Indicators 2024: Education/training directly affect well-being of region

Tired of ads? Subscribers enjoy a distraction-free reading experience.

WILKES-BARRE — Jill Avery-Stoss, chief operating officer at The Institute, this week said education and training received by residents and workers directly affect the well-being of the region.

Beginning in preschool and extending through all levels of learning, Avery-Stoss said the quality of education and training received by residents and workers directly affect the well-being of the region.

Pay level is often linked to high-skill jobs, which tend to rely on certain levels of education, so higher educational attainment and enhanced training can lead to greater economic opportunity and community growth. Data collected by The Institute each year reveal trends regarding the state of education in Northeastern Pennsylvania.

According to Avery-Stoss, preschool programs are important for many reasons:

• They provide a basis to help children with early literacy.

• Students are four times likelier to drop out of school if they cannot read well by the third grade.

• Preschool also teaches children basic math skills and prepares them to work with classmates.

“There are other options beyond publicly funded Pre-K, but they do carry costs and there is a shortage of providers,” added Avery-Stoss. “About one-in-four children in the region is served by publicly funded Pre-K.”

Avery-Stoss said there have been some minor changes in enrollment at the kindergarten level and beyond.

• Public school enrollment in Lackawanna County has declined during the past three years, though enrollment in the Lackawanna CTC has grown.

• Public school enrollment in Luzerne and Wayne Counties has varied only slightly from one year to the next, but enrollment in the Wilkes-Barre Area CTC also grew between 2022 and 2023.

• Nonpublic school enrollment remains higher than it was in pre-COVID years. About 4,100 students in all three counties are enrolled in charter schools, with the majority enrolled in cyber schools.

“We also examine data regarding special education enrollments,” said Avery-Stoss. “They are categorized by type of disability.”

Special education is a vital part of the K-12 education system. Avery-Stoss said it helps ensure that the right resources are available to provide students with equitable learning opportunities. The number of children identified with some form of disability and in need of special education has been increasing since 1990. More than 8,500 students in the region have some form of physical or intellectual disability.

Avery-Stoss said emerging industries and occupations demand a wide range of education and training experience. Learning options include apprenticeship programs, associate degree or trade school programs, on-the-job training, certificates, credentials, and college and university degrees.

In 2021-2022, 7,404 degrees were awarded in the region — many of them in key fields like health care and business. This is an increase from 7,185 in the preceding academic year. The majority (3,403) were four-year degrees, followed by post-graduate degrees at 2,358, and certificates and two-year degrees at 1,643.

“The region does lag behind the state in terms of bachelor’s degrees,” Avery-Stoss stated. “With the shift in higher education requirements and the growing importance of credentials and certifications, however, it is not possible to capture the strength of the region simply by looking at four-year degrees.

“Still, they are needed for many jobs, especially those in health care and education, which anchor the economy and in which there are worker shortages.”