Schools, community should take up slack
BY DAN PARKER SOUTH JETTY REPORTER

LAURO CAVAZOS

[Editor's note: The following interview is the third in a series of stories about adult education and literacy in Port Aransas. The series so far has shown that a substantial number of adults in Port Aransas face difficult lives because they don't have high school diplomas or GEDs. The series also profiled a GED program in Port Aransas that has seen more than 40 students pass through its doors in the two years the program has been in existence. But the program faces an uncertain future.

Fort story, the South Jetty interviewed Lauro Cavazos, a part-time Port Aransas resident who is a former U.S. Secretary of Education, serving from 1988 to 1990. He is the first Hispanic to have served in a U.S. presidential cabinet.

Splitting his time between homes in Port Aransas and Massachusetts, Cavazos, 80, is a professor at Tufts University Medical School. He serves on the boards of the National Assembly of School Based Health Care and the National Alliance for Hispanic Health.]

South Jetty: How big is the problem of under-educated adults in this country? How much should we be concerned?

Cavazos: I think we are very much concerned about it. I don't have the numbers in front of me here, but there are a lot of people in these GED programs. It's one of the most severe problems we face in education today. We have a lot of people who have dropped out of high school (nationally). … It doesn't take long for them to find out they have to have at least a high school diploma to make a living. It's not a new problem. When I was secretary of education, we put together six national goals for education. One dealt with adult literacy, and that was back in 1990. We were hoping that by the year 2000 that problem would be erased. But I tell you, we're still dealing with that problem. It's not getting any better.

SJ: Why isn't it getting better?

Cavazos: It's hooked up to the simple fact that a large number of students don't get adequate educations. They fail, or they drop out of school. Large numbers are not completing their educations. … Part of the reason is, they get discouraged. If you fail two grades, your chances of dropping out shoot up to 80 percent.

It really impacts Hispanics and black Americans. Why do people drop out? For one, they drop out because they failed at school. They're not progressing. They're not getting ahead. And they don't see education as the way out of low income.

SJ: What should be done to keep people from dropping out?

Cavazos: You have to make (students) expect to succeed. That's up to parents and teachers. It's everyone's responsibility. It's done by teachers saying, 'Yes, you can learn, you can do this work,' and parents who keep after (children), checking their homework.

SJ: Many Port Aransas residents have good educations; yet, more than 40 people have taken part in a GED program in town over the past two years. How much should Port Aransans be concerned about under-educated adults?

Cavazos: Any single under-educated adult impacts the quality of life we have. The economy on the island is impacted by people who are illiterate or not well-educated. It affects everyone. … They won't have any money to spend. … I'm not sure what social services we have in Port Aransas, but chances are, these people won't have health insurance, because they can't afford it. And they might be taking food stamps. Lack of education and poverty are linked.

SJ: Is enough being done nationally to help under-educated adults get the educations they need?

Cavazos: I have this feeling that not enough is being done. This is a changing nation. It's being changed every day with the number of people coming across our borders, and we're facing an unprecedented strain on our educational system.

SJ: What should a community do to make sure as many adults as possible have good educations?

Cavazos: You've got to motivate them, tell them to get back to school, after they drop out. I think employers can say, "I'll hire you if you go get your GED. They can be motivated by money. They can be motivated by a good job out there. They can be motivated by their own self esteem. … The main thing is, though, you've got to find ways to bring them to a classroom. And, once you get them there, you keep them there by making sure the students feel wanted. I call it the climate in the classroom.

SJ: The existence of the GED program in Port Aransas is tenuous. It's operated by three volunteers, and the head volunteer said she may not be available to continue a year from now. What should a community do to make sure it has a good, sustaining GED program?

Cavazos: This is not a problem of the schools, nor is it a problem of people who provide GED schooling. It's everybody's problem. Therefore, what I would hope would happen is … people on the island would create partnerships between schools, parents, the business community. Everyone involved would need to say, 'We're going to work together to keep kids in school, and if they don't stay in school, we're going to bring these students into a GED program. In an urban setting, a university would take the leadership of such a partnership. Everyone's busy, I know, but the school leaders really need to reach out to the parents and the business community and say, "Let's talk about these issues. How can we keep children in school, and if we can't, then how can we provide GEDs for them?

Next: A Port Aransan talks about the obstacles she encountered in her efforts to earn a GED.