A program designed to help high school students in Arkansas develop plans for what to do after graduation is getting a boost from Governor Sarah Sanders. The governor says the rootEd Arkansas program is an example of the state’s education investment.
The program, a partnership of Bentonville-based Heartland Forward, the Arkansas Department of Education and the national nonprofit rootEd Alliance, places trained college and career advisors in Arkansas rural schools. Heartland Forward President and COO Angie Cooper says the program continues to reach more schools in the state.
Five students who worked with the rootEd Arkansas program announced their plans for life after graduation at yesterday's Heartland Summit in Bentonville. Their goals ranged from attending fiber splicing training at the University of Arkansas Hope, to begin a career in high-speed internet service to studying music at the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville. Angie Cooper says the five students at the summit are examples of what the program’s mission involves.
Research conducted by Heartland Forward shows nearly half of Arkansas’ school districts are considered rural, representing almost a third of all of the state’s high school students. Numbers from the national rootEd Alliance organization indicate 85 percent of students participating in rootEd Arkansas say their advisor increased their confidence in their post-graduation plans. Angie Cooper says the program is designed to extend past discussions of post-graduation plans.
The rootEd Arkansas program is in 10 Arkansas high schools, including Mammoth Spring, Kingston, Oark, Jasper, Green Forest and Dover.
