Commentary: Tennessee needs to incentivize short-term industry credentialing programs

Short-term industry credentials are a valuable tool that could be setting up more Tennessee students with long-term career opportunities if only more school districts offered them.

These types of skills-based credentials are directly connected to industry and workforce needs with more flexibility, less time commitment, and often lower cost than a traditional college degree. Over half of jobs (56%) in Tennessee require some education past high school, but not a completed degree. Credentials play a pivotal role training individuals to fill the middle skills gap that prevents a significant number of Tennesseans from accessing in-demand and high-wage jobs.

Still, very few students in Tennessee have access to short-term credential training opportunities. Each year, less than 3% of high school students earn an industry credential statewide and this may be in part due to lack of explicit district incentives.

Other states, including Colorado and Florida, have created credentialing incentive programs to increase awareness and reward school districts for industry credential completion. Florida saw the number of students earning certifications grow from 800 a year to more than 45 thousand, five years after adopting an incentive program. Students earned 9 thousand credentials in the first two years of Colorado’s incentive program.

The Tennessee Department of Education currently encourages districts to provide industry credentials in 157 approved fields, but the state provides no direct financial incentives to assist schools with programmatic costs.  This is something the state needs to change.

Industry credentials offer more than access to future jobs. Nationally, 93% of students participating in these types of career-focused programs graduate high school. Of those, more than 75% of students go on to pursue a postsecondary education.

As many Tennesseans are questioning the value of four-year degrees, post-secondary enrollment has significantly declined. Short-term credentials offer untapped workforce development and education opportunities statewide in both secondary and postsecondary education settings.

Merging these opportunities into existing degree programs could serve a pivotal role in revitalizing public value in secondary and higher education.

The Tennessee Firefly is a project of and supported by Tennesseans for Student Success.