OKLAHOMA CITY (OBV) – A bill that sets out to modify Oklahoma’s high school graduation requirements to provide students more career pathways passed a key legislative committee on Tuesday.
House Bill 3278 passed the Oklahoma House of Representatives’ Common Education Committee with an 11-0 vote.
The bill, written by Rep. Rhoda Baker, R-Yukon, creates the Graduation Act of 2024. It requires eighth through 12th grade students to complete modified graduation requirements starting in the 2025-26 school year.
The modified requirements include Individualized Career and Academic Plan (ICAP) courses covering a range of subjects and career paths selected by the district’s board of education
The bill also allows a postsecondary-approved full-time CareerTech program or locally approved science-based application course to satisfy a required physical science unit.
The purpose of the modifications is to provide students training and education that will prepare them to enter the workforce upon graduation and start their career with the skills they will need to succeed.
Baker spoke with OBV about the bill and how she says it will benefit both Oklahoma students and the future of the state’s workforce.
“I am really excited about our graduation pathways bill and just the determination by the group to try to meet the needs of our students currently,” Baker said. “We know that ultimately the pathways for them are different than they have been for students 20, 30 years ago. And so we’ve got to make sure that we’re meeting the needs that are best suited for them and what is going to be part of their individual career plan.”
Baker, a former teacher, said her colleagues are supportive of the drive to add more career preparation to graduation requirements.
“I think everyone in their district has seen that there is definitely a need for the increase of flexibility and rigor,” she said. “The only concerns, I think, are for students that want to maybe go into something that doesn’t require as much math. There’s been questions about why should we require more math?”
The modified requirements include four math courses, including Algebra I and either Algebra II or Geometry.
Students must also complete six Individualized Career and Academic Plan (ICAP) pathway units that can span a range of subjects and career paths selected by the district board of education. New requirements also include a postsecondary-approved full-time CareerTech program or locally approved science-based application course to satisfy the required physical science unit.
“We know ultimately that whether you’re going into the workforce, college, whatever, that increased need for math-based courses is there and we’ve got to meet the relevancy for what they’re going to face in either the workforce or college,” Baker said.
Oklahoma has a wide range of industries, including oil and gas, aerospace, agribusiness and automotive manufacturing, among many others. HB 3278 aims to help the state’s various industries by filling their workforce needs with skilled young workers looking to launch their career.
“I think what we’re doing is we’re really connecting students with businesses that need immediate workforce.
The bill ultimately empowers students by better preparing them to enter the workforce after high school, Baker said.
“All of this is geared toward a student’s ability to create a path that they need and not stifle them into one route that they get to make choices, and that’s important,” she said.
