n t d i f f e r e n c e between th e average income o f a l l 1969 occ upationa l and nonoccupational s t u d e n t s who did not pursue postsecondar y e d u c a t io n , t h e r e was a s i g n i f i c a n t average annual income d i f f e r e n c e in fav or o f a l l occupational s tu d e n t s f o r the c l a s s o f 1973; (3) Trade and i n d u s t r i a l program s tu d e n t s who did not a t t e n d a posts econdary school have a s i g n i f i c a n t l y more f a v o r a b le l a b o r market exper ien ce than nonoccupational s tu d e n ts who did not a t t e n d a posts econdary s ch oo l. In t h e 1969 coh or t th ey earned almost $2,000 more per y e a r than t h e i r nonoccupational c o u n t e r p a r t ; (4) Trade and i n d u s t r i a l s tu d e n t s who did not a t t e n d postsecondary schools als o earn s i g n i f i c a n t l y more than male s tu d e n ts from a l l programs who att en d ed o r graduated from two y e a r public c o l l e g e s and f o u r y e a r u n i v e r s i t i e s ; (5) The s u p e r i o r l a b o r market ex per ienc e o f occupa­ t i o n a l s t u d e n t s , e s p e c i a l l y t r a d e and i n d u s t r i a l program enrol l e e s , ^ W i l l i a m G. Conroy, J r . and Daniel E. Diamond, The Impact o f Secondary School Occupational Education in Massachusetts (Lowell, Ma.: College of Management Sciences, U n iv e r s ity of LowelT, 1976), pp. 9-10. 33 seem t o r e s u l t from t h e independent e f f e c t of th e school program. Factors such as socio-economic and s c h o l a s t i c a p t i t u d e f a i l t o e x p lain th e comparative success o f occupational s tu d e n t s in t h e l a b o r market. Indeed, oc cupational s tu d e n t s came from lower socio-economic l e v e l s and had lower s c h o l a s t i c a p t i t u d e than nonoccupational s t u d e n t s . Laska and Chiou 21 completed a comparative study o f 3,045 voca tional and nonvocational graduates o f seventeen high schools in t h r e e c i t i e s , A us tin , San Antonio, and Houston. They s tu d i e d s i x v a r i a b l e s i n c l u d in g accumulated income, monthly e a r n i n g s , hourly r a t e , weekly working hours, number o f months employed, and le n g th o f time remained in a jo b. Among t h e i r f in d i n g s were: (1) A s i g n i f i c a n t d i f f e r e n c e o f accumulated income and a c t u a l job length between non­ c o l l e g e v ocational and nonvocational graduates of both s ex es; (2) They concluded, based on t h e i r f i n d i n g s , t h a t continued supp ort o f secondary v o catio n al educa tion can be j u s t i f i e d f o r those who wish t o e n t e r th e world o f work r a t h e r than a t t e n d c o l l e g e a f t e r gradua­ t i o n from high school. Richardson and McFadden 22 completed a study on employment p a t t e r n s and e a r n in g s o f 1,000 secondary school voc atio na l education 21 John A. Laska and Jaw-Woie Chiou, A Comparative Study of t h e Occupational Achievement of Vocational and Non-Vocational High School Graduates in Texas (A ust in, Texas: Department o f Cultural Foundation o f Education Center f o r I n t e r n a t i o n a l Education, U n iv e r sit y o f Texas, Final Report, June 1973), p. 5. 22 William B. Richardson and Joan R. McFadden, Employment P a t t e r n s and Earnings o f Secondary Schools Vocational Education Gradu­ a t e s ( I n d i a n a p o l i s , In dia na: Department o f Education, Indiana S t a t e Board o f Vocational and Technical Education RCU Task Report, March 1977). 34 grad uates from tw e n t y - f i v e randomly s e l e c t e d schools in Indiana. T heir f in d in g s re veale d t h a t : 1. Many o f th e g r a d u a t e s , 76 p e r c e n t , sought f u l l - t i m e employment. 2. More than 50 p e r c e n t found work in t h e ar ea they re ceived tra in in g in. 3. The average time r e q u ir e d t o obtain employment a f t e r g r a duati on was two months o r l e s s . 4. Earnings data did not s up por t t h e premise t h a t s i g n i f i ­ c a n t l y higher ea rning s r e s u l t s when graduates were employed in t h e a r e a t r a i n e d f o r . Although th e previous s t u d i e s r e p r e s e n t d i f f e r e n t geographic a r e a s and th e o b j e c t i v e s a r e somewhat d i f f e r e n t , a number of f in dings are sim ilar. I t is important to note t h a t th e a t t i t u d e s o f voca­ t i o n a l ed uc ation gr adu ates were more p o s i t i v e than nonvocational g r a d u a te s , towards t h e i r employers, th e work the y were performing, and t h e i r f u t u r e in t h e o c c upation. Generally from 60 t o 70 percent o f t h e s tu d e n t s t h a t sought employment a f t e r grad ua tion were employed and in most cases earned more than t h e i r c o u n t e r p a r t s who did not p a r t i c i p a t e in vocatio nal ed uc ation programs. A p a r t i a l a n a l y s i s o f th e annual follow-up o f the 1975-76-77 vo ca tional educa tion gr aduates by local program o p e r a t o r s t o f u l f i l l t h e Michigan Department o f E d u c a tio n 's Vocational Technical Education 35 Service 23 r ev ea led t h a t th e number o f grad uates employed continu es t o in c r e a s e ann ual ly {see Appendix A). This was based on data c o l l e c t e d from nin ety-s even U.S. Offi ce o f Education codes o r occupational t i t l e s divide d i n t o th e major c a t e g o r i e s of : A g r i c u l t u r e (01.0000), D i s t r i b u t i v e Education (04.0000), Health Education (07.0000), wage ear ning Home Economics (09.0000), Business Education (14.0000), and Trade and I n d u s t r i a l (17.0000). In 1975, s i x months a f t e r program completion, 25,575 voca­ t i o n a l education graduates r e p o rte d t h a t they were a v a i l a b l e f o r job placement. Of t h i s c o h o r t, 82.5 p e r c e n t o r 22,571 were a c t u a l l y employed. Of t h e g r a d u a te s , 9,144, o r 33.2 p e r c e n t, were employed f u l l time in an occupation r e l a t e d t o t h e i r high school p r e p a ra t io n program. Graduates employed in occupations not r e l a t e d to previous t r a i n i n g were 5,685 o r 20.6 p e r c e n t . Graduates employed f u l l time in f i e l d s such as armed s e r v i c e s were 1,025 o r 3.7 p ercent. Gradu­ a t e s employed on a p a r t - t i m e bas is were 6,897 o r 25 percent o f the cohort. The o t h e r 17.5 p er cen t or 4,824 grad ua tes c l a s s i f i e d as unemployed and seeking were d i s t r i b u t e d in t h r e e c a t e g o r i e s o f con­ ti n u e d e d u catio n , f u l l time 1,012 o r 3.7 p e r c e n t, continued educa­ t i o n , p a r t time 381 o r 1.4 p e r c e n t , and 3,431 o r 12.4 pe rcen t unem­ ployed and seeking work. The c l a s s o f 1976 had 31,200 grad uates a v a i l a b l e f o r p l a c e ­ ment. Six months l a t e r on th e follow- up, 26,714 o r 85.6 percent 23 Michigan Department of Education, Annual Vocational Educa­ t i o n Job Placement Summary by Program (Lansing, Mi., 1975, 1976, 1977), Form 0607“ 36 were employed. Graduates employed in an occupational ar ea r e l a t e d t o t h e i r previous t r a i n i n g were 11,305 o r 36.2 p e r c e n t. Those employed in occupations not r e l a t e d t o t h e i r previous schooling were 6,698 o r 21.5 p e r c e n t. The number e n l i s t e d in th e armed s e r v i c e s was 1,263 o r 4.05 p e r c e n t . were 7,448 o r 22.4 p e r c e n t. Those r e p o r t i n g p a r t - t i m e employment The number o f s tu d e n ts who continued t h e i r ed ucation on a f u l l - t i m e b a s is was 894 o r 2.9 p e r c e n t , and 303 o r 1 p er cen t continued t h e i r ed uca tion on a p a r t - t i m e b a s i s , while 3,290 o r 10.5 p e r c e n t were s t i l l seeking employment. The f in d i n g s o f th e grad uates from th e 1977 c l a s s re veale d t h a t 34,961 were a v a i l a b l e f o r work. 30,372 were employed. Of t h e s e , 86.9 p e r c e n t or The number in occupations r e l a t e d t o t h e i r vocatio nal ed ucation was 13,405 o r 38.3 p e r c e n t . A t o t a l of 7,727 or 22.1 p e r c e n t o f th e graduates were employed in u n r e l a t e d occupa­ tions. There were 1,398 o r 4 p er cen t in th e armed s e r v i c e s . Gradu­ a t e s employed on a p a r t - t i m e b a s is were 7,842 o r 22.4 p e r c e n t ; co ntin uing ed ucation f u l l time were 603 o r 1.7 p e r c e n t; co ntin uing education p a r t time were 246 o r .7 p er cen t; and seeking employment were 10.7 pe rcent o r 3,740 graduates. To provide comparative a n a l y ­ s i s between i n d iv id u a l program area s and t o t a l d a t a , t h e r e s e a r c h e r e x t r a c t e d twelve occupational ar eas 24 (se e Appendix A) from t h e s e annual follow-up d ata f o r the years 1975, 1976, and 1977. F o r e s tr y (01.0700) had a d e c l i n i n g enr ollm en t r a t e from 1975 to 1977 from a high o f 52 s t u d e n t s to a low o f 34 s t u d e n t s . The 37 number employed in a r e l a t e d occupation a f t e r gr aduation varied some from one y e a r t o the next but averaged about 25 pe rcent annually. The number in f u l l - t i m e u n r e la t e d employment in c r e a se d from 22.2 p e r ­ c en t in 1975 to 52.9 pe rcent in 1977 while the number in p a r t - t i m e employment d e c li n e d from 22.2 p er cen t to 8 . 8 pe r c e n t. The Building Trades (17.1000) and C l e r i c a l (14.9700) programs' enro llm ent d ecli n ed 54 and 36 p e r c e n t. However, th e number o f s tu d e n ts employed incr ea se d a nn ual ly f o r th e Building Trades program from 87.1 t o 89 percent and th e C l e r i c a l program from 78.8 t o 86.5 p e r c e n t. P a r t o f th e e n r o l l ­ ment d e c l i n e in Building Trades and C l e r ic a l areas was due to r e c l a s s i ­ f i c a t i o n of U.S. Offi ce o f Education codes from one y e a r t o th e next by th e S t a t e Department o f Vocational-Technical Education S er v ic es. The o t h e r nine program en ro llm en ts continued t o i n c r e a s e t h e i r growth r a t e from 31 to 54 p er cen t over the t h r e e - y e a r per iod. The t o t a l number o f grad ua tes employed v a r ie d from a low o f 69 percent f o r Child Care to a high o f 92.5 percent f o r Machine Shop. Machine Shop (17.2303) had the h ig h e s t o v e r a ll employment, 92.5 pe rcent and al s o t h e highest placement r a t e in r e l a t e d oc cupati on, 54 pe r c e n t. Child Care, on th e o t h e r hand, had th e lowest placement r a t e in a r e l a t e d occ upation, 22.4 pe r c e n t. Child Care a l s o had th e h ig h e s t c o n s i s t e n t unemployment r a t e o f 18 t o 23.5 pe r c e n t. D raf ting and E l e c tr o n i c s had th e lowest unemployment r a t e o f t h e t h r e e - y e a r p e riod, a p p r o x i­ mately 6 p e r c e n t. All Trade and I n d u s t r i a l programs had a lower unemployment r a t e , g e n e r a l l y 10 p er cen t o r l e s s , while O ffi ce Education, Food 38 S e r v ic e s , Child Care,and A g r i c u l tu r e were c o n s i s t e n t l y over 10 p e r ­ cent. However, th e f u l l - t i m e u n r e l a t e d employment c o n s i s t e n t l y ranged h igher f o r th e Trade and I n d u s t r i a l programs from 25.3 to 29.5 pe rcent and F o r e s tr y from 22.2 to 52.9 p e r c e n t , while C l e r i c a l , Food S e r v ic e , Nurses Aides, and D i s t r i b u t i v e Education ranged from 11.3 t o 22.9 p e r c e n t. P a r t- t i m e employment was higher in programs t h a t t r a d i t i o n a l l y e n r o l l e d females than in thos e t h a t were predominantly male o r i e n t e d . Enrollments continued t o i n c r e a s e f o r t h e s e programs. The enr ollm en t i n c r e a s e undoubtedly was due t o t h e f a c t t h a t through th e s e v e n t ie s th e number o f Area Centers in c r e a se d from s i x to t h i r t y - t w o and i t took a t l e a s t two years t o have g raduates t h a t completed a program a f t e r th e Centers opened. The o t h e r s i g n i f i c a n t f in d in g was t h a t placement in occupations continued t o improve and the number o f unem­ ployed continued t o d ecr ea se i n d i c a t i n g t h a t employers were beginning t o recognize t h a t t h e s e grad uates had previous experience t h a t was o f valu e t o th e employers. I t a l s o allowed t h e schools t o begin to r e f i n e th e programs in terms o f th e needs o f employers. In 1977 L ip p e r t 25 completed a f i e l d study o f th e graduates from 1968 t o 1977 t h a t completed th e Food Service Program (09.0203) a t th e Mount P l e a s a n t Area Center. The primary q u es tio n s were: Did gradu ates o f th e Food S ervic e program become managers o r owners of food e s ta b lis h m e n ts ? Or did some m ig rate t o o t h e r a r e a s ? How many ^ R o b e r t J . L i p p e r t , An Analysis o f th e Mount P l e a s a n t Area Center Vocational Food Ser vice Program (Mt. P l e a s a n t , Mi.: Field Study f o r th e Degree o f E d . S . , Central Michigan U n i v e r s i t y , 1977). 39 gr aduates remained in th e Food S ervic e area a f t e r gr ad uat ion? noted t h a t : He (1) I t took approximately f o u r years f o r grad uates to begin to move from employees t o management; (2) In f o u r y e a r s tim e, 20 p e r c e n t were owner managers o f food es ta b li s h m e n ts and 28 p er cen t were owners o r managers o f u n r e l a t e d b u s in e s s e s ; (3) Five y e a r s l a t e r 40 p e r c e n t were s t i l l in food s e r v i c e and 21 p er cen t were married and n ot working; (4) The f i r s t two y e a r s a f t e r g r a d u a t i o n , more than 50 p e r c e n t were employed in th e food s e r v i c e i n d u s t r y . Over th e y e a r s , t h e en rollm ent o f food s e r v i c e c l a s s e s was almost a 50-50 s p l i t between male and female, which was not too a t y p i c a l o f th e food s e r v i c e i n d u s t r y as a whole. Fre quently , as th e female po pulation g e t s m ar ri ed , the y tend t o drop out o f th e la b o r market f o r a few y e a r s t o r a i s e a family and p o s s i b ly a t a l a t e r d a t e r e - e n t e r again. Labor Market Review The composition o f th e l a b o r f o r c e r e f l e c t s t h e person power needs o f th e n a t i o n , s t a t e , lo ca l community, and, to a l a r g e degr ee, t h e success o f vocational gradu ates as well as voca tional programs. T h e re f o re , c a r e e r and program planning a r e dependent on a sound l a b o r f o r c e da ta base. Michigan S t a t i s t i c a l A b s t r a c t 25 l i s t s ten major c a t e g o r i e s o f occupation s t h a t comprise th e t o t a l employed l a b o r f o rc e in th e s t a t e , by region and county. An a n a l y s i s o f t h e s e c a t e g o r i e s a t t h e S t a t e and I s a b e l l a - G r a t i o t c o u n ti e s l e v e l s r e v e a l s th e fo ll o w ­ ing per centages o f employment f o r each category (see Table 1). Total Division o f Research, Graduate School o f Business Adminis­ t r a t i o n , Michigan S t a t i s t i c a l A b s tr a c t (Lansing, Mi.: Michigan S t a t e U n i v e r s i t y , Eleventh E d i t i o n , 1976). 40 TABLE 1.--Composition o f th e S t a t e o f Michigan Labor Force and th e I s a b e l l a - G r a t i o t Counties Labor Force by Occupations —1970 (Labor Force—16 y e a r s and over) State Isabella-G ratiot Occupation Employed % o f Total Employed % o f Total P r o fe s sio n a l- T e c h n i c a l 461,818 14.2 4,084 13.9 Managers and A d m in istr ato rs 227,381 7.0 1,846 6.3 Sales Workers 220,605 6.8 1,665 5.7 Clerical 550,034 16.9 4,652 15.8 Craftsmen 499,767 15.3 3,845 13.0 Operatives (except transport) 571,154 17.6 4,142 14.1 Tr an s p o rt Equipment Operators 124,626 3.8 1,171 4.0 Laborers (nonfarm) 130,857 4. 0 1,063 3.6 S er vice Workers 418,504 12.9 5,365 18.3 48,084 1.5 1,544 5.3 3,252,830 100.0 29,377 100.0 Farm Workers TOTALS 41 number employed in t h e S t a t e were 3,252,830, in I s a b e l l a - G r a t i o t c o u n ti e s 29,377. Employed a t th e S t a t e lev el in p r o f e s s io n a l and te c h n i c a l occupations were 461,818 o r 14.2 p e r c e n t ; in I s a b e l l a G r a t i o t co u n tie s 4,084 o r 13.9 pe r c e n t . Employed in managerial and a d m i n i s t r a t i v e occupations in th e S t a t e were 227,381 o r 7 p e r c e n t , in I s a b e l l a - G r a t i o t c ounties 1,846 o r 6.3 p e r c e n t . Employed as s a le s workers in th e S t a t e were 220,605 o r 6 . 8 p e r c e n t, in I s a b e l l a G r a t i o t co u n t ie s 1,665 o r 5.7 p e r c e n t. Employed in c l e r i c a l occupa­ t i o n s in t h e S t a t e were 550,034 o r 16.9 p e r c e n t , in I s a b e l l a - G r a t i o t co u n tie s 4,652 o r 15.8 p e r c e n t. Employed as craftsmen in th e S t a t e were 499,767 o r 15.3 p e r c e n t , in I s a b e l l a - G r a t i o t c o u n tie s 3,845 or 13 p e r c e n t . Employed as o p e r a t i v e s (except t r a n s p o r t ) in th e S t a t e were 571,154 or 17.6 p e r c e n t , in I s a b e l l a - G r a t i o t co u n tie s 4,142 or 14.1 p e r c e n t. Employed as t r a n s p o r t equipment o p e r a t o r s in t h e S t a t e were 124,626 or 3. 8 p e r c e n t , in I s a b e l l a - G r a t i o t c o u n ti e s 1,171 or 4.0 p e r c e n t. Employed as l a b o r e r s (nonfarm) in th e S t a t e were 130,857 o r 4 . 0 p e r c e n t , in I s a b e l l a - G r a t i o t co u n tie s 1,063 o r 3.6 perc en t. Employed as s e r v i c e workers in th e S t a t e were 418,504 o r 12.9 p e r ­ c e n t , in I s a b e l l a - G r a t i o t c o u n t ie s 5,365 o r 18.3 p e r c e n t. Employed as farm workers in t h e S t a t e were 48,084 o r 1.5 p e r c e n t , in I s a b e l l a G r a t i o t c o u n t i e s , 1,544 o r 5.3 pe r c e n t. In a rank o r d e r comparison o f employment in th e ten c a t e g o r ­ i e s , f our occup ational c a t e g o r i e s ranked d i f f e r e n t in I s a b e l l a - G r a t i o t co unties than in t h e S t a t e Labor Market (see Table 2), In I s a b e l l a - G r a t i o t co u n t ie s s e r v i c e occupations ranked number one as compared 42 TABLE 2 . —Composition o f th e I s a b e l l a - G r a t i o t Counties Labor Force in Rank Order Compared t o th e S t a t e o f Michigan Labor Force Rank Order by Occupation Occupation Isabella-G ratiot Rank Order S t a t e o f Michigan Rank Order S ervice Worker 1 5 C le r i c a l 2 2 Operatives (except transport) 3 1 P r o fes sio n al- T ech n ical 4 4 Craftsman 5 5 Manager and Ad m ini st rat or s 6 6 Sales Workers 7 7 Farm Workers 8 10 Trans port Equipment Operators 9 9 10 8 Laborers 43 to t h e S t a t e l a b o r f o rc e ranking o f number 5 f o r s e r v i c e workers. C l e r i c a l occupations ranked number 2 in both th e S t a t e l a b o r f o r c e and I s a b e l l a - G r a t i o t c o u n t i e s . Operatives (except t r a n s p o r t ) ranked number 3 in I s a b e l l a - G r a t i o t c o u n t ie s and number 1 in th e S t a t e labor force. P r o f e s s i o n a l , te c h n ic a l occupations ranked 4 in both t h e S t a t e and I s a b e l l a - G r a t i o t c o u n t i e s . Craftsman ranked number 5, managers and a d m i n i s t r a t o r s number 6, and s a l e s number 7 in both the S t a t e and I s a b e l l a - G r a t i o t c o u n t i e s . Farm workers ranked number 8 in I s a b e l l a - G r a t i o t c o u n tie s and number 10 in t h e S t a t e . Tra nspo rt equipment o p e r a to r s ranked number 9 in th e S t a t e and I s a b e l l a - G r a t i o t c o u n ti e s and l a b o r e r s ranked number 10 in I s a b e l l a - G r a t i o t co u n t ie s and number 8 in th e S t a t e l a b o r f o rc e . The I s a b e l l a - G r a t i o t c ounties l a b o r f o r c e composition was somewhat more s e r v i c e o r i e n t e d and had occupations t h a t r e quire d r e l a t e d t r a i n i n g f o r e n t r y t o employment as compared to th e S t a t e labor force. For example, l a b o r occupations ranked number 10 in I s a b e l l a - G r a t i o t c o u n t ie s and number 8 in th e S t a t e . S ervic e occupa­ t i o n s , which included food s e r v i c e , h e a l t h s e r v i c e , personal s e r v i c e s , e t c . , ranked number 1 in I s a b e l l a - G r a t i o t c ountie s and number 5 in the S tate. These types o f occupations were somewhat e a s i e r t o e n t e r f o r high school vocational ed uca tion graduates than p r o f e s s io n a l or managerial occu pa tion s. 44 P opulation by Race Based on the Eleventh E d itio n o f th e Michigan S t a t i s t i c a l A b s tra c t a comparison o f th e p o p ulatio n by race in th e S ta te and I s a b e l l a - G r a t i o t c o u n t i e s , th e fo llow ing d a ta were rev ealed (see Table 3 ). In th e S ta te o f Michigan 7,833,474 o r 88.23 p e rc e n t o f th e pop ulation was w h ite; in I s a b e l l a - G r a t i o t co u n ties 42,522 o r 98.8 p e rc e n t were w h ite. The Negro p o p u latio n in th e S t a t e was 991,066 or 11.8 p e r c e n t; in I s a b e l l a - G r a t i o t c o u n tie s 162 o r .38 p e rc e n t were Negro. The Indian p o p ulatio n in th e S ta te was 16,854 o r .2 p e rc e n t; in I s a b e l l a - G r a t i o t c o u n tie s i t was 211 o r .5 p e rc e n t. The Asian p o p ulatio n in th e S t a t e was 15,285 o r .7 p e r c e n t; in I s a b e l l a G r a tio t c o u n tie s i t was .09 p e rc e n t. All o th e r races in th e S ta te were 18,404 o r .2 p e r c e n t; in I s a b e l l a - G r a t i o t c o u n tie s i t was 2.3 p e rc e n t. The p o pu lation in I s a b e l l a - G r a t i o t c o u n tie s v a rie d from th e S ta te in t h a t 98.8 p e rc e n t o f th e p o p ulation was w hite w hile in th e S ta te as a whole only 88.23 p e rc e n t were w h ite. TABLE 3 . — P o p u latio n Comparison o f t h e S t a t e o f Michigan by Race w ith I s a b e l l a - G r a t i o t C ounties P o p u la tio n by Race (1970 Census) White S t a t e o f Michigan (8 ,87 5,08 3) Isa b e lla -G ra tio t Counties (43,035) Negro N % N 7,833,474 88.23 991,066 42,522 98.80 162 Ind ian % 11.2 .38 Asian O ther N % N % N % 16,854 .2 15,285 .17 18,404 .20 211 .5 37 .09 103 .23 CHAPTER I I I METHODOLOGY AND DATA COLLECTION This lo n g itu d in a l follow -up stud y was designed to determ ine th e e f f e c t o f s e le c te d v a r ia b le s on th e success o f v o catio n al educa­ tio n g rad u ates in becoming employed in an occupation r e l a t e d to t h e i r high school v ocation al ed u catio n program. This c h a p te r d e s c rib e s th e p o p u la tio n , programs s tu d ie d , d a ta c o l l e c t i o n , in stru m e n t, d a ta c o l ­ l e c t i o n pro ced ures, and th e methods used f o r d a ta a n a l y s is . Population The p o pu lation surveyed included a l l g rad u ates from twelve v ocatio nal education programs o f f e r e d a t the Mount P le a s a n t, Michigan, Area C enter. In o rd e r to be d e sig n a te d an Area Center by th e Michi­ gan Department o f Education, th e school must o f f e r a minimum o f f i f t e e n o r more c e r t i f i e d programs and serv e a geographic region t h a t has an en rollm ent o f 12,000 or more s tu d e n t s . In th e case o f th e Mount P le a s a n t Area C enter, i t served a geographic region o f two c o u n tie s which had nine p u b lic school d i s t r i c t s and one p aro chial sch o o l. The d i s t r i c t s ' en ro llm en ts ranged from 553 to 4,47 6 . Most o f th e schools were in r u ra l a re a s o th e r than Mount P le a s a n t which has a popu latio n o f 22,000 plus i n h a b i t a n t s . The s tu d e n ts s e le c t e d to a tte n d th e Area Center was l e f t to th e d i s c r e t i o n o f each lo cal 46 47 d istric t. The l a r g e r schools in th e d i s t r i c t s o f fe r e d a v a r i e t y o f p rev o catio n al c l a s s e s in b u s in e s s , i n d u s t r i a l a r t s , home economics, and a g r i c u l t u r e . The s m a lle r schools o f fe r e d only in tro d u c to r y home economics and, in some c a s e s , a g r i c u l t u r e . The s tu d e n ts e n r o lle d in v o catio nal education programs a t th e Area Center had a wide v a r i a t io n in economic level and p r e - p r e p a r a tio n background. In th e l a r g e r schools most s tu d e n ts had two y e a rs o f o r i e n t a t i o n o r p rev ocation al c l a s s e s in d i f f e r e n t f i e l d s w hile in th e sm a lle r s c h o o ls , s tu d e n ts may have had no p r e p a ra tio n a t a l l . Seven o f th e twelve programs a t th e C enter included 35 to 40 p e rc e n t disadvantaged o r handicapped s tu d e n ts i n t e g r a te d i n t o r e g u l a r programs. elev en th o r t w e lf th g ra d e rs . All s tu d e n ts were e i t h e r This study in clu d es 1,285 g rad uates from twelve programs o f fe r e d a t Mount P le a sa n t Area C enter during th e school y e a rs o f 1971 to 1976 i n c l u s i v e . Programs Studied The follo w ing programs t h a t were 1n o p e ra tio n s in c e 1971 were in clu ded in t h i s study: F o re stry Auto Mechanics D i s t r i b u t i v e Education B uilding Trades Nurses Aide D raftin g Child Care E le c tr o n ic s Food S erv ice P r in tin g O ffic e C le r ic a l Machine Shop 48 Data C o lle c tio n Instrum ent The instru m ent used in th e study f o r th e f i r s t y e a r was th e Michigan Department o f E d u c a tio n 's Follow-up Survey o f Graduates (see Appendix B). The t h i r d - a n d f i f t h - y e a r in stru m en t (se e Appendix C) did n o t in clu d e the q u e stio n s on r a c i a l - e t h n i c and sex inform ation and who helped you to fin d a jo b . The instrum en t was developed by th e Michigan Department o f Education in th e e a r l y 70's and was used throughout th e S t a t e by a l l lo cal program a d m in is tr a to r s s in c e then . This d a ta were used as a feedback mechanism so lo c a l d a ta could be compared f o r program e v a lu a tio n , program p lan n in g , and p o lic y d e c is io n making. I t s major t h r u s t was to g a th e r d a ta from former s tu d e n ts concerning employment a n d /o r f u r t h e r e d u c a tio n , th e f i r s t , t h i r d and f i f t h y e a r a f t e r g ra d u a tio n . The d eterm in a tio n o f employment s t a t u s provided an im portant b a s e lin e f o r th e study. For the purpose o f th e research,employment s t a t u s was d ivid ed in to fo u r major c a te g o r ie s in c lu d in g employed in a r e l a t e d o ccu p atio n , employed in an u n re la te d o ccu p atio n , u n a v a ila b le f o r employment, and unemployed. These c a te g o r ie s allow personnel in th e schools t o a s s e s s th e number o f s tu d e n ts who e n te re d and remained in occupations r e l a t e d to t h e i r high school p r e p a r a tio n , th e number employed in u n re la te d o ccu p atio n s, th e number seeking employment, and th e number who were n o t a v a il a b l e f o r employment. Educational s t a t u s was an o th er c r i t i c a l component in th e s tu d y . Again, i t was div ided i n t o fo u r major c a te g o r ie s encompassing continued education in a r e l a t e d f i e l d , continued education in an 49 u n r e la te d f i e l d , continued education on a f u l l - t i m e b a s i s , and con­ tin u e d education on a p a r t- tim e b a s is . Whether a person was employed o r was f u r t h e r in g h i s / h e r ed ucatio n a f t e r g ra d u a tio n , ed u cato rs were i n t e r e s t e d in how su c c e ss fu l they were in o b ta in in g employment and i t s r e l a t i o n to t h e i r previous t r a i n i n g . The same was t r u e f o r f u r t h e r e d u c a tio n . Three o th e r i n d i c a t o r s t h a t provided some i n s i g h t i n to c a r e e r paths o f g rad u ates were m i l i t a r y s t a t u s , m a rita l s t a t u s , and lo c a tio n o f employment o r m o b ility over a f iv e - y e a r p e rio d . In a d d i t i o n , job lo c a tio n provided some a s s i s t a n c e in determ ining th e jo b market t h a t was being a sse sse d and th e types o f programs and ex perience the Center needed to provide to s tu d e n ts s t i l l in scho ol. Data C o lle c tio n Procedures The Placement C oordinator a t th e Mount P le a sa n t Area Center d i s t r i b u t e d th e follow -up q u e s tio n n a ir e to a l l th e v o catio n al educa­ tio n g rad u ates from c e r t i f i e d v o catio nal programs. The f i r s t - y e a r follow -up from 1971 t o 1976 was completed during November and December o f th e same y e a r th e stu d e n ts graduated from school o r approxim ately s ix months a f t e r g ra d u a tio n . The t h i r d - a n d f i f t h - y e a r follow -ups were s e n t out in l a t e December. This time frame was s e le c t e d sin c e previous ex p erien ce in d ic a te d th e response r a t e was u s u a lly higher during t h a t tim e o f th e y e a r . That proved to be an inopportune time f o r g rad u ates in th e c o n s tr u c tio n t r a d e s , because, depending on weather c o n d itio n s , th ey q u i t e o fte n were l a i d o f f and re p o rte d unemployed on th e q u e s tio n n a ir e . In 1973 th e follow -up time period 50 was changed to l a t e March and e a r ly A p r il. This had a p o s it i v e impact on th e number r e p o r tin g t h a t th ey were employed. Concurrent w ith th e follow -up q u e s tio n n a ir e m a ilin g , th e C enter, in c o n c e rt w ith th e lo c a l newspapers, r a d io and t e l e v i s i o n s t a t i o n s dissem in ated a r t i c l e s and news r e l e a s e s on th e importance o f th e follow -up stud y and encouraged s ib lin g s . a s s i s ta n c e from p a re n ts and The m ailin g s included a l e t t e r asking each grad uate to respond, a r e tu r n envelope stamped w ith a p e rm it, and a q u e s tio n n a ir e (se e Appendix D). The mail out envelope had a c o r r e c te d address requ ested box in th e upper l e f t hand c o rn e r. In th e event th e Center had th e wrong a d d r e s s , th e post o f f i c e su p p lied th e c o r r e c t address when a v a i l a b l e . Three weeks a f t e r th e o r ig in a l m a ilin g , a post card was m ailed t o a l l nonrespondents asking them t o r e tu rn th e form. One week a f t e r th e p o st card was mailed o u t, a telephone follow -up was undertaken f o r a l l nonrespondents who could be lo c a te d . During th e c o l l e c t i o n process a l l forms were recorded so nonrespondents could be c o n ta c te d . Once th e c o l l e c t i o n process was completed, th e f i r s t - y e a r forms were co p ied, e d ite d and forwarded to th e S ta te Department o f Education to be processed f o r t h e i r reco rd s. The inform ation a t the Center was compiled and analyzed f o r lo c a l d e c is io n making. t h i r d and f i f t h y e a r s , th e same follow -up procedure was used. In th e In t h i s c a s e , however, th e d ata remained a t th e Center f o r lo cal use and was n ot forwarded to th e S t a t e Department o f Education. f i r s t few y e a r s a l l d ata were compiled by hand. The In th e l a t e r y e a r s , 51 a f t e r th e a c q u i s i t i o n o f a computer, th e d ata were com puterized w ith each s t u d e n t 's permanent school re c o rd s . Data A nalysis To perform th e d a ta a n a l y s i s , th e Michigan S t a t e U n iv e rsity CDC6500 computer system was used. The d ata pro cessin g included s o r t ­ ing th e m aster f i l e i n t o occup atio nal ed ucatio n codes and using th e S t a t i s t i c a l Package f o r th e Social S ciences (SPSS) f o r th e a n a ly s is o f th e d a ta . The computer was programmed f o r a c a r e e r path a n a l y s is o f each s tu d e n t f o r a o n e -, t h r e e - , and f i v e - y e a r response to each v a r i a b l e by program. Through th e use o f frequency d i s t r i b u t i o n and c ro ss ta b u l a t i o n each o f th e v a r i a b le s in th e study were analyzed. This provided a composite t a b u l a t i o n o f th e data and formed th e b a s is f o r answering th e re se a rc h q u e s tio n s reg ard in g th e g rad uates o f th e Mount P le a s a n t Area C enter. The V a ria b le s analyzed were employment r e l a t i o n to school program, p o st-h ig h -sch o o l edu cation o f v o catio n al ed u cation g ra d u a te s , employment by sex , m a r ita l s t a t u s , program co m p le te rs, noncom pleters, geographic l o c a t i o n , m i l i t a r y s e r v i c e , unemployment, high school grade p o in t average o f v o c a tio n a l ed ucatio n s tu d e n t s , and high school English grades o f v o catio n al edu cation s tu d e n ts by program. The response r a t e f o r th e v a rio u s q u e s tio n s d i f f e r e d due t o th e f a c t t h a t g rad u ates follow ed d i f f e r e n t c a r e e r p a th s , so they were included in th e t a b l e s o r n a r r a t i v e in Chapter IV. 52 Evaluation Model The e v a lu a tio n model was developed by c r e a ti n g a t h r e e - d i g i t number with th e f i r s t y e a r r e p re s e n tin g th e one-hundredths p la c e , th e t h i r d y e a r th e t e n ' s place and th e f i f t h y e a r the o n e 's place (1 3 5 ) , w hile th e v a r i a b l e s under study g enerated a frequency d i s ­ t r i b u t i o n t h a t transform ed th e raw d a ta in to a d e s c r i p t i v e a n a l y s is o f each g r a d u a t e 's c a r e e r path. CHAPTER IV ANALYSIS OF THE DATA The c a r e e r p a t te r n s re p o rte d were f o r th e twelve c e r t i f i e d programs o p e ra tin g a t th e Mount P le a s a n t (Michigan) Area Vocational C enter from 1971 to 1976. This c h a p te r p re se n ts th e f in d in g s o f th e stu d y r e s u l t i n g from an a n a l y s is performed on th e d a ta c o l l e c t e d from 1285 g ra d u a te s. Percentage and frequency d i s t r i b u t i o n were th e s t a ­ t i s t i c a l forms used in r e p o r tin g th e f in d in g s . In th e d e s c r i p t i v e p o r tio n s o f t h i s c h a p te r , th e p ercentages were rounded to th e n e a r e s t whole number. I t should be po inted out t h a t not a l l respondents answered each q u estio n on th e follow -up form each y e a r ; co nsequ ently , some v a r i a t i o n s in response r a t e e x i s t from one y e a r to th e nex t and a ls o from one program to th e n ex t. Placement and Unemployment o f Vocational Education Graduates Placement in a p ro d u ctiv e c a p a c ity was a goal o f th e voca­ t i o n a l edu catio n programs under study. I t was a ls o a primary measure o f success in th e v o catio nal ed ucation program. To determ ine how th e Mount P le a s a n t Area Center g rad uates compared w ith g rad u ates from o t h e r v o catio n al education programs throughout th e S t a t e , th e p la c e ­ ment reco rd s o f th e Mount P le a s a n t f i r s t y e a r g rad u ates over a f i v e y e a r period was compared with th e S ta te o f Michigan annual follow -up 53 54 o f 1975 g rad u ates (see Table 1 ). major c a t e g o r ie s : The d a ta was d iv id ed in to fo u r (1) Employed; t h i s included a l l g rad uates who were employed th e f i r s t y e a r a f t e r g rad u atio n ; (2) O ther; which included m i l i t a r y s e r v i c e , homemaker and n o t a v a i l a b l e f o r employ­ ment; (3) Continued ed u catio n ; which included g rad u ates a tte n d in g p o st-h ig h -sc h o o l ed u catio n ; and (4) unemployed; o r seeking work. How did th e Mount P le a sa n t Area Center Vocational Education gradu­ a t e s compare in th e s e f o u r a reas to th e s t a t e average f o r Vocational Education grad u ates? Employment o f Graduates The t o t a l employment average o f Mount P le a s a n t g rad uates in th e f i r s t y e a r a f t e r g rad u atio n was 58 p ercen t as compared t o th e S ta te average o f 55 p e rc e n t. However, c o n s id e ra b le v a r i a t i o n e x is te d between programs in regard to employment. The com parative d ata re v e a le d t h a t in th e machine shop area Mount P le a sa n t had 84 p ercen t employed; th e S ta te average was 61 p e rc e n t. In th e au to mechanics c a te g o ry Mount P le a sa n t had 67 p e rc e n t employed; th e S ta te average was 49 p e rc e n t. The n urses a id e program a t Mount P le a sa n t had 63 p e r ­ c e n t employed, and th e S ta te average was 44 p e r c e n t. In th e food s e r v ic e area Mount P le a sa n t had 64 p e rc e n t employed, and th e S ta te average was 49 p e rc e n t. In th e c h ild c a re program Mount P le a sa n t had 51 p e rc e n t employed; th e S t a te average was 39 p e rc e n t. In th e b u ild in g t r a d e s a r e a , Mount P le a sa n t had 68 p e rc e n t employed, th e S ta te average was 62 p e rc e n t. In th e e l e c t r o n i c s program, Mount P le a sa n t had 56 p e rc e n t employed, and th e S ta te average was TABLE 4 . —Placement and Unemployment Comparison o f th e S t a t e o f Michigan Annual Follow-Up o f th e 1975 V ocational Edsucation G raduates and t h e L o n g itu din al Follow-Up o f F i r s t Year V ocational Education Graduates a t t h e Mount P le a s a n t Area Center^ M.P. M.P. S ta te No. % No. C hild Care Auto Mechanics B u ild ing Trades C le r ic a l D i s t r i b u t i v e Ed. Nurses Aide P r in t i n g F o r e s tr y D ra ftin g Machine Shop E l e c tr o n i c s Food S e rv ic e 40 96 57 86 41 117 43 51 32 63 44 74 51 67 68 44 49 63 52 57 48 84 56 64 194 1334 745 376 2044 402 236 23 202 473 118 403 39 49 62 46 52 44 57 55 51 61 47 49 TOTAL 744 58 6550 55 % No. M.P. S tate M.P. S tate No. S t a te No. No. % No. % 31 30 23 33 31 36 24 24 33 26 37 30 17 16 5 49 26 35 27 21 27 5 27 22 22 11 6 25 31 19 33 24 40u 6b 34c 28d 38 3 22 55 174 62 21 3 36 14 19 34 6 3 2 7 5 7 5 6 9 2 8 4 14 14 7 14 6 11 5 4 2 2 2 13 17 10 8 7 7 6 6 4 3 2 2 2 118 217 150 119 419 113 57 7 26 78 19 139 24 10 13 15 12 12 14 15 7 11 8 17 28 277 21 481 4 94 7 1462 12 % No. % 8 10 18 13 16 20 47 24 11 13 22 12 8 7 13 15 9 6 14 18 11 14 9 _8 153 516 278 269 1062 338 97 12 130 167 93 238 14 3353 182 Unemployed Cont. Education Other Employed % % Michigan Department o f E d u catio n , Continuing Education Placement Summary by Program Within S t a t e (Lansing: Form X0608, Jan uary 28, 1976); Michigan Department o f E du catio n, V ocational Education Job Placement Summary o f Program W ithin S t a t e (Lansing: Form X0607, Jan uary 28, 1976). ^Five g ra d u a te s in school and working. c Seven g ra d u a te s in school and working. dThree g ra d u a te s in school and working. 56 47 p e rc e n t. Of th e c l e r i c a l g radu ates from Mount P le a s a n t, 45 p e r ­ c e n t were employed and th e S t a t e average was 46 p ercen t. In the d i s t r i b u t i v e ed ucatio n c a te g o ry , Mount P le a sa n t had 49 p e rc e n t employed and th e S ta t e average was 52 p e rc e n t. In th e d r a f t i n g a r e a , Mount P le a s a n t had 48 p e rc e n t employed and th e S ta te average was 51 p e rc e n t. In th e p r i n t i n g program, Mount P le a sa n t had 52 p ercen t employed and th e S ta te average was 57 p ercen t. O ther; Including M ilita r y S e rv ic e , Homemaker and Not A v ailab le f o r Regular Employment The t o t a l o th e r categ o ry a t Mount P le a sa n t included 14 p e r­ c e n t o f th e g rad u ates th e f i r s t y e a r a f t e r g rad u atio n compared to th e S ta te average o f 28 p e rc e n t. In t h i s c o h o rt, th e S ta te average was h ig h er f o r a l l programs. In th e c h ild ca re a re a th e S ta te a v e r­ age was 31 p e rc e n t; in MountP le a s a n t i t was 10 p e rc e n t. In the nurses a id e program, th e S t a t e average was 36 p e rc e n t; in Mount P le a sa n t i t was 12 p e rc e n t. The S t a te average f o r th e e l e c t r o n i c s respondents was 37 p e rc e n t; a t Mount P le a sa n t i t was 14 p e rc e n t. In th e d r a f t i n g a r e a , th e S ta te had 33 p e rc e n t in th e o th e r catego ry and a t th e Mount P le a sa n t Center i t was 9 p e rc e n t. In th e food s e r ­ v ic e c a te g o ry th e S ta te average was 30 p e rc e n t; w hile Mount P le a sa n t re p o rte d 8 p e rc e n t. In th e auto mechanics program, th e S t a t e average was 30 p e rc e n t and th e Mount P le a s a n t C enter had 18 p e rc e n t. In th e p r in t i n g area th e S ta te average was 24 p e rc e n t; a t Mount P le a sa n t i t was 8 p e rc e n t. In th e d i s t r i b u t i v e education c a te g o ry , th e S ta te average was 31 p e rc e n t; and 13 p e rc e n t was recorded in th e Mount 57 P le a sa n t Center. In th e c l e r i c a l area th e S ta te average was 33 p e r ­ c e n t and a t th e Mount P le a sa n t Center i t was 24 p e rc e n t. In th e f o r e s t r y program th e S ta te average was 24 p e rc e n t w hile th e Mount P le a s a n t C enter had only 13 p e rc e n t. In th e machine shop area th e S ta te average was 26 p ercen t and a t th e Mount P le a s a n t Center i t was 18 p e rc e n t. In th e b u ild in g tr a d e s program, th e S ta te average was 23 p e rc e n t and in th e Mount P le a sa n t Center i t was 20 p e rc e n t. Placement in Continued Education In continued education the d a ta rev ealed a s u b s t a n t i a l d i f f e r ­ ence between th e S ta te average g rad uates co n tin u in g in h ig h er educa­ t i o n and th e Mount P le a sa n t Area C enter. The o v e ra ll average o f th e g rad uates c o n tin u in g education in th e S ta te was 4 p e rc e n t w h ile a t th e Mount P le a s a n t Center 21 p ercen t continued t h e i r ed u catio n a f t e r high school g ra d u a tio n . Of th e d r a f t i n g g rad u ates from th e Mount P le a s a n t C en ter, 33 p ercen t continued t h e i r ed ucatio n compared to 9 p ercen t f o r th e S t a t e . In th e d i s t r i b u t i v e ed u catio n are a 31 p e r ­ c e n t o f th e gradu ates from Mount P le a s a n t continued t h e i r education compared to 5 p e rc e n t f o r th e S t a t e . In th e e l e c t r o n i c s programs 34 p e rc e n t o f th e Mount P le a sa n t g rad u ates co ntinued in h ig h er education compared to 8 p e rc e n t f o r th e S t a t e . In th e p r i n t i n g categ o ry 33 p er­ c e n t o f th e Mount P le a sa n t g rad u ates continued t h e i r edu catio n and 5 p e rc e n t f o r th e S t a t e . In th e food s e r v i c e are a 22 p ercen t o f th e Mount P le a sa n t grad uates continued t h e i r edu cation and 4 p ercen t f o r th e S t a t e . In th e f o r e s t r y program 21 p ercen t continued t h e i r educa­ t io n from th e Mount P le a sa n t Center and 3 p e rc e n t continued from th e 58 S ta te . In th e c l e r i c a l a re a 25 p e rc e n t con tinu ed from th e Mount P le a s a n t C enter and 7 p ercen t from th e S t a t e . In th e c h il d c a re ca te g o ry 22 p e rc e n t continued from Mount P le a sa n t and 6 p e r c e n t from th e S t a t e . In th e auto mechanics program, 11 p ercen t continued t h e i r ed ucation from th e Mount P le a sa n t C enter and 3 p e rc e n t from th e S t a t e . In th e b u ild in g tr a d e s and machine shop programs, 5 p e r­ ce n t from th e Mount P le a sa n t C enter continued t h e i r ed u catio n and 2 p e rc e n t from th e S t a t e . Unemployment o f Graduates The average unemployment o f gradu ates from th e Mount P le a s a n t Area C enter was lower th an th e average f o r th e s t a t e . The average unemployment f o r th e Mount P le a s a n t Center was 7 p e rc e n t w hile th e S ta te average was 12 p e rc e n t. in d iv id u a l programs. C onsiderable v a r i a t i o n e x is t e d between At th e Mount P le a sa n t Area Center th e unemploy­ ment f o r th e c h i ld c a r e are a was 17 p e rc e n t; th e S t a te average was 24 p e r c e n t. In th e auto mechanics categ o ry th e unemployment average was 10 p e rc e n t f o r th e Mount P le a s a n t C enter and th e same f o r th e S ta te . In th e b u ild in g tra d es program, i t was 8 p e rc e n t a t th e Mount P le a sa n t C enter and 13 p e rc e n t f o r th e S t a t e . In th e d i s t r i b u t i v e ed u catio n area th e average was 7 p e rc e n t a t th e Mount P le a s a n t C enter and 15 p e rc e n t in th e S ta t e . In th e n urses a id e a r e a , 6 p e rc e n t were unemployed a t Mount P le a sa n t and 12 p e rc e n t in th e S ta t e . In th e p r i n t i n g c a te g o ry , th e average was 6 p e rc e n t f o r th e Mount P le a sa n t C enter and 14 p e rc e n t in th e S ta te . In th e f o r e s t r y program, th e average was 4 p e rc e n t f o r th e Mount P le a s a n t C enter and 15 p e rc e n t in 59 th e S t a t e . In the d r a f t i n g area 3 p ercen t f o r th e Mount P le a sa n t Center and 7 p e rc e n t in th e S ta t e . In th e machine shop categ o ry th e average was 2 p e rc e n t in t h e Mount P le a s a n t Center and 11 p e r­ cen t f o r th e S ta te . In th e e l e c t r o n i c s program, 2 p e rc e n t were unemployed f o r th e Mount P le a s a n t Center and 8 p e rc e n t f o r th e S ta te . In th e food s e r v ic e a r e a , th e average was 2 p e rc e n t f o r th e Mount P le a s a n t Center and 17 p e rc e n t f o r th e S t a t e . Employment o f Vocational Education Graduates The d a ta c o l l e c t e d concerning th e employment o f vocatio nal education g radu ates were grouped under th r e e major c a t e g o r i e s , f u l l ­ time employed, p a r t- tim e employed and not a v a i l a b l e f o r employment. The lo n g itu d in a l d a ta base re v e a le d sev eral p e r t i n e n t f in d i n g s , th e e f f e c t o f time on th e employment o f g rad uates by program and th e e f f e c t m a r ita l s t a t u s had on employment o f g ra d u a te s. The g rad u ate response f o r th e f i r s t y e a r follow up was 83 p e r c e n t, th e graduate response r a t e th e t h i r d y e a r was 80 p e rc e n t and th e g rad u ate response r a t e f o r th e f i f t h y e a r was 43 p e rc e n t. The E f f e c t o f Time on th e Employ­ ment o f Graduates from th e Mount P le a sa n t Area Voca­ ti o n a l Center The f i r s t - y e a r follow -up re v e a le d t h a t 57 p e rc e n t o f th e g rad uates were employed f u l l tim e, t h r e e y e a rs l a t e r 70 p e rc e n t were employed f u l l tim e and f i v e y ears l a t e r 74 p e rc e n t were employed f u l l tim e (see Table 5 ). In p a r t- tim e employment th e f i r s t y e a r 14 p e rc e n t o f th e t o t a l g rad u ates worked p a r t tim e, t h r e e y ears l a t e r 60 10 p e rc e n t and f i v e y ears l a t e r 7 p e rc e n t. In th e categ o ry o f not a v a i l a b l e f o r employment th e f i r s t y e a r 29 p e rc e n t o f th e g radu ates c l a s s i f i e d themselves in t h i s group. The t h i r d y e a r 20 p e rc e n t were n o t a v a i la b le f o r employment and th e f i f t h y e a r 19 p e rc e n t. In an aly zin g th e d ata by program f o r f u l l - t i m e employment f o r e s t r y had 55 p e rc e n t employed th e f i r s t y e a r , 74 p e rc e n t th e t h i r d y e a r and 88 p e rc e n t the f i f t h y e a r a f t e r g ra d u a tio n . The d i s t r i b u t i v e education a re a had 44 p e rc e n t employed f u l l time th e f i r s t y e a r , 73 p e rc e n t th e t h i r d y e a r and 80 p ercen t th e f i f t h y e a r. The nurses a id e categ o ry had 55 p e rc e n t employed f u l l time th e f i r s t y e a r , 62 p ercen t th e t h i r d y e a r and 70 p e rc e n t th e f i f t h y e a r . The c h i l d c a re program had 51 p e rc e n t employed f u l l time th e f i r s t y e a r , 49 p e rc e n t th e t h i r d y e a r and 55 p e rc e n t th e f i f t h y e a r . The food s e r v ic e area had 51 p e rc e n t employed f u l l time th e f i r s t y e a r , 65 p ercen t th e t h i r d y e a r and 69 p e rc e n t th e f i f t h y e a r . In th e c l e r i c a l a r e a , 47 p ercen t o f th e respondents were employed f u l l tim e th e f i r s t y e a r , 65 p e rc e n t th e t h i r d y e a r and 67 p e rc e n t the f i f t h y e a r. In th e auto mechanics categ o ry 73 p ercen t were employed f u l l time th e f i r s t y e a r , 83 p e rc e n t th e t h i r d y e a r and 82 p ercen t th e f i f t h y e a r. The b u ild in g tr a d e s are a had 79 p e rc e n t employed f u l l tim e th e f i r s t y e a r , 84 p e rc e n t th e t h i r d y e a r and 92 p ercen t th e f i f t h y e a r. In th e d r a f t i n g categ o ry 39 p e rc e n t o f th e respondents were employed f u l l time th e f i r s t y e a r , 64 percent th e t h i r d y e a r and 63 p ercen t th e f i f t h y e a r . The e l e c t r o n i c s program had 57 p e rc e n t employed f u l l time th e f i r s t y e a r , 66 p ercen t the t h i r d y e a r and 82 p e rc e n t 61 th e f i f t h y e a r . The p r in t i n g are a had 41 th e f i r s t y e a r , 69 p ercen t th e t h i r d y e a r and 63 p e rc e n t th e f i f t h y ear. p e rc e n t employed f u l l time In th e machine shop a r e a , 87 p e rc e n t were employed f u l l time th e f i r s t y e a r , 85 p e rc e n t th e t h i r d y e a r and 93 p ercen t th e f i f t h year. P a r t- tim e employment v aried from program to program, and in most programs i t d e c lin e d from 20 to 50 p e rc e n t by th e t h i r d y e a r and o v e r a ll to 7 p e rc e n t th e f i f t h y e a r. In combining f u l l - t i m e and p a r t- tim e employment f o r th e f i f t h y e a r , th e fo llow ing percentages o f employment by program were rev ealed : th e f o r e s t r y program had 97 p ercen t employed; th e d i s t r i b u t i v e educa­ t i o n area had 91 p e rc e n t employed; th e nu rses a id e categ o ry had 73 p e rc e n t employed; in th e c h ild c a re are a 69 p e rc e n t were employed; in th e food s e r v ic e c a te g o ry , 80 p ercen t were employed; th e c l e r i c a l program had 74 p e rc e n t employed; th e au to mechanics categ o ry rev ealed 85 p e rc e n t employed; in th e b u ild in g t r a d e s area 92 p ercen t were employed; th e d r a f t i n g program had 65 p e rc e n t employed; th e e l e c t r o n ­ ic s categ ory had 86 p e rc e n t employed; in th e p r i n t i n g programs, 79 p e r c e n t o f th e respondents were employed; and in th e machine shop area 93 p e rc e n t were employed. Graduates n o t a v a il a b l e f o r employment began with 29 p ercen t o f th e t o t a l g rad uates in th e f i r s t y e a r and d e c lin e d to 20 p ercen t th e t h i r d y e a r and to 19 p ercen t th e f i f t h y e a r . The t h i r d and f i f t h y e a rs i t s t a b i l i z e d and c o n s is te d p r im a r ily o f th o se g rad u ates who were in th e m i l i t a r y s e r v i c e , in sch o o l, o r women who m arried and withdrew from employment. TABLE 5.—AOne-, Three-, and Five-Year Comparison of the Vocational Education Graduates That Were Employed Full Time, Part Time and Not Available for Employment F i r s t Year Program Full Time N % P a r t Time N % T hird Year NEMPL N % T otal N Full Time P a rt Time N % N F if th Year NEMPL N * % Total Full rime N N P a rt Time % N % T otal NEMPL N % N F o re stry 42 55 9 12 25 33 76 53 74 6 8 13 18 72 28 88 3 9 1 3 32 D is tr ib u tiv e Education 28 44 13 21 22 35 63 53 73 4 5 16 22 73 28 80 4 11 3 9 35 Nurse Aide 92 55 25 15 50 30 167 89 62 14 10 40 28 143 46 70 2 3 18 27 66 C hild Care 33 51 7 11 25 38 65 26 49 8 15 19 36 53 16 55 4 14 9 31 29 Food S e rv ic e 51 52 23 23 24 25 98 65 65 15 15 20 20 100 44 69 7 11 13 20 64 C le ric a l 63 47 23 17 49 36 135 100 65 23 15 31 20 154 68 67 7 7 26 26 101 Auto Mechanics 85 73 11 9 .4 21 18 117 90 83 7 7 11 10 108 58 82 2 3 11 15 71 B uild in g Trades 55 79 2 3 13 18 70 63 84 2 3 10 13 75 24 92 0 0 2 8 26 D ra ftin g 21 39 11 20 22 41 54 34 64 7 13 12 23 53 17 63 1 4 9 33 27 E le c tro n ic 35 57 9 14 18 29 62 43 66 5 8 17 26 65 23 82 1 4 4 14 28 P rin tin g 30 41 13 18 30 41 73 42 69 10 16 9 15 61 27 63 7 16 9 21 43 Machine Shop 61 78 4 _6 70 60 85 3 _4 8 H 71 38 93 _0 _0 3 _7 41 596 57 1050 718 70 104 10 206 1028 417 74 38 7 108 19 563 TOTAL 5 _7 151 14 303 29 20 63 The A ffect o f M arital S ta te s on the Employment o f Vocational Education Graduates o f th e MountT P le a sa n t Area Center The response r a t e f o r th e f i r s t - and t h i r d - y e a r follow -ups o f th e employed g rad u ates as to t h e i r m a rita l s t a t u s was 97 p e r c e n t. The f i r s t - y e a r follow -up revealed t h a t 57 p e rc e n t o f both th e s in g le and m arried g rad uates were employed f u l l tim e (see Table 6 ) . In th e t h i r d y e a r th e percentage o f s in g le s employed on a f u l l - t i m e b a s is in c re a se d to 73 p ercen t and th e m arried g radu ates employed f u l l time in creased to 66 p e rc e n t. In th e f i f t h y e a r , th e percentage o f s in g l e s employed f u l l time in c re a se d to 77 percen t and th e m arried employed remained a t 66 p ercen t. P a r t- tim e employment during th e f i r s t y e a r was 15 p ercen t f o r both th e s in g le and m arried g rad u ates. The s in g l e p a r t- tim e employ­ ment dropped to 8 p e rc e n t th e t h i r d y e a r and remained a t t h a t lev el during th e f i f t h y e a r . P a r t- tim e employment o f gradu ates d e c lin e d more slowly f o r th e m arried group to 11 p e rc e n t th e t h i r d y e a r and to 8 p e rc e n t th e f i f t h y e a r . In th e u n a v a ila b le f o r employment c a t e ­ gory, th e s in g l e group continued to d e c lin e from 28 p e rc e n t th e f i r s t y e a r to 15 p e rc e n t th e f i f t h y e a r , w hile f o r th e married group i t d e c lin e d from 28 to 26 p e rc e n t over th e f iv e - y e a r p eriod . Job Relatedness There were f iv e f a c t o r s s tu d ie d to determ ine th e impact o f jo b r e la te d n e s s to previous t r a i n i n g a t th e Mount P le a sa n t Area Center. The d ata r e l a t e d to th e s e groupings were re p o rte d under th e TABLE 6.—AOne-, Three-, and Five-Year Marital Status Comparison of the Full-Time and Part-Time Employed and Not Available for Employment Graduates of the Area Center F i r s t Year F ull Time N X T hird Year P a rt Time NEMPL N X N S in g le 457 57 117 15 232 M arried 127 57 34 15 62 T otal X 28 28 N F ull Time N X F if th Year P a rt Time NEMPL N X N T otal X N Full Time N X P a rt Time N X N NEMPL X Total N 806 537 73 58 8 144 19 739 260 77 28 8 49 15 337 223 166 66 27 11 23 252 146 66 17 8 57 26 220 59 65 headings o f , a comparison o f th e employed v o catio nal edu catio n gradu­ a te s by v o catio n al ed ucation programs t h a t were employed in a r e l a t e d o ccu p atio n , a comparison o f employed v o catio n al education gradu ates com pleting a v o catio nal program and employed v ocation al education g rad u ates n o t com pleting a v ocation al edu cation program a t th e Mount P le a sa n t Area C enter and t h e i r e n tr y in to a r e l a t e d o ccu p atio n , a comparison o f r e l a t e d employment by male and female employed gradu­ a t e s o f th e Mount P le a sa n t Area C enter, a lo n g itu d in a l comparison o f r e l a t e d employment o f male and female employed g rad uates o f th e Mount P le a sa n t Area C enter, a program atic lo n g itu d in a l comparison o f voca­ t i o n a l ed u catio n g rad uates t h a t were employed in an occupation r e la t e d to t h e i r t r a i n i n g a t th e Mount P le a s a n t Area Center. Employed Graduates in a R elated Occupation The response r a t e t o , "Are you employed in an occupation t h a t was r e l a t e d t o your previous t r a in i n g ? " was 69 p e rc e n t f o r th e f i r s t - y e a r fo llo w -u p , 55 p ercen t f o r th e t h i r d - y e a r follow -up and 34 p e rc e n t f o r th e f i f t h - y e a r follow -up. O v e ra ll, r e l a t e d employment f o r th e f i r s t y e a r was 54 p ercen t o f th e g rad uates in a r e l a t e d occupation to t h e i r previous t r a i n i n g , th e t h i r d y e a r , 56 p e rc e n t were in a r e l a t e d occupation and th e f i f t h y e a r , 55 p e rc e n t were in a r e l a t e d o ccu p atio n . However, a c o n s id e ra b le v a r i a t io n e x i s t e d between programs in regard t o r e l a t e d employment (see Table 7 ). C l e r i c a l , auto mechanics, b u ild in g t r a d e s , e l e c t r o n i c s , p r in t i n g and machine shop had a continuous in c r e a s e in r e l a t e d employment over a f iv e - y e a r p e rio d . The f i r s t y e a r a f t e r TABLE 7 .—A One-, T h re e -, and Five-Y ear Comparison o f th e Employed V ocational Education G raduates by V ocational Education Program That Were Employed in a R elated Occuption F i r s t Year Program REL N % T hird Year NREL N % T otal REL N N NREL % N % F if th Year T otal N REL N NREL % N % Response Rate T otal N F irs t Thir(J Fm h Year Year Year F o re stry 15 26 42 74 57 11 24 34 76 45 3 12 22 88 25 64 57 32 D is tr ib u tiv e Education 41 69 18 31 59 30 56 23 44 53 16 53 14 47 30 70 63 36 Nurse Aide 97 82 22 18 119 73 70 31 30 104 38 72 15 28 53 64 56 29 C hild Care 24 52 22 48 46 15 58 11 42 26 9 50 9 50 18 58 34 34 Food S erv ice 42 49 44 51 86 26 40 39 60 65 15 33 31 67 46 75 57 40 C le ric a l 86 65 47 35 133 105 72 39 28 144 60 81 14 19 74 68 74 38 Auto Mechanics 52 47 59 53 111 46 58 34 42 80 31 51 30 49 61 77 56 42 B uilding Trades 33 51 32 49 65 25 53 22 47 47 16 59 11 41 27 76 55 32 D ra ftin g 13 28 34 72 47 15 43 20 57 35 5 29 12 71 17 70 52 25 E le c tro n ic 20 42 28 58 48 15 41 22 59 37 13 57 10 43 23 61 47 29 P r in tin g 25 42 35 58 60 16 34 31 66 47 13 41 19 60 32 73 57 39 Machine Shop 29 49 30 51 59 32 64 18 36 50 22 65 14 35 36 75 63 46 477 54 413 46 890 409 56 324 44 733 241 55 201 45 442 69 55 34 TOTAL NOTE: REL—R elated to tr a in in g a t th e Area C enter NREL—Not r e la te d to th e tr a in in g a t th e Area C enter 67 g ra d u a tio n , th e c l e r i c a l group had a 65 p ercen t employment r a t e in r e l a t e d o ccup ation s; th e t h i r d y e a r 72 p e rc e n t and th e f i f t h y e a r 81 p e rc e n t. The auto mechanics area had 47 p e rc e n t o f th e respondents in a r e l a t e d occupation th e f i r s t y e a r , 58 p e rc e n t th e t h i r d y e a r and 51 p e rc e n t th e f i f t h y e a r. The b u ild in g t r a d e s categ o ry had 51 p e rc e n t in r e l a t e d employment th e f i r s t y e a r , 53 p e rc e n t th e t h i r d y e a r and 59 p e rc e n t th e f i f t h y e a r. E le c tr o n ic s had 42 p ercen t employed in a r e l a t e d occupation th e f i r s t y e a r , 41 p e rc e n t th e t h i r d y e a r and 57 p e rc e n t th e f i f t h y e a r . The machine shop group had 49 p e rc e n t employed in r e l a t e d occupations th e f i r s t y e a r , 64 p e rc e n t th e t h i r d y e a r and 65 p ercen t th e f i f t h y e a r. R elated employment in th e c h i l d c a r e , d r a f t i n g and p r in t i n g programs did not vary too much over th e f i v e - y e a r p erio d . The c h il d c a re program had 52 p e rc e n t employed in a r e l a t e d occupation th e f i r s t y e a r , 58 p ercen t th e t h i r d y e a r and 50 p e rc e n t th e f i f t h y e a r. In th e d r a f t i n g c a t e ­ gory, 28 p e rc e n t o f th e respondents were employed in a r e l a t e d occu­ p atio n th e f i r s t y e a r , 43 p e rc e n t in th e t h i r d y e a r and 29 p ercen t th e f i f t h y e a r. The p r i n t i n g group had a 42 p ercen t employment r a t e th e f i r s t y e a r , 34 p e rc e n t th e t h i r d y e a r and 41 p ercen t th e f i f t h y e a r. Four programs had a d e c lin e in r e l a t e d employment over th e f iv e - y e a r p e rio d , food s e r v i c e , d i s t r i b u t i v e e d u c a tio n , nurses a id e and f o r e s t r y . The r e l a t e d employment in th e nu rses a id e area d e c lin e d from 82 p e rc e n t th e f i r s t y e a r to 72 p e rc e n t th e f i f t h y e a r. The r e l a t e d employment d elcin ed from 26 p ercen t th e f i r s t y e a r to 68 12 p e rc e n t th e f i f t h y e a r in th e f o r e s t r y a re a . In th e d i s t r i b u t i v e education c a te g o ry , r e l a t e d employment d e c lin e d from 69 p ercen t th e f i r s t y e a r to 53 p e rc e n t th e f i f t h y e a r and in the food s e rv ic e a r e a , i t d e c lin e d from 49 p e rc e n t th e f i r s t y e a r to 33 p ercen t th e f i f t h year. Employed Vocational Education Gradu­ a te s Completing a Vocational Edu­ c a tio n Program and Employed Voca­ tio n a l Education Graduates nab Completing a Vocational Educa^ tio n Program and T h e ir Entry in to a Related Occupation In answer t o th e q u e s tio n , "Were program com pleters more ap t to e n t e r a r e l a t e d occupation than noncompleters?" th e d a ta rev ealed t h a t program com pleters had a h ig h er percentage in r e l a t e d employ­ ment (see Table 8 ). Of th e graduates who completed a vocational edu catio n program, th e f i r s t y e a r a f t e r g r a d u a tio n , 74 p ercen t were employed in a r e l a t e d occupation as compared to 26 p e rc e n t o f th e g rad u ates who did not complete a vo cation al education program. The t h i r d y e a r , 77 p ercen t o f th e com pleters were in a r e l a t e d occupation and 23 p ercent o f th e noncom pleters; th e f i f t h y e a r , 74 p ercen t of th e com pleters were in a r e l a t e d occupation and 26 p ercen t o f th e noncompleters. The employment o f th e com pleters continued to d e c lin e in th e n o n re la te d a r e a , 71 p e rc e n t th e f i r s t y e a r to 66 p e rc e n t th e f i f t h y e a r , while th e employment f o r noncompleters continued to in c re a s e in th e n o n re la te d o ccupations from 29 p ercen t to 35 p e rc e n t. TABLE 8 . —A One-, T h re e -, and F ive-Y ear Comparison o f Employed V ocational Education G raduates Completing a V ocational Program and Employed Vocational Education G raduates Not Completing a V ocational Program a t t h e Mount P le a s a n t Area C en ter and T h e ir Entry i n t o R elated o r Non-Related Employment T h ird Year F i r s t Year COMP COMP NCOMP F i f t h Year NCOMP COMP Total N % N % NCOMP Total T otal N % N N % % N % R elated 353 74 121 26 474 294 77 86 23 360 177 74 62 26 239 Not R elated 286 71 115 29 401 232 72 90 28 322 131 66 59 35 200 TOTAL 639 73 236 27 875 526 75 176 25 702 308 70 131 30 439 NOTE: COMP—Graduate completed t h e t r a i n i n g a t Area C enter NCOMP—Graduate did n o t complete th e t r a i n i n g a t t h e Area C enter 70 A Comparison o f Male and Female Employment in Related Occupa­ tio n s In response to th e q u e s tio n , "Are males o r females more ap t to e n t e r a r e l a t e d occupation?" th e study re v e a le d t h a t more females than males were in r e l a t e d occupations (see Table 9 ) . The f i r s t y e a r a f t e r g r a u a tio n , 43 p e rc e n t o f th e males were employed in a r e l a t e d occupation and 58 p ercen t o f th e fem ales. The t h i r d y e a r 45 percen t o f th e males were in a r e l a t e d occupation and 64 p e rc e n t o f th e fem ales, and th e f i f t h y e a r 44 p e rc e n t o f th e males were in a r e l a t e d occupation and 69 p e rc e n t o f th e fem ales. Unduplicated L ongitudinal Compari­ son o f Related Employment o f Male and Female Graduates In analy zin g th e c a r e e r paths o f th e g rad uates o f th e Mount P le a sa n t Area C enter, th e d a ta rev ealed t h a t 64 p e rc e n t o f th e t o t a l g radu ates were employed in a r e l a t e d occupation d uring t h e i r f i r s t f i v e y e a rs and 36 p ercen t were in a n o n - re la te d occupation (see Table 10). The d ata a ls o in d ic a te d t h a t 76 p e rc e n t o f th e female g rad uates were employed in a r e l a t e d occupation compared to 55 p e r­ cen t o f th e males. Program atic Longitudinal Comparison o f Vocational Education Graduates Who Were Employed in an Occupati o n R elated to T h e ir TrainTn? In su p p o rt o f th e q u e s tio n , "Do vo catio nal education graduates e n t e r employment r e l a t e d to t h e i r ed u catio n al program pursued a t the Area Vocational Center?" an u n d u p licated a n a ly s is re v e a le d t h a t in TABLE 9 . —A One-, T h re e -, and Five-Y ear Comparison o f R elated Employment by Male and Female Employed Graduates a t t h e Mount P le a s a n t Area C enter T hird Year F i r s t Year REL N NREL % N % Total NREL REL N N % N % F i f t h Year Total N N Total NREL REL % N % N Male 219 43 292 57 511 180 45 217 55 397 116 44 145 56 261 Female 259 58 187 42 446 203 64 112 36 315 125 69 56 31 181 Total 478 50 479 50 957 383 54 329 46 712 241 54 201 46 447 NOTE: REL—Job i s r e l a t e d t o t r a i n i n g a t Area C enter NREL—Job i s n o t r e l a t e d t o t r a i n i n g a t t h e Area C enter 72 TABLE 1 0 . — An U n d u p lic a te d L o n g itu d in a l Com parison o f R e la te d Employ­ m ent o f M ale and Fem ale G ra d u a tes o f t h e Mount P le a s a n t Area C e n te r Related Employment Non-Related Employment No. No. % No. % Total Male 325 55 264 45 589 Female 358 76 115 24 473 Total 783 64 379 36 1062 most programs employment in r e l a t e d occup atio ns con tin ued to in c r e a s e (see Table 11). The response r a t e o f th e g rad u ates to th e q uestion v a r ie d from 70 to 89 p e r c e n t. The o v e r a ll p ercen tage was 64 p e rc e n t in r e l a t e d employment and 36 p e rc e n t in th e u n r e la te d employment c a te g o ry . However, th e r e was c o n s id e ra b le v a r i a t io n between programs. In th e n urses a id e and c l e r i c a l programs, 78 p e rc e n t were in r e l a t e d employment compared to 28 p e rc e n t in n o n - r e la te d . In th e d i s t r i b u ­ t i v e education a r e a , 75 p e rc e n t were in r e l a t e d occup atio n s compared t o 25 p e rc e n t in n o n - re la te d . In th e machine shop c a te g o ry , 74 p e r­ c e n t o f th e respondents were in r e l a t e d o ccu p atio n s compared to 26 p e rc e n t in n o n - r e l a t e d ; in th e b u ild in g tr a d e s a r e a , 70 p e rc e n t were in r e l a t e d occupations compared to 30 p e rc e n t n o n - r e la te d o ccu pation s. In th e auto mechanics program, 66 p e rc e n t were in r e l a t e d occupations compared to 34 p e rc e n t in n o n - r e la te d . In th e c h i l d c a r e a r e a , 62 p e rc e n t were in r e l a t e d occupations compared to 38 p e rc e n t in nonre lated . In th e food s e r v ic e c a te g o ry , 57 p e rc e n t were in r e l a t e d 73 TABLE 1 1 .--A Program atic L ongitudinal Comparison o f Vocational Educa­ t i o n Graduates That Were Employed in an Occupation R elated t o T h e ir T ra in in g a t th e Mount P le a s a n t Area Center Related Nonrelated No. % No. % Nurses Aide 120 78 33 22 153 83 C le r ic a l 130 78 37 22 167 85 D istrib u tiv e Education 55 75 18 25 73 87 Machine Shop 50 74 18 26 68 86 B uilding Trades 47 70 20 30 67 79 Auto Mechanics 85 66 43 34 128 89 Child Care 34 62 21 38 55 70 Food S erv ic e 56 57 42 43 98 85 E le c tr o n ic s 31 51 30 49 61 77 P r in t in g 31 46 37 54 68 83 D raftin g 23 42 32 64 . 55 82 F o re stry 22 31 48 69 70 79 684 64 379 36 1063 Program TOTAL Tn+ai ' 2 “ai 1,0 * Response Rate P ercent 74 occupations compared t o 43 p ercen t in n o n - r e la te d . In th e e l e c t r o n ­ i c s a r e a , 51 p ercen t were in r e l a t e d occu p atio n s compared to 49 p e rc e n t in n o n - re la te d ; and th e p r in t i n g program had 46 p e rc e n t in r e l a t e d occupations compared t o 54 p e rc e n t in n o n - r e la te d . In th e d r a f t i n g a r e a , 42 p ercen t were in r e l a t e d o c c u p a tio n s , and 64 percen t were in n o n - re la te d o ccu p atio n s. The f o r e s t r y categ o ry had 31 p e r­ c e n t in r e l a t e d employment compared to 69 p e rc e n t in n o n - re la te d employment. Vocational Education Graduates Continuing T h e ir Education In response to th e q u e s tio n , "Did th e g rad u ates co ntin ue t h e i r ed ucation a f t e r high school completion?" th e study rev ealed t h a t th e f i r s t y e a r 21 p e rc e n t o f th e g rad uates were c o n tin u in g in h ig h er edu catio n on a f u l l - t i m e b a s i s , th e t h i r d y e a r 9 p e rc e n t were co n tin u in g and th e f i f t h y e a r 4 p ercen t continued (see Table 12). Continuing in h ig h er education on a p a r t- tim e b a s is th e f i r s t y e a r were 13 p e rc e n t, th e t h i r d y e a r 11 percen t and th e f i f t h y e a r 9 p e r ­ c e n t. However, th e p ercentage o f gradu ates co ntin uin g in hig her ed ucation on a f u l l - t i m e b a s is v a rie d c o n s id e ra b ly by program. In d r a f t i n g , f o r example, th e f i r s t y e a r a f t e r g rad u atio n 37 p ercen t co ntinued t h e i r e d u c a tio n , in th e t h i r d y e a r i t was 18 p e rc e n t and in th e f i f t h y e a r 9 p e rc e n t. In e l e c t r o n i c s , th e f i r s t y e a r 34 p ercen t continued t h e i r e d u c a tio n , 19 p ercen t th e t h i r d y e a r and 4 p ercen t th e f i f t h y e a r. In th e p r i n t i n g a r e a , th e f i r s t y e a r 33 p ercen t o f th e respondents continued in h ig h er e d u c a tio n , 13 p e rc e n t th e t h i r d TABLE 1 2 .—A One-, T h r e e - , and Five-Y ear Comparison o f t h e Mount P le a s a n t Area C en ter V ocational Education Graduates That Continued in Higher Education on a Full-Tim e o r Part-Tim e B asis Third Year F i r s t Year Program Total G rads. Full Time No. % P a r t Time Full Time No. % No. % F i f t h Year P a r t Time Full Time P a r t Time No. % No. % No. % D ra ftin g 67 25 37 1 2 12 18 0 0 6 9 0 0 E l e c tr o n i c s 79 27 34 0 0 15 19 2 3 3 4 0 0 P rin tin g 82 27 33 0 0 11 13 2 3 6 7 0 0 D is trib u tiv e Education 84 26 31 0 0 8 10 1 1 1 1 0 0 C le r ic a l 196 47 24 1 .5 21 11 0 0 9 5 0 0 F o r e s tr y 89 21 24 0 0 5 6 1 1 3 3 1 1 115 22 19 2 2 9 8 1 1 9 8 2 2 C hild Care 79 14 18 3 4 7 9 0 0 1 1 1 1 Nurses Aide 185 32 17 3 2 18 10 4 2 3 2 4 2 Auto Mechanics 144 23 16 0 0 5 4 0 0 2 2 0 0 Machine Shop 79 5 6 2 3 1 1 0 0 3 4 0 0 B uildin g Trades 85 4 5 1 1 3 4 0 0 1 1 1 1 1285 273 21 13 1 115 9 11 1 47 4 9 .7 Food S e rv ic e TOTAL 76 y e a r and 7 p e rc e n t th e f i f t h y e a r o f th e respondents continued in h ig h e r e d u c a tio n . The d i s t r i b u t i v e ed ucation group had 31 p e rc e n t e n r o lle d in f u l l - t i m e h ig h e r education th e f i r s t y e a r , 10 p ercen t th e t h i r d y e a r and 1 p e rc e n t th e f i f t h y e a r. The f o r e s t r y and c l e r i c a l programs had 24 p e rc e n t e n r o lle d in h ig h er education on a f u l l - t i m e b a s is th e f i r s t y e a r , 6 and 11 p e rc e n t th e t h i r d y e a r and 3 and 5 p ercen t th e f i f t h y e a r. The food s e r v ic e categ o ry had 19 p e rc e n t e n r o lle d in h ig h er education th e f i r s t y e a r , 8 p e rc e n t th e t h i r d and 8 p ercen t th e f i f t h y e a r . The c h ild care program had 18 p ercen t in h ig h er education on a f u l l - t i m e b a s is th e f i r s t y e a r , 9 p e rc e n t th e t h i r d y e a r and 1 p ercen t th e f i f t h y e a r. The nurses a id e area had 17 p e rc e n t in h ig h er ed ucation on a f u l l - t i m e b a s is th e f i r s t y e a r , 10 p e rc e n t th e t h i r d y e a r and 2 p e rc e n t th e f i f t h y e a r. In th e auto mechanics program 16 p e rc e n t were e n r o lle d in h ig h er edu cation on a f u l l - t i m e b a s is th e f i r s t y e a r , 4 p e rc e n t th e t h i r d y e a r and 2 p e rc e n t th e f i f t h y e a r. The machine shop group had 6 p e rc e n t e n r o lle d in f u l l - t i m e continued ed ucation th e f i r s t y e a r , 1 p e rc e n t th e t h i r d y e a r and 4 p ercen t th e f i f t h y e a r. The b u ild in g tra d e s categ o ry respondents had 5 p ercen t e n r o lle d in h ig h er educa­ t i o n th e f i r s t y e a r , 4 p ercen t th e t h i r d y e a r and 1 p ercen t th e f i f t h y e a r. The p a r t- tim e en ro llm en t in h ig h e r ed ucation was low with 1 p e rc e n t o f th e gradu ates c o n tin u in g t h e i r edu catio n th e f i r s t and t h i r d y ears and .7 p e rc e n t th e f i f t h y e a r. Between programs th e r e was a v a r i a t i o n o f 0 to 4 percen t w ith th e c h ild ca re program having 77 th e b ig g e s t response r a t e In p a r t-tim e h ig h er education showing 4 p e rc e n t. TABLE 1 3 .—Unduplicated Count o f Mount P le a sa n t Area C enter Voca­ t io n a l Education Graduates t h a t Continued in Higher Education Total Graduates Graduates in School Full Time 1285 344 % 27 No. % CM No. O CM No. Graduates in School P a rt Time Combining th e f u l l - t i m e and p a r t- tim e s tu d e n t s , 29 p e rc e n t o f the g rad uates continued t h e i r edu catio n beyond high school. Continued Education by Program Completers and Noncompleters' In response to th e q u e s tio n , " I s th e percen tag e o f vo cation al ed ucatio n g rad uates co n tin u in g p o st-h ig h -sch o o l education h ig h er f o r program com pleters than noncompleters?" i t was found t h a t o f th e t o t a l s tu d e n ts t h a t continued t h e i r edu cation th e f i r s t y e a r a f t e r g rad uatio n 68 p e rc e n t were g radu ates t h a t had completed a v ocational program compared to 32 p e rc e n t t h a t had n o t completed t h e i r vocatio nal program. The t h i r d y e a r 69 p e rc e n t o f th e com pleters were in con­ tin u e d ed ucatio n compared to 32 p e rc e n t o f th e noncom pleters. The f i f t h y e a r 74 p e rc e n t o f th e com pleters continued in h ig h er ed u cation and 26 p e rc e n t o f th e noncompleters. In comparing continued education between com pleters and noncom pleters, o f th e gradu ates t h a t completed TABLE 1 4 . — A O n e -, T h r e e - , and F iv e -Y e a r C om parison o f C o n tin u e d E d u c a tio n by V o c a t io n a l E d u c a tio n G ra d u a te s T h a t C om p leted a V o c a t io n a l Program and G ra d u a te s Mho D id N ot C om p lete a V o c a t io n a l Program a t t h e Mount P l e a s a n t A rea C e n te r T h ird Year F i r s t Year NCOMP COMP N % N % TOTAL COMP N N ,.% F i f t h Year NCOMP N TOTAL COMP % N N NCOMP % N % TOTAL N Full Time 187 70 82 30 269 85 70 36 30 121 34 76 11 24 P a r t Time 6 43 _8 57 14 6 55 _5 45 11 11 71 _5 29 17 193 68 90 32 283 91 69 41 32 132 46 74 16 26 62 TOTAL NOTE: COMP—G raduate completed th e t r a i n i n g a t Area C enter NCOMP—Graduate d id n o t com plete th e t r a i n i n g a t th e Area C enter 45 79 t h e i r high school v o catio n al program, 70 p e rc e n t continued f u l l tim e in h ig h e r edu catio n compared to 30 p e rc e n t o f th e g rad u ates who had not completed t h e i r high school v o catio n al program. M o bility o f Vocational Education Graduates There a r e a number o f items t h a t could e f f e c t geographic choices o f g ra d u a te s. Did th e m a jo rity o f v o catio n al education gradu­ a t e s remain in th e lo c a l community? impact on r e l a t e d employment? e n t e r th e m i l i t a r y s e r v ic e ? fo llo w ing areas were s tu d ie d : Did geographic lo c a tio n have an Did v o catio n al g rad uates decide to To provide answers to th e s e q u e s tio n s th e geographic lo c a t io n o f vocation al g rad u ates by programs, v o catio n al gradu ates employed in r e l a t e d occu pation s by geographic lo c a tio n ,a n d v o catio n al g rad uates e n te r in g th e m i l i t a r y s e r v ic e . Three major c a te g o r ie s were used to d e s c rib e th e lo c a ti o n o f g ra d u a te s: (1) th e boundaries o f th e In te rm e d ia te School D i s t r i c t o r I s a b e l l a and G r a t io t c o u n t i e s , which th e Mount P le a sa n t Area Center s e r v e s , (2) re g io n , which in c lu d e s th e c o u n tie s b o rd erin g I s a b e l l a and G r a t i o t c o u n tie s and (3) th e b alance o f th e s t a t e . Geographic Location o f Vocational Graduates by Program The f i r s t y e a r a f t e r grad u atio n 76 p e rc e n t o f th e v ocation al gradu ates were lo c a te d in I s a b e l l a and G r a tio t c o u n tie s . The t h i r d y e a r 73 p e rc e n t remained in th e lo c a l community and th e f i f t h y e a r 70 p e rc e n t were in th e lo c a l community. M igrating to th e region th e f i r s t and t h i r d y e a rs were 5 p ercen t o f th e g rad u ates and th e f i f t h 80 y e a r 12 p e rc e n t o f th e g ra d u a te s . Vocational g rad u ates t h a t moved o u t s t a t e th e f i r s t y e a r numbered 19 p e r c e n t, 23 p e rc e n t th e t h i r d y e a r and 18 p e rc e n t th e f i f t h y e a r . A y e a r a f t e r g ra d u a tio n , 80 to 89 p e rc e n t o f v o cation al g rad u ates in th e nurses a i d e , c h il d c a r e , and c l e r i c a l a re a s remained in I s a b e l l a and G r a ti o t c o u n tie s o r t h e i r lo c a l community (see Table 15). In th e p r i n t i n g , f o r e s t r y , food s e r v i c e , auto mechanics, and b u ild in g tr a d e s c a t e g o r i e s , 72 to 79 p e rc e n t were in I s a b e l l a and G r a ti o t c o u n tie s . In th e d r a f t i n g , e l e c t r o n i c s , and machine shop pro­ grams, 53 to 64 p ercen t remained in I s a b e l l a and G r a t i o t c o u n tie s . The number o f v o catio n al ed ucation g rad u ates lo c a te d in th e region was low w ith th e d r a f t i n g , e l e c t r o n i c s , and machine shop program gradu­ a t e s a t 8 p e r c e n t, d i s t r i b u t i v e ed ucation group a t 11 p e r c e n t, and from 0 to 7 p e rc e n t o f th e v o catio n al g rad u ates from th e remaining programs. Seven o f th e twelve programs had 20 to 32 p e rc e n t lo c a te d in th e s t a t e and th e o th e r f i v e programs ranged from 5 to 17 p e rc e n t. By th e t h i r d y e a r , th e d i s t r i b u t i v e e d u c a tio n , nurses a id e and c l e r i ­ cal programs has more than 80 p e rc e n t in I s a b e l l a and G r a t i o t coun­ tie s. In th e f o r e s t r y , c h i l d c a r e , auto mechanics and b u ild in g t r a d e s c a t e g o r i e s , th e p ercen tag es d e c lin e d in I s a b e l l a and G r a tio t c o u n tie s by approxim ately 10 p e r c e n t, w h ile th e machine shop and p r in t in g programs in c re a se d by 10 p e rc e n t over th e f i r s t y e a r . The v o catio nal education g rad u ates in th e regio n remained s t a b l e a t 2 to 7 p e rc e n t. Meanwhile, th e o u t m ig ratio n to th e s t a t e in creased f o r a l l programs except th e d i s t r i b u t i v e ed ucation and p r in t i n g programs where they re tu rn e d to th e lo c a l community, and th e food s e r v ic e and TABLE 1 5 .—A O ne-, T h re e -, and Five-Y ear Comparison o f Geographic L ocation o f V ocational Education G raduates from th e Mount P le a s a n t Area C enter F i r s t Year Program I s a b e lla G r a tio t N Region T hird Year S ta te Total Is a b e lla G r a tio t X N X N X N N 25.3 74 39 Region F if th Year S ta te T otal Is a b e lla G ra tio t N X N X N N 64 2 3 20 33 61 21 68 X % Region Total S ta te X N X N 1 3 9 29 31 N F o re stry 53 73 2 2 .7 19 D is tr ib u tiv e Education 58 79 8 11 7 10 73 45 82 3 5 7 13 55 22 71 1 3 8 26 31 Nurse Aide 124 80 4 3 27 17 155 97 80 4 3 20 17 121 41 79 3 6 8 15 52 C hild Care 48 81 3 5 8 14 59 26 76 2 6 6 18 34 39 64 2 3 20 33 61 Food S erv ice 78 75 4 4 22 21 104 65 73 4 4 20 23 89 33 73 2 5 10 22 45 C le ric a l 130 89 9 6 7 5 146 106 80 6 4 21 16 133 60 77 6 8 12 15 78 Auto Mechanics 103 78 8 6 21 16 132 65 71 4 4 23 25 92 29 67 4 9 10 24 43 B uilding Trades 59 79 0 0 16 21 75 36 67 4 7 14 26 54 18 40 18 40 9 20 45 D ra ftin g 38 60 5 8 20 32 63 29 62 1 2 17 36 47 15 80 0 0 4 20 19 E le c tro n ic s 34 53 5 8 25 39 64 33 56 2 3 24 41 59 17 68 1 .4 7 28 25 P r in tin g 55 72 5 7 16 21 76 48 81 3 5 8 14 59 24 80 0 0 6 20 30 Machine Shop 38 64 5 8 16 27 59 48 74 1 2 16 25 65 30 88 1 3 3 9 34 818 76 58 5 204 19 1080 637 73 36 4 196 23 869 326 70 54 12 88 18 468 TOTAL 82 nurses a id e a reas had l i t t l e change. In th e f i f t h y e a r , th e c h ild ca re and b u ild in g tr a d e s c a te g o r ie s had over 60 p e rc e n t o f th e voca­ ti o n a l ed ucation g rad u ates m igrate away from th e lo cal community i n t o th e o u t - s t a t e a re a . Related Employment to Geo­ g rap hic Location In response to th e q u e s tio n , Did geographic lo c a tio n have an impact on r e l a t e d employment, th e d a ta rev ealed t h a t th e f i r s t y e a r a f t e r g ra d u a tio n , 55 p ercen t o f th e t o t a l v o catio nal edu catio n gradu­ a t e s were in r e l a t e d employment, compared to 56 p ercen t th e t h i r d y e a r and 54 p e rc e n t th e f i f t h y e a r (se e Table 16). For th e vo catio nal education g rad u ates remaining in I s a b e l l a and G r a tio t c o u n tie s th e response r a t e remained a t 55 p ercen t f o r th e f iv e - y e a r p erio d . For th e vocation al ed u catio n g rad u ates t h a t moved to th e region th e f i r s t y e a r , 44 p e rc e n t o f th e respondents were in r e l a t e d employment. In th e t h i r d y e a r 62 p e rc e n t o f th e respondents were in th e r e l a t e d employment categ o ry and th e f i f t h y e a r 44 p e rc e n t. The vocational edu cation g rad u ates t h a t m igrated to th e balance o f th e s t a t e had a h ig h er percen tage in r e l a t e d o c c u p a tio n s —62 p ercen t th e f i r s t y e a r , 58 p ercen t th e t h i r d y e a r and 52 p e rc e n t th e f i f t h y e a r. Graduates E n terin g the M ilita r y S ervice Since m i l i t a r y s e r v i c e was a ls o an o p tio n f o r v ocation al edu­ c a tio n g r a d u a te s , a study was made to see what percentage o f th e g rad uates en te re d th e m i l i t a r y s e r v ic e by program (see Table 17). TABLE 1 6 .—R elated Employment Comparison o f th e Mount P le a s a n t Area C enter Vocational Education Graduates and Geographic Location One, T h ree, and Five Years L a te r Location F i r s t Year Follow-Up T h ird Year Follow-Up REL REL NREL Total NREL F i f t h Year Follow-Up Total REL NREL Total N % N % N N % N % N N % N % N 358 55 300 45 658 234 55 194 45 428 171 55 139 45 310 Region 11 44 14 56 25 13 62 8 38 21 7 44 9 56 16 S tate 68 61 43 39 111 49 58 35 42 84 32 52 30 48 62 TOTAL 437 55 357 45 794 296 56 237 44 533 210 54 178 46 388 Isa b e lla G ratio t Note: REL— R elated t o th e t r a i n i n g in Area C enter NREL—Not r e l a t e d to t h e t r a i n i n g in Area C enter 84 TABLE 1 7 .—Comparison o f P a r t i c i p a t i o n in th e M ili t a r y S erv ic e by Graduates o f th e Mount P le a s a n t Area C enter Vocational Education Programs Program Total Graduates No. F i r s t Year No. % Third Year No. % F if th Year No. % Machine Shop 79 14 18 9 11 6 8 F o re stry 89 12 13 14 16 2 2 B uilding Trades 85 12 14 13 15 2 2 E le c tr o n ic s 79 11 14 11 14 5 6 Auto Mechanics 144 19 7 11 8 4 3 Food S erv ic e 114 9 8 11 10 4 4 D raftin g 67 3 5 3 5 1 2 P r in tin g 82 3 4 5 6 1 1 D istrib u tiv e Education 84. 3 4 1 1 1 1 Child Care 79 1 1 2 3 0 0 Nurses Aide 185 1 .5 2 1 1 .5 C le r ic a l 196 _o _0 _L _0 _0 1285 79 6 83 27 2 TOTAL A 6 85 The f i r s t y e a r a f t e r g r a d u a tio n , 6 p e rc e n t o f th e t o t a l v o catio nal education g rad u ates had e n te re d th e m i l i t a r y s e r v i c e , t h e t h i r d y e a r 6 p e rc e n t o f th e respondents had e n te re d m i l i t a r y s e r v i c e and th e f i f t h y e a r th e number d e c lin e d to 2 p e rc e n t o f th e t o t a l v o catio n al ed ucatio n g ra d u a te s . The f o r e s t r y , e l e c t r o n i c s , b u ild in g t r a d e s and machine shop programs had 13 to 18 p e rc e n t o f th e v o catio n al educa­ t i o n g rad u ates in th e m i l i t a r y s e r v ic e a f t e r th e f i r s t y e a r . The p r i n t i n g , d r a f t i n g , d i s t r i b u t i v e e d u c a tio n , au to mechanics and food s e rv ic e a re a s had 4 to 8 p e rc e n t o f th e v o c a tio n a l ed u catio n gradu­ a t e s in th e m i l i t a r y s e r v i c e . In th e t h i r d y e a r , only th e f o r e s t r y , food s e r v ic e and auto mechanics programs had an in c r e a s e in th e number o f v o catio n al edu catio n g rad u ates in m i l i t a r y s e r v i c e . o th e r programs continued to d e c li n e . All The f i f t h y e a r th e machine shop program was th e only program w ith 8 p e rc e n t o f th e vocation al e d u catio n g rad u ates in th e m i l i t a r y s e r v i c e . S c h o la s tic Grades o f Vocational Education G raduated C onsiderable a t t e n t i o n was g e n e r a lly p laced on high school g ra d e s, both o v e r a ll grade p o in t average and academic grades by both general ed u cato rs and v o catio n al e d u c a to r s , as well as p a r e n ts . Two q u e s tio n s became a concern, (1) Is t h e r e a d i f f e r e n c e in o v e r a ll high school grade p o in t average a t t a i n e d by g rad u ates o f d i f f e r e n t v o catio n al ed ucatio n programs? (2) Is t h e r e a d i f f e r e n c e in English grades earned by s tu d e n ts in d i f f e r e n t v o catio n al ed u catio n programs? To respond t o th e f i r s t q u e s tio n , th e o v e r a ll grade p o in t averages 86 o f only th e Mount P le a sa n t high school v ocation al education g rad u ates were analyzed. In response to th e second q u e s tio n , th e accumulated grade p o in t average earned by v ocation al edu catio n grad uates o f Mount P le a s a n t High School in English were analyzed. The o v e ra ll grade p o in t average i s scored on th e b a s is o f 4.00 i s an "A" grade, 3.00 i s a "B" grade, 2.00 i s a "C" grade, and 1.00 i s a "D" grade. In analyzing th e o v e ra ll grade p o in t average f o r th e voca­ t io n a l education g ra d u a te s , none o f th e v o catio n al gradu ates had a 4 .00 p o in t o r "A" average. Of th e t o t a l v o catio n al education gradu­ a t e s , 17 p e rc e n t had a 3.00 o r "B" average, 67 p e rc e n t had a 2.00 or "C" av erage, and 16 p e rc e n t had a 1.00 o r "D" average (see Table 18). However, between programs a c o n s id e ra b le v a r i a t i o n e x i s t e d . In th e d r a f t i n g program, 35 p ercen t o f th e g rad uates had a 3.00 p o in t o r "B" average as compared to th e c l e r i c a l program w ith 28 p e rc e n t o f th e g rad u ates w ith a 3.00 p o in t a v erag e, th e e l e c t r o n i c s program had 24 p e r c e n t, th e d i s t r i b u t i v e edu catio n program had 23 p e r c e n t, th e food s e rv ic e area had 20 p e r c e n t, th e nu rses a id e and p r i n t i n g a re a s had 14 p e rc e n t w ith a 3.00 p o in t o r "B" av e ra g e , th e c h i l d c a r e pro­ gram had 11 p e rc e n t w ith a 3.00 p o in t a v erag e, th e f o r e s t r y categ o ry had 10 p e rc e n t o f th e respondents w ith a 3.00 p o in t a v erag e, the auto mechanics and b u ild in g t r a d e s a re a s had 8 p e rc e n t with a 3.00 p o in t average and th e machine shop program had 3 p e rc e n t o f th e respondents with a 3.00 p o in t average. 87 TABLE 1 8 .—O verall High School Grade P o in t Average o f th e Mount P le a s a n t High School Vocational Education Graduates That Attended th e Area Vocational C enter by Program Grade P oin t Program B 3.,00 C 2..00 D 1.00 Total No. No. % No. % No. D raftin g 17 35 27 56 4 9 48 C le r ic a l 41 28 96 67 7 5 144 E le c tr o n ic s 17 24 47 66 7 10 71 D istrib u tiv e Education 19 23 54 64 11 13 84 Food S ervice 23 20 78 68 14 12 115 Nurses Aide 20 14 98 70 22 16 140 P r in tin g 11 14 56 70 13 16 80 Auto Mechanics 10 8 84 69 28 23 122 Child Care 7 11 35 56 22 34 64 F o re stry 7 10 48 68 16 22 71 Building Trades 5 8 37 63 17 29 59 Machine Shop 2 _3 48 83 8 U 58 179 17 708 67 169 16 1056 TOTAL % 88 The major p o rtio n o f th e v o catio n al education gradu ates were in th e "C" grade o r 2.00 p o in t average. For a l l programs, th ey com­ p ris e d from 56 to 70 p e rc e n t o f a l l th e g rad u ates. Four vo catio nal programs had th e major sh a re o f th e s tu d e n ts w ith a 1.00 p o in t o r "D" average, th e f o r e s t r y program with 22 p e r­ c e n t, th e auto mechanics group w ith 23 p e r c e n t, th e b u ild in g tra d e s area with 29 p e rc e n t and th e c h ild c a r e program with 34 p ercen t with a 1.00 grade p o in t average. The c l e r i c a l program had th e l e a s t g rad u ates w ith a 1.00 p o in t average, namely 5 p e rc e n t. The o th e r programs ranged from 9 to 16 p ercen t o f t h e i r g rad u ates w ith a 1.00 p o in t average. English Grades o f th e Mount P le a sa n t Vocational High School Graduates English grades t y p i c a l l y r e f l e c t reading and communication s k i l l s o f s tu d e n ts in high sch oo l. T h e re fo re , th ey were used in t h i s study to compare academic achievement f o r vocatio nal education gradu­ a te s. In th e t o t a l d i s t r i b u t i o n 2 p e rc e n t o f th e v o cation al gradu­ a t e s had a 4.00 o r "A" average in E n g lish , 30 p e rc e n t o f th e v ocational education grad uates had a 3.00 o r "B" average in E n glish, 54 p ercen t had a 2.00 o r "C" average in English and 14 p e rc e n t had a 1.00 o r "D" average in English (se e Table 19). The program a n a ly s is rev ealed t h a t th e c l e r i c a l program had 53 p e r c e n t, th e d r a f t i n g categ o ry had 52 p e r c e n t, th e d i s t r i b u t i v e education group had 41 p ercen t o f th e vocatio nal g rad uates with a 3.00 o r h ig h er grade p o in t average. food s e r v ic e program had 34 p e r c e n t, th e n urses aid e categ o ry had The 89 TABLE 1 9 .—English Grades o f th e Mount P le a s a n t High School Voca­ ti o n a l Education Graduates That Attended th e Area Vocational C enter—by Program A Program n ( B i D Total No. No. % No. % No. % No. % C le r ic a l 3 2 73 51 64 44 4 3 155 D raftin g 4 8 21 44 17 35 6 13 48 D istrib u tiv e Education 1 1 34 40 41 49 8 10 84 Food S erv ic e 3 3 36 31 62 54 14 12 115 Nurses Aide 6 4 40 29 84 60 10 7 140 E le c tr o n ic s 2 3 19 27 32 45 18 25 71 P r in tin g 0 0 21 26 51 64 8 10 80 Child Care 0 0 15 23 34 53 15 23 64 Building Trades 0 0 13 22 32 54 14 24 59 Auto Mechanics 2 2 21 17 76 62 23 19 122 F o re stry 0 0 14 20 43 60 14 20 71 Machine Shop 0 JO 10 17 36 62 12 11 58 21 2 317 30 572 54 146 14 1056 TOTAL 90 32 p e rc e n t and th e e l e c t r o n i c s area had 31 p e rc e n t o f th e respondents with a 3.00 o r hig h er grade p o in t av erag e. All th e o th e r programs had from 17 t o 26 p e rc e n t w ith 3.00 grade average. The d r a f t i n g program had th e low est p ercentage o f g rad u ates in th e 2.00 o r "C" average grade p o i n t —35 p e r c e n t. The c l e r i c a l program had 44 p e r c e n t, th e e l e c t r o n i c s group had 45 p e r c e n t, th e d i s t r i b u t i v e education area had 49 p e r c e n t, th e c h i l d c a re program had 53 p e r c e n t, th e b u ild in g t r a d e s and food s e r v ic e c a te g o r ie s had 54 p e r c e n t, and a l l th e o th e r programs had from 60 to 64 p e rc e n t o f t h e i r g rad u ates w ith a "C" average. The h ig h e s t percentage o f "D" o r 1.00 p o in t grade average in English were in s ix program s,the e l e c t r o n i c s program had 25 p e rc e n t, th e b u ild in g tra d e s are a had 24 p e r c e n t, th e c h i l d c a re program had 23 p e r c e n t, th e machine shop categ o ry had 21 p e r c e n t, th e f o r e s t r y are a had 20 p e rc e n t and th e auto mechanics program had 19 p e rc e n t o f th e respondents w ith a grade p o in t average o f "D." All th e o th e r programs had 13 p e rc e n t o r l e s s o f t h e i r g rad u ates w ith a 1.00 p o in t o r "D" grade average. CHAPTER V SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS, RECOMMENDATIONS AND IMPLICATIONS FOR FURTHER RESEARCH There have been numerous s tu d ie s t h a t have focused on th e v ario u s a s p e c ts o f v o catio n al education g rad uate follow -up. Most o f th e s e were based on c o l l e c t i n g d a ta from g rad u ates only once. Only l im ite d a t t e n t i o n has been focused on e f f o r t s to r e p l i c a t e th e s e s tu d i e s on th e same p o p u latio n t o confirm o r c o n t r a d i c t th e i n i t i a l f in d in g s . In Chapter I , i t was p ointed o u t t h a t t h i s study was d ir e c t e d a t a review and a n a ly s is o f th e v ario u s c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s t h a t a f f e c t g rad u ates in p ro g re ssin g through t h e i r c a r e e r p a t t e r n s a f t e r g rad uation from high sch o o l. 1. Seven major o b je c tiv e s were e s ta b li s h e d . To determ ine th e e x te n t to which s e le c te d s tu d e n t c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s a f f e c t t h e i r occupational ch o ice. 2. To determ ine th e degree to which program g rad u ates have continued t h e i r employment a n d /o r educatio nal p r e p a r a tio n . 3. To determ ine th e e x t e n t to which time had a r e l a t i o n ­ s h ip on th e number o f s tu d e n ts employed in r e l a t e d o ccupational f i e l d s . 91 92 4. To determ ine the impact o f geographic lo c a t io n on th e r e l a t e d employment o f program g ra d u a te s. 5. To determ ine the e x te n t to which a lo n g itu d in a l model could be used to provide a d ata base f o r th e e v a lu a tio n o f v ocatio nal education programs. 6. To determ ine th e e x te n t o f c o n s is te n c y in r e l a t e d employment by programs. 7. To determ ine th e employment/unemployment l e v e l s o f g ra d u a te s. Each o f th e preceding c h a p te rs provided s u p p o rtin g d ata and fin d in g s r e l a t e d to th e o b j e c t i v e s . These f in d in g s were summarized in t h i s c h a p te r according to t h i r t e e n major re se a rc h q u e s tio n s to provide a b a s is f o r th e co nclusion s and recommendations. The s t a t e ­ ments l i s t e d in t h i s s e c tio n under co n clu sio n s were drawn from th e fin d in g s and r e l a t e d to th e s p e c i f i c o b je c t i v e s and s u p p o rtin g re se a rc h q u e s tio n s . The recommendations su g gest f u r t h e r use f o r th e f in d i n g s , w hile im p lic a tio n s f o r f u r t h e r re se a rc h were provided in th e f in a l se c tio n . Summary o f th e Findings The purpose o f th e study was t o answer t h i r t e e n major q u e s tio n s to f u l f i l l th e s t a t e d o b je c tiv e s . 1. How did th e Mount P le a sa n t Area Center lo n g itu d in a l study o f f i r s t y e a r v ocation al education g radu ates compare t o th e S ta te annual follow -up o f f i r s t - y e a r gradu ates in employment, o th e r (n o t a v a i l a b l e f o r employment), continued ed u catio n ,an d unemployment? 93 2. What e f f e c t d id time have on th e employment o f voca­ ti o n a l education grad uates? 3. What e f f e c t did m a rita l s t a t u s have on th e employment o f v o catio n al edu catio n gradu ates? 4. Was th e r e a d if f e r e n c e between th e number o f v ocational ed ucation gradu ates who e n te re d r e l a t e d employment upon graduation th r e e and f i v e y e a rs l a t e r ? 5. Was th e p ercentage o f vocation al edu catio n g radu ates employed in r e l a t e d occupations h ig h er f o r program com pleters than f o r noncompleters? 6. Was the p ercentage o f vo cation al ed ucation grad uates employed in r e l a t e d occupations th e same f o r male and female gradu­ a te s ? 7. Was th e r e a d i f f e r e n c e between v ocatio nal education programs as t o th e number o f v o catio nal education g rad uates who pursued h ig h er education? 8. Was th e percentage o f vocational education grad uates con­ ti n u i n g p o st-h ig h -sch o o l edu catio n h ig h er f o r program com pleters than f o r noncompleters? 9. Did th e m a jo rity o f v o catio nal edu catio n g rad uates remain in th e lo cal community? 10. Did th e geographic lo c a tio n have an impact on r e l a t e d employment o f v o catio n al ed ucation graduates? 11. What percentage o f th e v o catio nal ed ucatio n g rad u ates e n te re d m i l i t a r y s e r v ic e ,b y v ocation al education program? 94 12. Was th e r e a d i f f e r e n c e in o v e r a ll high school grade p o in t average a t t a i n e d by vo cational education g rad uates in d i f f e r ­ e n t v o catio nal ed u catio n programs? 13. Was th e r e a d i f f e r e n c e in English grades earned by v ocational education g rad u ates in d i f f e r e n t v ocation al education programs? The d ata which formed th e b a s is to answer th e s e q u estio n s were o btain ed from survey instrum ents s e n t to vocation al education g radu ates from th e Mount P le a sa n t Area C enter th e f i r s t y e a r a f t e r g ra d u a tio n , t h r e e y ears a f t e r grad uation and f i v e y ears a f t e r g ra d u a tio n . The d a ta c o l le c t e d were analyzed through th e use o f th e S t a t i s t i c a l Package f o r th e Social Sciences computer program. With th e use of percentage and frequency d i s t r i b u t i o n a n a l y s i s , th e v a r i ­ a b le s in th e stud y were analyzed and grouped around each o f th e t h i r t e e n major q u e s tio n s . Question 1 Question 1 s t a t e d : How did th e Mount P le a s a n t Area C enter lo n g itu d in a l study o f f i r s t - y e a r v o catio nal education gradu ates com­ pare to th e s t a t e annual follow -up o f f i r s t - y e a r g rad uates in employ­ ment, o th e r (n o t a v a i l a b le f o r employment), continued e d u c a tio n , and unemployment? This stu dy rev ealed t h a t th e g rad uates o f th e Mount P le a sa n t Center had 3 p e rc e n t more g rad uates employed th e f i r s t y e a r than th e S t a t e average. However, by analyzing th e d ata on a program b a s i s , a s u b s t a n t i a l d i f f e r e n c e was noted f o r some programs. In 95 c h i l d c a r e , Mount P le a s a n t had 51 p e rc e n t employed compared to th e S t a t e average o f 39 p e rc e n t. In machine shop, Mount P le a s a n t had 84 p ercen t employed w hile th e S t a t e average was 61 p e rc e n t. In auto mechanics and nurses a id e , th e Mount P le a sa n t Center had 19 p ercen t more grad uates employed than th e S t a t e av erag e, and in food s e r v ic e Mount P le a sa n t had 15 p e rc e n t more g rad uates employed. In a l l o th e r programs, th e employment o f gradu ates was h ig h er f o r Mount P leasa n t than th e S ta te from 5 to 9 p e rc e n t except in c l e r i c a l , d i s t r i b u t i v e education and d r a f t i n g where th e S t a t e average was 3 p e rc e n t h ig h er than th e average a t Mount P le a s a n t. In th e categ o ry o f o t h e r , which included homemakers, m i l i t a r y s e r v ic e and n o t a v a i l a b l e f o r employment, th e S t a t e average o f 28 p ercen t was 50 p ercen t h ig h er than th e Mount P le a sa n t average o f 14 p e rc e n t. Major d if f e r e n c e s were noted in f i v e programs a t th e Mount P le a sa n t C enter where th e percen tag es were 21 to 24 p e rc e n t lower, c h i ld c a r e , n u rses a i d e , d r a f t i n g , e l e c t r o n i c s and food s e r v ic e . With regard to continued e d u c a tio n , th e d a ta rev ealed t h a t 21 p e rc e n t o f th e v ocation al education graduates from th e Mount P le a s a n t C enter pursued advanced ed ucation compared to 4 p e rc e n t f o r th e S t a t e . Only th re e programs had s im i l a r p e rc e n ta g e s, auto mechan­ i c s , b u ild in g t r a d e s and machine shop. The unemployment f o r f i r s t - y e a r g rad u ates was s u b s t a n t i a l l y lower f o r most o f th e Mount P le a sa n t Area Center g rad u ates than th e s ta te - w id e averages. For a l l programs a t Mount P le a sa n t Area C enter, th e average unemployment was 7 p e rc e n t, f o r th e S t a t e , th e average 96 was 12 p e rc e n t. In f o r e s t r y , d i s t r i b u t i v e e d u c a tio n , c h i l d ca re and b u ild in g t r a d e s , th e unemployment r a t e was 30 to 38 p ercen t lower f o r th e Mount P le a sa n t Area Center g ra d u a te s. In th e nurses a id e and c l e r i c a l programs, unemployment was 50 p e rc e n t lower f o r th e Mount P le a sa n t Area Center g ra d u a te s , w hile in d r a f t i n g , p r i n t i n g , e l e c t r o n i c s , machine shop and food s e r v i c e , i t was from 67 to 88 p e r­ c e n t lower. In auto mechanics, th e unemployment was th e same f o r th e Mount P le a s a n t Area Center grad uates as in th e S ta te - - 1 0 p e rc e n t. In th e fo u r a reas o f comparison, employment, o t h e r , con­ tin u e d ed ucation and unemployment, th e Mount P le a sa n t Area Center g rad uates were as su c c e ssfu l o r more so than th e S t a t e average. The Mount P le a sa n t vo catio nal ed ucation gradu ates had a h ig h er percentage o f employment, a lower percentage in the "o th e r" c a te g o ry , a s u b s ta n ­ t i a l l y h ig h er percentage in continued ed ucatio n and 40 p e rc e n t l e s s unemployed. Question 2 Question 2 s ta t e d : What e f f e c t did time have on th e employ­ ment o f v o atio n al education grad u ates? The data re v e a le d t h a t th e e f f e c t time had on employment was a continuous in c r e a s e o f f u l l - t i m e employment. F u ll-tim e employment f o r a l l o f th e v o catio n al education g rad uates was 54 p e rc e n t th e f i r s t y e a r , 70 p e rc e n t th e t h i r d y e a r , and 74 p e rc e n t th e f i f t h y e a r. P a rt-tim e employment had j u s t th e in v e r s e r e l a t i o n s h i p w ith 14 p e rc e n t th e f i r s t y e a r , 10 p e rc e n t th e t h i r d y e a r , and 7 p e rc e n t th e f i f t h y e a r . For example, in comparing programs, some o f th e programs had a lower percentage o f in c r e a s e 97 over th e f iv e y e a r s , but t h e i r f i r s t y e a r f u l l - t i m e employment was much h ig h e r , such as machine shop w ith 78 p e rc e n t in f u l l - t i m e employment, which in c re a se d t o 93 p ercen t by th e f i f t h y e a r , showing a 15 p e rc e n t in c r e a s e . D i s tr i b u t i v e e d u c a tio n , on th e o th e r hand, had a 45 p e rc e n t in c re a se in employment over th e f iv e - y e a r p e rio d , but f u l l - t i m e employment th e f i r s t y e a r was 44 p e rc e n t and in creased to 80 p e rc e n t th e f i f t h y e a r. The not employed c o h o r t, o r u n a v a ila b le f o r work, had a c o n s id e ra b le impact on th e employment data s in c e th e co h o rt in clud ed th o se v o catio n al grad uates co n tin u in g t h e i r edu catio n {although some o f th e s e were a l s o employed), g rad u ates in m i l i t a r y s e r v i c e and homemakers. This p ercentage s t a b i l i z e d a t th e 19 to 20 p e rc e n t lev el due t o gradu ates e n te r in g and r e tu r n in g from th e m i l i t a r y s e r v i c e , g rad u ates e n te r in g and r e tu r n in g from h ig h er e d u c a tio n , and females g e t t i n g m arried , leav in g employment f o r a time and then r e - e n t e r i n g th e employment arena. In an alyzing th e d a t a , programs t h a t had high en ro llm en ts o f females had a lower percen tage o f f u l l ­ time employment and f l u c t u a te d more than th o se t h a t were predom inantly male o r ie n te d . O v e ra ll, th e lo n g itu d in a l stu dy re v e a le d t h a t in a l l voca­ ti o n a l programs th e p ercentage o f employment was s u b s t a n t i a l l y h ig h er than th e d ata c o l l e c t e d a t th e end o f th e f i r s t y e a r and th e l e g i t i ­ mate reasons f o r th e changes. Question 3 What e f f e c t did m a rita l s t a t u s have on th e employment o f v o catio n al education grad u ates? was th e t h i r d q u e s tio n . The f i r s t 98 y e a r a f t e r g r a d u a tio n , th e data revealed no d i f f e r e n c e in employment due to m a rita l s t a t u s ; both s in g l e and m arried g rad u ates had 72 p e r­ c e n t employed. The t h i r d y e a r 81 p e rc e n t o f th e s in g l e c o h o rt was employed and 77 p e rc e n t o f th e m arried co ho rt was employed. The f i f t h y e a r 85 p e rc e n t o f th e s in g l e group was employed and 74 p e rc e n t o f th e m arried co h o rt. Between th e t h i r d and f i f t h y e a r , th e s in g l e group in c re a se d 11 p ercen t over th e m arried group. The o th e r d i f f e r ­ ence was a l i t t l e slower d e c lin e in p a r t- tim e employment f o r th e m arried c o h o rt. The o v e r a ll e f f e c t as rev ealed by th e d a ta i s t h a t m a rita l s t a t u s on a lo n g itu d in a l b a s is did not have a s u b s t a n t i a l e f f e c t on employment. Question 4 The fo u rth q u e s tio n , Was t h e r e a d if f e r e n c e between th e number o f v o catio n al education g rad uates who e n te re d r e l a t e d employ­ ment upon grad u atio n and th r e e and f iv e y ears l a t e r ? gave th e fo llo w ­ ing in fo rm atio n . The t o t a l percentage o f r e l a t e d employment f o r v o catio n al ed ucatio n gradu ates f o r a l l programs continued t o in c r e a s e over th e f iv e - y e a r perio d from 54 to 56 p e rc e n t. However, in a n aly z­ ing th e d a ta by program a c o n s id e ra b le v a r i a t io n e x i s te d . F o re stry had th e g r e a t e s t d e c lin e from 26 p ercen t th e f i r s t y e a r to 12 p ercen t th e f i f t h y e a r. 53 p e r c e n t. D i s t r i b u t i v e edu catio n d eclin ed from 69 p e rc e n t to Nurses a id e d eclin ed from 82 p e rc e n t to 72 p e rc e n t. s e r v i c e d e c lin e d from 49 p e rc e n t to 33 p e rc e n t. Food All th e o th e r p ro ­ grams in c re a se d t h e i r r e l a t e d employment with c l e r i c a l making th e l a r g e s t gain from 65 p e rc e n t to 81 p e rc e n t. Analyzing th e d a ta on a 99 lo n g itu d in a l b a s is by program provided some i n s i g h t in terms o f r e l a t e d employment in d i f f e r e n t programs a t t h r e e d i f f e r e n t i n t e r v a l s in tim e. In a d d itio n to th e program a n a l y s is th e c a r e e r path a n a ly ­ s i s o f in d iv id u a l g rad u ates rev ealed t h a t 64 p e rc e n t o f a l l grad u ates were in a r e l a t e d f i e l d during th e f iv e - y e a r p erio d . In comparing th e s e averages to th e s t a t e average o f 33 p e rc e n t in r e l a t e d employ­ ment th e Mount P le a s a n t v o catio n al g radu ates r e l a t e d employment was s u b s t a n t i a l l y h ig h er in a l l programs except f o r e s t r y which was s i i g h t l y below th e s t a t e average. Question 5 Question 5 re a d , Was th e percen tage o f v o catio n al education g rad uates employed in r e l a t e d occu pation s h ig h er f o r program com­ p l e t e r s than noncom pleters? In comparing th e com pleters and noncom­ p l e t e r s th e d a ta rev ealed t h a t from 74 to 76 p ercen t o f th e com pleters were in a r e l a t e d are a o f employment, w hile only 23 to 26 p ercen t o f th e noncom pleters were employed in a r e l a t e d a re a . Related employment f o r noncompleters continued to d e c lin e over th e f i v e - y e a r p e rio d , w hile th e r e l a t e d employment f o r com­ p l e t e r s continued to in c r e a s e . Question 6 Question 6 asked, Was th e percentage o f v o catio n al education g rad u ates employed in a r e l a t e d occupation th e same f o r male and female g rad u ates? The r e l a t e d employment o f males in th e o n e-, t h r e e - and f i v e - y e a r fo llow -up showed a s l i g h t in c r e a s e from 43 to 100 45 p e r c e n t , compared to a 13 p e r c e n t in c r e a s e f o r t h e females from 58 t o 69 p ercent. In analyz ing t h e d ata fo llowing c a r e e r paths 55 p e r c e n t of t h e males were employed in a r e l a t e d occupation compared to 76 p e r ­ c ent o f th e females. From t h i s da ta one can conclude t h a t the r e l a t e d employment i s s u b s t a n t i a l l y higher f o r females than males. Question 7 Was t h e r e a d i f f e r e n c e between voca tion al ed ucation programs as to th e number o f voca tional ed ucation graduates who pursued higher ed ucation? was th e seventh q u e s t i o n . The f i r s t y e a r a f t e r grad uation 21 percent o f th e voca tional ed ucation graduates continued in highe r ed uca tion compared t o a 4 p er cen t average f o r th e S t a t e . Programmatically d r a f t i n g 37 p e r c e n t , e l e c t r o n i c s 34 percent and p r i n t i n g 33 p er cen t had th e h i g h e s t number o f graduates e n r o l l e d in co ntinuing e d u c a tio n , while b u i ld in g t r a d e s with 5 p er cen t and machine shop with 6 p er cen t had t h e lowest enr ollm en t in continued e d u catio n . In an und uplicated count, 364 voc atio na l grad uates o r 29 p e r c e n t o f t h e t o t a l vocational education grad ua tes continued t h e i r education a f t e r high school completion. Question 8 Question 8 s t a t e d , Was th e per centage o f voca tion al ed ucation graduates co ntinuing po st-high-s ch ool education h igher f o r program 101 completers than f o r noncompleters? The per centage o f program com­ p l e t e r s co ntinuing in h igher ed uc atio n was c o n s i s t e n t l y h igher throughout t h e f i v e - y e a r p e r i o d , from 68 to 74 p e r c e n t , while the noncompleters ' e n r o llm en t continued t o d e c l i n e from 32 p er cen t t o 26 percent. A h ig her percen tag e o f noncompleters than completers were e n r o l l e d in p a r t - t i m e continued educ atio n. Question 9 Question 9 was, Did t h e m a j o r i t y o f th e voca tiona l education grad uates remain in t h e loca l community? The m a j o r i t y o f th e voca­ t i o n a l ed ucation graduates remained in th e local community, 76 pe rce nt th e f i r s t y e a r , 73 p e r c e n t th e t h i r d y e a r and 70 pe rcent th e f i f t h year. However, between programs a c o n s id e r a b le amount o f v a r i a t i o n existed. In d i s t r i b u t i v e e d u c a tio n , nurses a ide and c l e r i c a l 80 pe rcent were in t h e lo c a l community by t h e t h i r d y e a r a f t e r gradua­ t i o n , and remained in th e local community. On the o t h e r hand, a t th e end o f f i v e y e a r s , 60 p er cen t o f th e grad ua tes from c h i l d care and b u i l d i n g t r a d e s had migrated out o f th e loca l community. While th e m a j o r i t y o f graduates remain in th e local community, each program has t o be analyzed in o r d e r t o g et a t r u e p i c t u r e o f i t s status. Question 10 Question 10 was, Did th e geographic l o c a t i o n have an impact on r e l a t e d employment o f voc atio na l education grad uates ? For the voca tional ed ucation gradu ates t h a t remained in th e lo ca l community, 102 t h e r e l a t e d employment rem ained t h e same o v e r a f i v e - y e a r p e r i o d , 55 p e r c e n t. For th e voc atio na l education grad uates t h a t migrated out o f t h e local community, th e r e l a t e d employment was h i g h e r , 61 p e r c e n t. T h e re fore , one can conclude t h a t f o r graduate s who a r e w i l l i n g t o migrate out o f t h e local community, t h e o p p o r t u n i t i e s f o r r e l a t e d employment a r e improved. Question 11 What per centage o f vocational education grad ua tes e n t e r e d th e m i l i a r y s e r v i c e , by program? was Question 7. En tering th e m i l i t a r y s e r v i c e was 6 pe rcent of t h e t o t a l graduates. Graduates e n t e r i n g m i l i t a r y s e r v i c e came p r i m a r i l y from f o u r programs—f o r e s t r y , e l e c ­ t r o n i c s , b u ild in g t r a d e s and machine shop. Most o f th e voc at ional educ ation graduates t h a t e n te r ed m i l i t a r y s e r v i c e did so in t h e f i r s t t h r e e y e a r s a f t e r g r a d u a t io n . Question 12 The t w e l f t h q u e s t i o n , Was t h e r e a d i f f e r e n c e in o v e r a l l high school grade p o in t average obtained by voca tional ed uc atio n graduates in d i f f e r e n t voc ationa l ed ucation programs? gave th e following i n f o r ­ mation. There was a c o n s id e r a b le v a r i a t i o n in o v e r a l l grade p o in t averages between programs. None o f th e voca tion al education grad ua tes had a f o u r p o in t average. However, 84 p e r c e n t had a two p o i n t average o r h ig h e r compared to 16 pe rcent with a one p o i n t or l e s s average. Question 13 Was t h e r e a d i f f e r e n c e in English grades earned by voca tion al education grad uates in d i f f e r e n t voc atio na l ed u ca tion programs? was 103 Question 13. The English grades earned by s tu d e n t s in voc atio na l education followed somewhat t h e same p a t t e r n as o v e r a l l grade p o in t averages. The f o u r programs with th e h i g h e s t number o f "C" grades o r l e s s were f o r e s t r y , auto mechanics, b u il d i n g t r a d e s and machine shop. D i s t r i b u t i v e e d u c a tio n , food s e r v i c e and nurses a id e had from 50 to 67 p er cen t in t h e "C" o r l e s s ca teg ory . had 46 p e r c e n t in t h e "C" grade ca tegory. D raf ting and c l e r i c a l There was a c o n s id e r a b le v a r i a t i o n o f English grades by program, but th e d ata i n d i c a t e d t h a t the s tu d e n t s with th e h i g h e s t English grades e n r o l l e d in c l a s s e s t h a t r e quire d a h igher lev el o f communication s k i l l s and reading and w riting a b i l i t y . Conclusions The d ata c o l l e c t e d in t h i s study provided th e b a s is f o r a number o f comparisons. The f in d i n g s r e l a t e d to s p e c i f i c o b j e c t i v e s re veale d seven major co ncl usio ns. 1. Graduates from th e Mount P l e a s a n t Area Vocational Center did not completely p a r a l l e l th e gra du ate d ata as compiled by th e Michigan S t a t e Department o f Vocational Technical S e r v ic e s , s p e c i f i ­ c a l l y in r e s p e c t t o employment, continued educa tion and unemployment. a. The average employment r a t e o f vo ca tio nal ed ucation gr aduates o f t h e Mount P le asa nt Area Vocational Center was 3 percent h i g h e r than th e S t a t e average. On a programmatic b a s i s , important d i f f e r e n c e s were noted in th e c h i l d car e a r e a where Mount P le a sa n t had 51 p er cen t employed compared 104 to t h e S t a t e average o f 39 pe r c e n t. In th e machine shop a r e a , Mount P le a s a n t had 84 pe rce nt employed compared t o the S t a t e average o f 61 pe r c e n t. b. The data r ev ea led t h a t graduates m igra te to t h e s p e c i f i c occupations t r a i n e d f o r r a t h e r than j u s t m igra ting t o employment. c. At t h e Mount P le a s a n t Area Vocational Center 29 p er cen t o f th e vocational ed ucation grad ua tes co ntinued in higher educa tion compared to th e S t a t e average o f 4 pe r c e n t. Vocational education graduates who were e n r o l l e d in programs t h a t r e q u i r e d po st- high-s chool ed ucation t o pr ogress up th e occupational l a d d e r continued on in hig her ed ucation to achieve t h e i r goal, d. The average unemployment r a t e o f voca tional educa­ t i o n graduates o f th e Mount P l e a sa n t Area Vocational Center was 7 p e r c e n t as compared t o a S t a t e average o f 12 p e r c e n t. e. While th e popu lation in I s a b e l l a - G r a t i o t c o u n t ie s had a h ig h e r p ercen tag e o f Caucasians (98.8 p e r c e n t) than t h e S t a t e average (88.23 p e r c e n t ) , th e grad uat e placement was th e same f o r whites as f o r non-whites from th e Mount P le a s a n t Area Vocational Center. 2. The t h r e e - t o f i v e - y e a r l o n g i t u d i n a l model provided a b e t t e r d ata base o f vo ca ti onal education grad uates than an annual f o ll o w -u p, s p e c i f i c a l l y in regard t o r e l a t e d employment, c a r e e r p a t h s , o v e r a l l employment by program, and geographic l o c a t i o n . 105 a. Related employment continued t o in c r e a s e from an average o f 54 per ce nt to 74 p e r c e n t. b. Overall employment continued t o i n c r e a s e from 74 p e r c e n t to 81 pe r c e n t. c. The model provided a v e h i c l e t o monitor in d iv id u a l c a r e e r paths f o r employment, migration in and out o f s cho ol, employment, m i l i t a r y s e r v i c e , and r e l a t e d employment. d. The f i r s t y e a r a f t e r g r a d u a t i o n , 76 p e r c e n t of th e voca tional education graduates were in th e local community. Five y e a r s l a t e r t h i s had d e c li n e d to 70 p e r c e n t. In p r o ­ grams l i k e c h i l d c a r e and b u il d in g t r a d e s , 60 p er cen t had migrated out o f th e local community by th e end o f f i v e y e a r s . 3. Graduates m igra ting o u t o f th e l o c a l community in c r e a se d t h e i r o p p o r t u n i t i e s in r e l a t e d employment. 4. Female voca tional educa tion graduates from the Mount P le a sa n t Area Vocational Center had a h ig h e r r a t e o f employment in r e l a t e d o c c u p a tio n s , 76 p e r c e n t compared t o 55 p er cen t f o r th e males. 5. Employment d i r e c t l y r e l a t e d to i n s t r u c t i o n was hig he r f o r vo ca tional ed uca tion grad ua tes who completed a vo ca tional educa­ t i o n program than f o r noncompleters. 6. The m a j o r i t y o f th e voca tional education graduates had an o v e r a l l grade p o i n t average o f "C" with t h e exception o f th e c l e r i ­ cal and d r a f t i n g programs. a. The o v e r a l l grade p o in t average f o r t h e vocational edu ca tion gradu ates o f some programs was s i g n i f i c a n t l y lower 106 than th e normal population*, however, t h e success o f voca­ t i o n a l education grad ua tes in gaining employment (93 pe r­ c en t) was s u b s t a n t i a l l y h ig h e r than th e normal population of th is b. p er cen t age group (72 t o 80 p e r c e n t ) . The c l e r i c a l and d r a f t i n g areas hadmore than 50 o f t h e graduates with o v e r a l l grade p o i n t averages o f "B" or hi gher . c. English grades p a r a l l e l e d th e o v e r a l l grade p o in t averages in a l l programs except d r a f t i n g , d i s t r i b u t i v e education and c l e r i c a l which were higher than t h e averages. 7. Graduates e n t e r i n g t h e m i l i t a r y s e r v i c e from th e Mount P le a s a n t Area Center came p r i m a r i l y from th e Trade and I n d u s t r i a l a r e a s , s p e c i f i c a l l y from th e machine shop, bu ild in g t r a d e s , e l e c ­ t r o n i c s , auto mechanics and f o r e s t r y programs. Recommendations Based on t h e f in d i n g s o f t h i s stu dy, and ensuing c o n c lu s io n s , i t i s recommended t h a t : 1. The S t a t e Department o f Education should assume a l e a d e r ­ s h ip r o l e in pr oviding g u i d e l i n e s f o r th e use o f lo n g i t u d i n a l follow-up s t u d i e s o f vocatio nal educa tion g r a d u a t e s , and t h a t incen ­ t i v e s be developed t o ensure the use o f l o n g i t u d i n a l dat a. 2. P r i o r t o funding major changes in vo ca tional e d ucation, a c c u r a te l a b o r market d ata t h a t r e f l e c t s t h e needs o f t h e var ious regions in th e S t a t e and th e S t a t e as a whole need t o be developed f o r program planning and c a r e e r co un seling a t th e lo cal l e v e l . 107 3. Funding o f vo cational programs should be based on h i s t o r i c and f u t u r e employment needs o f loca l communities and regions r a t h e r than S t a t e ranking o f t o t a l employment in o rd er t o allow program o p e r a t o r s t o plan programs based on placement o f grad u at es . 4. Through t h e a s s i s t a n c e o f th e S t a t e Department o f Educa­ t i o n , an a n a l y s i s should be made o f th e s k i l l s r e quire d t o succeed in various occupations and t h e i r t r a n s f e r a b i l i t y from one occupation t o a nother by g r ad u ates. 5. Other Area Vocational Education Centers throughout th e S t a t e should be encouraged t o conduct s i m i l a r l o n g i t u d i n a l s tu d i e s ( a t l e a s t on a t h r e e - y e a r b a s is ) o f a l l vocational education program gr a d u a t e s . 6. The S t a t e Department o f Education should provide l e a d e r ­ s h ip in t h e development o f f i v e - t o sev en -y ea r l o n g i t u d i n a l s t u d i e s in s p e c i f i c fundable a r e a s f o r th e purpose o f long-range program development. 7. Local program a d m i n i s t r a t o r s should continue t o provide c a r e e r information and guidance to s t u d e n ts so they can make b e t t e r c a r e e r s e l e c t i o n s and complete vocational ed ucation programs. 8. While th e i n t e n t of t h i s study was p r im a r ily o f a d e s c r i p ­ t i v e n a t u r e , a s t a t i s t i c a l l o n g itu d in a l path a n a l y s i s of each occupa­ t i o n a l program in th e S t a t e may be a worthwhile f u t u r e undertaking. Imp!ications This l o n g i t u d i n a l follow-up study o f vocational education grad uates provided a broader p e r s p e c t i v e of t h e c a r e e r paths chosen 108 by program gradu ates than th e t r a d i t i o n a l annual follow-up r e q u i r e d by s t a t e and f edera l g u i d e l i n e s . The f in d in g s s ug ges t t h a t th e t h r e e - y e a r follow-up r e f l e c t s a more r e l i a b l e d ata base f o r e v a l u a t i n g voca tiona l education programs, p a r t i c u l a r l y in r e s p e c t t o employment and continued ed uc ati on. The f i v e - y e a r follow-up tends to have i t s s t r e n g t h s in monitoring c a r e e r paths and i t s r e l a t i o n t o geographic l o c a t i o n o f graduates f o r long-term planning of programs. Dealing with those as pects o f employment r e l a t e d t o vocational e d u c a tio n , t h i s study r ev ea led a higher pe rcentage of grad ua tes using t h e i r s k i l l s t o ob tain employment than previous s t u d i e s . Only th e p r i n t i n g , d r a f t i n g and f o r e s t r y programs had l e s s than 60 p er cen t employment in a r e l a t e d f i e l d . The p r i n t i n g and d r a f t i n g programs a l s o demonstrated a higher per centage co n tin u in g in h ig h e r e d u c a ti o n , which kept them from e n t e r i n g th e employment market u n t i l a f t e r the f i f t h - y e a r follow-up. Related placement o f gr aduates should not be used as the only c r i t e r i o n of success in vocational e d u catio n . Too l i t t l e i s known about s i m i l a r i t y o f s k i l l s r e q u ire d in t h e va riou s occ up ations and th e a b i l i t y o f grad uates to t r a n s f e r s k i l l s lear n ed from one occupa­ t i o n t o an o th er . The major c r i t e r i o n should be placement in an area th e gra du ate can become pro du ctive to s o c i e t y and t o themselves. With th e major goal o f vocatio nal ed ucation w ith in th e con­ t e n t o f prep ar ing vo catio nal education gradu ates f o r e n t r y i n t o a pro duct iv e c a p a c i t y , i t must be recognized t h a t not everyone has to e n t e r t h e la b o r market f o r pay. For example, th e f i n d i n g s of t h i s 109 study show t h a t a high percentage of c h i l d care graduates become homemakers s h o r t l y a f t e r grad uation and use t h e i r s k i l l s in par en ting and meeting t h e immediate needs o f t h e i r family. While they may not be r e c e iv in g f i n a n c i a l remuneration, they a r e , in f a c t , making a major c o n t r i b u t i o n t o s o c i e t y . The f in d in g s o f t h i s study als o i n d i c a t e t h a t a highe r per centage of females e n t e r r e l a t e d employment than males. F u r th er study should be encouraged in o t h e r areas of th e s t a t e to analyze th e reasons f o r th e d i f f e r e n c e s . The fin d i n g s o f t h i s study suggest t h a t annual and l o n g i t u d i ­ nal follow-ups have a v alu ab le c o n t r i b u t i o n to make in th e e v a lu a t io n of vocational ed u c a t io n . Follow-up s t u d i e s in conjunction with advis ory committee reviews, curriculum and f a c i l i t y reviews, guidance and placement e v a lu a tio n s should be th e major e v a lu a tio n c r i t e r i o n of voca tiona l education e v a l u a t i o n . APPENDICES APPENDIX A MICHIGAN DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION VOCATIONAL EDUCATION JOB PLACEMENT AND CONTINUED EDUCATION SUMMARY BY PROGRAM WITHIN STATE 1-28-76 TABLE A - l M i c h i g a n Departm ent o f E ducation V ocational E ducation Job Placem ent and C ontinued E ducation Summary by Program W ithin S ta te Program Year Grad. T otal T otal Employed Employed F u ll Time R elated N 1 N % F u ll Time U nrelated N % F u ll Time O ther P a rt Time O ther N % N % Cant, . Ed. Full Time N 2 C ant. Ed. P a rt Time N Unemployed 2 N 2 F o re stry 1975 1976 1977 45 52 34 35 38 31 77.8 73.1 91.2 13 10 10 2 8.9 19.2 29.4 10 20 18 22.2 38.5 52.9 2 4 .4 10 8 3 22.2 15.4 8 .8 1 1 2 .2 1.9 2 4 .4 7 13 3 15.5 25.0 8 .8 D is tr ib u tiv e Education 1975 1976 1977 3430 5339 5638 2837 4532 4883 82.7 84.9 86.6 1031 1783 2090 3 0.0 33.4 37.0 744 1172 1257 21.7 22.0 22.3 133 177 233 3 .9 3.3 4.1 929 1400 1303 2 7.0 26.2 23.1 116 164 101 3 .4 3.1 1 .8 58 64 40 1.7 1 .2 .7 419 579 614 12.2 10.8 10.9 Nurses Aide 1975 1976 1977 915 1141 1330 740 964 1130 80.9 84 .5 8 5 .0 299 413 444 32.7 36.2 33.3 103 183 216 11.3 16.0 16.2 18 21 29 1 .9 1.8 2 .2 320 347 411 34.9 30.4 33.2 47 40 30 5.1 3 .5 2 .3 15 9 14 1 .6 .8 1.0 113 128 156 12.3 11.2 11.7 C hild Care 1975 1976 1977 503 724 762 347 558 584 69.0 77.1 76.6 95 145 171 18.8 20.0 2 2.4 99 190 198 10.7 2 6.2 33.2 9 13 24 1.8 1.8 3.1 144 210 191 28.6 2 9.0 2 5.0 26 26 14 5 .2 3 .6 1 .8 12 9 9 2 .4 1 .2 1 .2 118 131 155 2 3.5 18.0 20.3 Food S erv ice 1975 1976 1977 814 1178 1411 641 945 1141 78.7 8 0.2 80 .9 253 864 418 3 1.0 30.1 29.6 150 249 352 18.4 21.1 2 5.0 46 51 67 5 .7 4 .3 4 .7 192 281 304 2 3.6 2 3.9 2 1.5 25 28 28 3.1 2 .4 2 .0 9 6 12 1.1 .8 .9 139 199 230 17.1 16.9 16.3 C le ric a l 1975 1976 1977 819 463 475 645 398 411 78.8 8 6 .0 8 6 .5 285 175 195 34.8 37.8 4 1 .0 91 78 109 11.1 16.8 2 2 .9 14 18 10 1 .7 3 .9 2.1 255 127 97 31.1 27.4 2 0.4 43 12 8 5.3 2 .6 1 .7 12 1 5 1 .5 .2 1 .0 119 52 51 14.5 11.2 10.7 Auto Mechanic 1975 1976 1977 2124 2713 3430 1850 2408 3053 87.1 8 8 .8 8 9 .0 797 1018 1342 37.5 37.5 39.1 537 734 924 25.3 27.0 26.9 125 177 199 5 .9 6 .5 5 .8 391 479 588 18.4 17.7 17.1 32 43 37 1 .5 1 .9 1 .0 25 21 13 1.2 .8 .4 217 241 327 10.2 8 .9 9 .5 B uilding Trades 1975 1976 1977 1195 514 523 1023 451 470 8 5.6 8 7 .7 8 9 .9 404 170 210 3 3.8 3 5.0 4 0.2 341 140 165 2 8.5 2 7.0 31.5 84 42 24 7.0 8 .2 4 .6 194 99 71 16.2 19.3 13.6 15 10 4 1.3 1.9 .8 7 2 5 .5 .4 1 .0 150 51 44 12.6 9 .9 8 .4 TABLE A - l . — Continued Program Year Grad. T otal Employed F u ll Time R elated T otal Employed N X N F u ll Time U n related X N X F u ll Time O ther P a rt Time O ther N X N X Cont. Ed. Full Time Cont. Ed. P a r t Time Unemployed N X N X N X 1975 1976 1977 1975 1976 1977 394 480 535 332 421 486 84.3 8 7.7 9 0.8 95 152 182 2 4.0 3 1.7 3 4.0 107 104 123 27.2 21.7 22.3 19 32 24 4 .8 6 .7 4 .5 111 133 157 28.2 27.7 29.3 26 17 17 6 .6 3 .5 3 .2 10 6 5 2 .5 1.3 .9 26 36 27 6 .5 7.5 5 .0 249 462 441 211 402 398 8 4.7 87 .0 9 0.2 58 126 129 23.3 27.2 29.3 60 117 110 24.0 25.3 24.9 20 32 31 B.O 6 .9 7 .0 73 127 128 29.3 27.5 2 9.0 15 22 6 6 .0 4 .8 1.4 4 3 1 1.6 0 .6 .2 19 35 36 7.6 7 .5 8 .2 P rin tin g 1975 1976 1977 411 670 803 333 577 694 8 1 .0 86.1 86.4 123 212 251 29.9 31.6 31.3 113 185 237 27.5 27.6 29.5 16 36 26 3 .9 5.4 3 .2 81 144 180 19.7 21.5 22.4 14 31 9 3 .4 3.1 1.1 7 3 4 1.7 .4 .5 57 69 96 13.9 10.3 12.0 Machine Shop 1975 1976 1977 731 1022 1171 640 923 1083 87 .6 9 0.3 9 2.5 296 479 633 4 0 .5 46.9 54.0 177 222 209 24.2 21.7 17.8 50 61 56 6 .8 6 .0 4 .8 117 161 185 16.0 15.8 15.8 11 14 12 1 .5 1.4 1 .0 3 8 2 .2 .8 .2 78 77 74 10.7 7 .5 6.3 TOTAL 1975 1976 1977 27575 31200 34961 22751 26714 30372 8 2 .5 8 3.6 8 6.9 9144 11305 13405 3 3.2 36.2 3 8.3 5685 6698 7727 20.6 21.5 22.1 1025 1263 1398 3 .7 4 .0 4 .0 6897 7448 7842 2 5.0 2 4.0 2 2.4 1012 893 603 3.7 2 .9 1.7 381 303 246 1 .4 1 .0 .7 3431 3290 3740 12.4 10.5 10.7 D ra ftin g E le c tro n ic s APPENDIX B FIRST YEAR FOLLOW-UP FORM 114 FOLLOW-UP SURVEY OF GRADUATES By answering the following questions you can help us to plan better educational programs for present high school students. The information you return will be used for educational purposes only. Thank you for your cooperation and assistan ce in completing this survey. Your name wil! not be released or otherwise connected with the information you provide. PLEASE ANSWER THE ITEMS IN THIS SURVEY BY PLACING AN “X" IN THE BOX NEXT TO THE RESPONSE OF YOUR CHOICE. No. □ □ □ □ □ □ □ □ □ □ □ □ □ □ □ 000000000000000000000 (First Name First Please) NAME 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 PRESENTMARITALSTATUS:(Check One) 1.01 Single 26 25 26 27 28 29 2 . 0 Married 30 31 32 33 34 35 3 .D Divorced 36 37 4.D Separated OOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOODOOOOOO IF MARRIED. PLEASE GIVE MAIDEN NAME 38 AND WIFE OR HUSBAND'S NAME 52 53 39 54 40 55 41 56 42 43 57 44 56 45 59 46 47 60 48 49 50 51 61 (Number and Name) street OOOOOODOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO 62