WEBVTT - Smart Talks with IBM: How P-TECH Prepares Students for the Future of Work 0:00:00.320 --> 0:00:03.000 Today, we're going to be talking about IBM's role in 0:00:03.040 --> 0:00:07.000 an educational model known as p Tech, which was established 0:00:07.080 --> 0:00:10.760 inn with a mission to empower students with the skills 0:00:10.800 --> 0:00:14.720 they need for careers in STEM. We'll be talking with 0:00:14.800 --> 0:00:18.480 Joe L. Mangan, executive director of the p Tech Program 0:00:18.520 --> 0:00:22.599 at IBM, as well as PTech graduate and hardware developer 0:00:23.000 --> 0:00:27.360 Eric Cholula Martinez and p tech graduate and IBM apprentice 0:00:27.720 --> 0:00:31.080 Suhlia Karam Doran. If you want to hear previous entries 0:00:31.120 --> 0:00:33.239 in this series, you can simply look up the episodes 0:00:33.320 --> 0:00:36.160 labeled smart Talks and our feed from earlier this year, 0:00:36.440 --> 0:00:38.480 and you can also check out the episodes of smart 0:00:38.520 --> 0:00:41.720 Talks on the I Heart Media podcast tech Stuff. And 0:00:41.800 --> 0:00:47.360 now let's jump right into our conversation. Joel, let's start 0:00:47.400 --> 0:00:50.040 with you. Can you tell us a bit about yourself, 0:00:50.320 --> 0:00:53.920 your background and how you wound up working for IBM. Yes, 0:00:54.080 --> 0:00:57.920 so um I joined pe Tech just about over a 0:00:58.000 --> 0:01:02.760 year ago. I am actually a recent American. I was 0:01:02.800 --> 0:01:05.960 born in Africa in the country call Cameroon and uh 0:01:06.120 --> 0:01:08.160 and I moved to the US about eight years ago 0:01:08.720 --> 0:01:12.040 after you know, doing work and studying in in the 0:01:12.120 --> 0:01:15.400 UK and working all over Europe, in Student and Denmark, 0:01:16.280 --> 0:01:21.440 mainly in IBMS consulting business. So I joined our CSR 0:01:21.520 --> 0:01:23.920 team a couple of years ago and this has been 0:01:24.080 --> 0:01:27.760 my most exciting work at IBM doing this work at 0:01:27.800 --> 0:01:30.679 p Tech. Now, what led you to get involved specifically 0:01:30.680 --> 0:01:34.839 in education? UM? Education has always played a really important 0:01:34.920 --> 0:01:37.920 role in my life. I have benefited from a lot 0:01:37.920 --> 0:01:41.600 of opportunities that my my ps did not get and 0:01:41.640 --> 0:01:43.880 the outcomes in our lives has been is very very 0:01:43.880 --> 0:01:48.840 clear to see us as we've all got gotten older. Also, 0:01:48.920 --> 0:01:53.880 my mom was an avid believer in education. She stopped 0:01:53.880 --> 0:01:56.960 her education at the age of thirteen, and she was 0:01:57.000 --> 0:02:01.040 so insistent that we get the best education that we 0:02:01.560 --> 0:02:03.680 that we could get and that we took it seriously. 0:02:04.240 --> 0:02:07.360 I was really inspirational was that after she had six 0:02:07.440 --> 0:02:10.600 children and she was thirty five at the time, she 0:02:10.680 --> 0:02:12.840 went back to school and she studied to become a 0:02:12.880 --> 0:02:15.720 teacher and she was an elementary school teacher for the 0:02:15.760 --> 0:02:19.079 rest of our life. So it's something that has been 0:02:19.800 --> 0:02:22.079 a really passionating in our family. So we work a 0:02:22.120 --> 0:02:25.480 lot in education, but mainly in access to education, and 0:02:25.520 --> 0:02:28.600 this is my first foray really into the systematic part 0:02:28.680 --> 0:02:31.480 of education. Well, let's talk about about p tech for 0:02:31.520 --> 0:02:33.640 a second then, So, so first of all, can you 0:02:33.680 --> 0:02:36.440 just tell us what p tech is, what it stands for, 0:02:36.880 --> 0:02:41.440 and then how does it work. PETE stands for Pathways 0:02:41.480 --> 0:02:45.520 to Technology Early College, high School and so now you know, 0:02:45.600 --> 0:02:49.800 I we just call it pe tech UM. So PETER 0:02:50.000 --> 0:02:54.640 was conceived ten years ago to have a different and 0:02:54.720 --> 0:02:57.160 innovative way to tackle the skills gap. I think we 0:02:57.200 --> 0:02:59.320 can talk about the skills gap in a minute, but 0:03:00.080 --> 0:03:03.560 focus really on how p tech works. UM. Pe tech 0:03:03.600 --> 0:03:07.840 allows ninth graders in a p tech school to complete 0:03:08.000 --> 0:03:12.440 a STEM related Associates degree and the high school diploma 0:03:13.280 --> 0:03:15.679 at the same time. So the aim of the program 0:03:15.919 --> 0:03:18.720 is that while you're in high school that you complete 0:03:18.919 --> 0:03:23.440 UM that your p tech program with a STEM Related 0:03:23.639 --> 0:03:27.560 Associates degree as well as your high school diploma. Obviously, 0:03:28.600 --> 0:03:31.360 so instead of having a nine to twelve model, so 0:03:31.400 --> 0:03:33.160 the K to twelve model that we're all familiar with 0:03:33.280 --> 0:03:35.840 is a kid to fourteen, which means that's an extra 0:03:35.920 --> 0:03:39.520 two years that a student may use to be able 0:03:39.560 --> 0:03:43.960 to complete both the diploma and and the the associate's 0:03:44.000 --> 0:03:47.480 degree in a STEM field. What is unique about petech 0:03:47.600 --> 0:03:49.960 is the role that industry plays. So there are three 0:03:50.000 --> 0:03:52.560 parties to every p tech school. There's the high school, 0:03:53.000 --> 0:03:56.880 there is the community college which offers the associates degree, 0:03:56.920 --> 0:03:59.720 and then there's the business. What the business does in 0:03:59.800 --> 0:04:02.080 p tech, which which is really unique in this program 0:04:02.200 --> 0:04:06.200 in education programs, is that it aligns the degree pathway 0:04:06.240 --> 0:04:10.280 to what is a growing job area, job area that 0:04:10.360 --> 0:04:13.240 is in high demand for for the future of work. 0:04:14.160 --> 0:04:17.960 And then the business provides mentoring for the students, which 0:04:18.000 --> 0:04:20.400 is to help them build a series of eleven critical 0:04:20.400 --> 0:04:24.400 skills that are really important for for for work these days. 0:04:24.480 --> 0:04:26.839 And then the last thing we do is to provide 0:04:26.880 --> 0:04:29.479 paid internships to provide real experience at work and to 0:04:29.520 --> 0:04:33.279 expand the network of students UH and also to to 0:04:33.279 --> 0:04:36.960 to domestify working in the tech space. And then lastly, 0:04:37.480 --> 0:04:40.280 the students who complete and become graduates of p tech 0:04:40.360 --> 0:04:42.159 are first in line to be able to take jobs 0:04:42.880 --> 0:04:47.479 in the companies that their partnered within their p tech school. So, so, Helia, 0:04:47.800 --> 0:04:50.000 can you tell us a bit about yourself and what 0:04:50.200 --> 0:04:53.440 led you to get involved with p tech. So when 0:04:53.680 --> 0:04:58.640 my parents started their divorce, I was in my last 0:04:58.680 --> 0:05:02.200 year of middle school and my dad was the sole 0:05:02.240 --> 0:05:04.440 provider of the household. My mom was a stay at 0:05:04.480 --> 0:05:08.560 home mom, and the reality for me at that time 0:05:08.760 --> 0:05:11.719 was since I won't be with dad, I don't have 0:05:11.880 --> 0:05:16.280 money for college and it was really scary. And p 0:05:16.480 --> 0:05:21.160 Tech was starting in the high school in our area, 0:05:21.560 --> 0:05:24.719 and I said, hey, this is a really great opportunity 0:05:24.800 --> 0:05:28.560 if I get chosen to get a college education without 0:05:28.600 --> 0:05:32.520 having to pay for it. So when I chose to apply, 0:05:32.839 --> 0:05:36.760 it was just I had a minor interest in tech 0:05:36.920 --> 0:05:38.760 from when I lived in the Bronx and I was 0:05:38.800 --> 0:05:41.960 a part of the Lego robotics team at my elementary school, 0:05:42.760 --> 0:05:46.200 and I thought, if I could just apply that little 0:05:46.200 --> 0:05:49.599 piece of knowledge to whatever coursework all face in high school, 0:05:49.680 --> 0:05:53.599 then maybe I have a good chance at surviving college 0:05:53.600 --> 0:05:55.920 in high school together. So, do you still have a 0:05:55.960 --> 0:05:58.760 particular interest in robotics or have you moved on to 0:05:58.839 --> 0:06:03.040 other things. Pe Tech really helped me realize there are 0:06:03.720 --> 0:06:08.800 multiple sectors in tech, and it's just not engineering per se. 0:06:09.279 --> 0:06:13.159 Right now, I'm a part of the UX Design Apprenticeship 0:06:13.839 --> 0:06:16.159 because during my time of Pechech I got to be 0:06:16.360 --> 0:06:19.920 a CSR intern and I got to realize helping people 0:06:20.200 --> 0:06:23.840 and interacting with people is something I really love and 0:06:24.040 --> 0:06:28.400 robotics wasn't anything like that, so it wasn't my passion. 0:06:28.880 --> 0:06:31.279 And you said, sorry, just for people who aren't familiar. 0:06:31.279 --> 0:06:34.840 So this user experience. But what is CSR. Oh, it's 0:06:34.920 --> 0:06:40.960 the Corferent Social Responsibility Team at IBM. Oh great, and uh, Eric, 0:06:41.080 --> 0:06:43.080 the same thing. Can you tell us a bit about 0:06:43.120 --> 0:06:46.160 your background, about yourself and your interests and what led 0:06:46.200 --> 0:06:49.920 you into p tech. Yeah, so what led me to 0:06:50.000 --> 0:06:53.719 pechech was I went to the orientation where Rushie Davis 0:06:54.200 --> 0:06:57.320 talked about, um, how you can get a free associate 0:06:57.400 --> 0:07:00.359 degree along with your high school diploma, and I saw, uh, 0:07:00.400 --> 0:07:05.279 you know what better way of getting a degree? It's free? 0:07:05.600 --> 0:07:09.000 And for sure I couldn't probably in debt if it 0:07:09.080 --> 0:07:12.640 wasn't for for this program. Um. So I'm very thankful 0:07:12.760 --> 0:07:16.440 to be tech right now, I'm a hardware developer at IBM. 0:07:16.640 --> 0:07:20.400 I what I do mainly is characterized ships and characterize 0:07:20.440 --> 0:07:25.880 things inside main frames to better understand our systems and 0:07:25.920 --> 0:07:29.239 to further progress than for future generations of IBM machines. 0:07:29.760 --> 0:07:32.240 Now I'm curious, well, what does it mean to characterize 0:07:32.240 --> 0:07:35.320 a chip? So it would just to be to stress 0:07:35.400 --> 0:07:39.240 test them. Have you ever played a video game like 0:07:40.040 --> 0:07:44.760 UH in terms of like a console or PC, as 0:07:44.760 --> 0:07:48.360 you could tell, like stressing the system would UH differ 0:07:48.440 --> 0:07:51.400 between you know, playing a game that runs sixty frames 0:07:51.440 --> 0:07:55.320 per second versus just googling something. So we're just taking 0:07:55.360 --> 0:08:01.400 different UH workloads and seeing how they how much power, 0:08:02.160 --> 0:08:06.400 how much UH ampires and stuff like that the chips 0:08:06.680 --> 0:08:12.000 would produce when running different stress tests. Oh excellent, Okay cool? 0:08:12.560 --> 0:08:16.440 Will the new BioShock melt my computer? I don't think 0:08:16.440 --> 0:08:21.400 that's my question? But Joel, let's come back to you. 0:08:21.560 --> 0:08:24.320 So if you think about p tech as an answer, 0:08:24.400 --> 0:08:26.920 what is the question? What are the problems it is 0:08:26.920 --> 0:08:32.640 designed to solve? So, UM, if we mentioned the skills 0:08:32.679 --> 0:08:36.360 cap before and and just to explain what the skills 0:08:36.360 --> 0:08:40.720 gap is, is that in the marketplace there are and 0:08:40.760 --> 0:08:43.720 this has been consistent for for modern ten years UH. 0:08:43.800 --> 0:08:48.360 The technology is changing jobs very very quickly. So there 0:08:48.440 --> 0:08:50.760 used to be a couple of companies, tech companies that 0:08:50.880 --> 0:08:55.120 needed technology skills. Now every company needs technology skills. And 0:08:55.200 --> 0:08:59.240 what we've seen is that the the the jobs that 0:08:59.240 --> 0:09:02.760 are available in the marketplace, UM, there are not enough 0:09:02.800 --> 0:09:05.560 people with skills to actually feel those jobs. Who have 0:09:05.600 --> 0:09:08.000 the skills to fill those jobs. The paradox of all 0:09:08.040 --> 0:09:10.720 of this is that there actually is a large population 0:09:10.720 --> 0:09:14.600 of people who are unemployed, and so so the labor 0:09:14.640 --> 0:09:17.560 market has people who could be taking these jobs, but 0:09:17.600 --> 0:09:19.240 they are not. They don't have the skills to take 0:09:19.240 --> 0:09:21.320 these job. So that's that's the skills go That's one 0:09:21.360 --> 0:09:25.200 thing that Petech is trying to solve. The second thing 0:09:25.200 --> 0:09:27.240 that Pete is trying to solve, which is much more fundamental, 0:09:27.280 --> 0:09:29.800 and it speaks to why we start at ninth grade, 0:09:30.880 --> 0:09:33.200 is that one way of looking at the labor market 0:09:33.240 --> 0:09:35.480 is to look at what that gap is between the 0:09:35.559 --> 0:09:38.240 jobs that are available and and and the skills, and 0:09:38.240 --> 0:09:41.120 that skills gap right now as we're speaking, or at 0:09:41.200 --> 0:09:44.720 least before COVID was about seven hundred thousand tech jobs 0:09:44.800 --> 0:09:47.000 that we're going on field because the skills were not 0:09:47.080 --> 0:09:50.000 available in the marketplace. The other way to look at 0:09:50.040 --> 0:09:52.880 that is like why are they not available in the marketplace? 0:09:53.080 --> 0:09:56.040 And if there were, like which types of people do 0:09:56.120 --> 0:09:59.840 not have access to those jobs? So there's sometimes where 0:09:59.840 --> 0:10:01.480 it's not just a matter of skills, but it's a 0:10:01.480 --> 0:10:04.120 matter of opportunity. So are you getting the option to 0:10:04.160 --> 0:10:05.920 get a degree. Are you getting the option to get 0:10:05.920 --> 0:10:08.040 a degree in the in the in the right area 0:10:08.080 --> 0:10:09.600 that puts you on a path to be able to 0:10:09.600 --> 0:10:11.720 get a job. Do you have the networks to actually 0:10:11.720 --> 0:10:13.679 get a job? Would you even find out if this 0:10:13.760 --> 0:10:16.719 job was going in a place like i DM, do 0:10:16.720 --> 0:10:18.440 you have the networks to be able to get into that? 0:10:18.600 --> 0:10:21.200 And so if we look at our society, there are 0:10:21.200 --> 0:10:24.120 many people who are just locked out of the opportunity. 0:10:24.160 --> 0:10:26.800 So there's also an opportunity gap. And what Pete is 0:10:26.840 --> 0:10:30.080 trying to solve is like in the communities that businesses working, 0:10:30.480 --> 0:10:33.720 how can we create a program away for people who 0:10:33.800 --> 0:10:37.200 have talent to be matched with the opportunity to get 0:10:37.240 --> 0:10:39.680 into these jobs, but also to acquire the skills and 0:10:39.679 --> 0:10:41.600 the credentials to get the job. So if you look 0:10:41.600 --> 0:10:45.720 at pro tech design, it disintegrated curriculum where you get 0:10:45.760 --> 0:10:48.280 your associates degree, and then where the Associates degree is 0:10:48.280 --> 0:10:50.480 really the output is putting you in a place where 0:10:50.480 --> 0:10:53.080 you can get that job. But then everything about the 0:10:53.120 --> 0:10:55.960 mentorship and the paid work experiences is about expanding that 0:10:56.000 --> 0:10:58.800 network and giving you access to where the jobs are. 0:10:58.880 --> 0:11:02.520 So you have a strong network and you have also 0:11:02.520 --> 0:11:04.559 a strong visibility to be able to get into the 0:11:04.760 --> 0:11:08.120 into these jobs. So, Joel, this might overlap with the 0:11:08.559 --> 0:11:10.480 answer you just gave, but maybe this will get it 0:11:10.559 --> 0:11:13.160 a different aspect of it. P tech was created about 0:11:13.200 --> 0:11:15.520 a decade ago, right and roughly in the wake of 0:11:15.520 --> 0:11:19.120 the Great Recession, when obviously the job's outlook was or 0:11:19.160 --> 0:11:21.360 had recently been pretty grim for a lot of people. 0:11:22.240 --> 0:11:25.440 How has the world changed since then? Does p tech 0:11:25.520 --> 0:11:29.079 still address the same problems it was originally meant to solve, 0:11:29.640 --> 0:11:33.240 or have new challenges and opportunities presented themselves over the 0:11:33.640 --> 0:11:36.480 course of the lifetime of p tech. So when, yeah, 0:11:36.480 --> 0:11:38.559 when petech was created, the unemployment rate I think was 0:11:38.600 --> 0:11:43.080 about ten percent after um, you know, the financial crisis. 0:11:43.760 --> 0:11:47.600 And when you look at this big economic shocks that 0:11:47.720 --> 0:11:51.000 we get, like COVID and the financial crisis, they always 0:11:51.080 --> 0:11:57.120 lead to to unemployment. What has been strange about what 0:11:57.320 --> 0:11:59.800 passed not so strange because we see the acceleration of technology, 0:11:59.800 --> 0:12:02.400 the next relation of technology has only gone faster and faster. 0:12:02.600 --> 0:12:05.480 Is that even in those types of recession and even 0:12:05.520 --> 0:12:07.760 now when you look at COVID, the jobs that still 0:12:07.800 --> 0:12:10.040 continue to remain on field as still continue to grow 0:12:10.080 --> 0:12:13.160 and be stable at tech jobs. So in a way, 0:12:13.760 --> 0:12:16.840 pe tech has is more relevant now than than ever, 0:12:17.720 --> 0:12:21.480 and there's a recognition of that actually in education systems 0:12:21.520 --> 0:12:24.640 around around the world. So just in the past eighteen months, 0:12:24.679 --> 0:12:28.600 PETE has grown from about in from eight countries to 0:12:29.280 --> 0:12:32.640 twenty five countries. And that's because many policymakers around the 0:12:32.679 --> 0:12:35.600 world are now really seeing the need to be adopting 0:12:36.040 --> 0:12:39.200 these types of programs into the public education systems that 0:12:39.320 --> 0:12:42.320 really better prepare people to feel the skills guide, but 0:12:42.440 --> 0:12:45.120 also in a way that creates that opens of opportunity 0:12:45.760 --> 0:12:47.920 for people within communities to be able to get access 0:12:47.960 --> 0:12:49.640 to these jobs. So I would say it's much more 0:12:49.640 --> 0:12:52.640 relevant and now than ever. I'm we're seeing it in 0:12:52.679 --> 0:12:55.920 the adoption rates. If you could speak to some specifics 0:12:55.920 --> 0:12:59.560 and concrete examples, what kind of new tech and tech 0:12:59.600 --> 0:13:02.880 relategy jobs are really emerging today and in the near 0:13:02.960 --> 0:13:05.960 future as opposed to in the recent past. Yes, so 0:13:05.960 --> 0:13:10.480 there are a few jobs that simply I did not 0:13:10.600 --> 0:13:13.040 exist five years ago, but are really very prominent now 0:13:13.160 --> 0:13:15.880 or when past when not as prom prominent. So so 0:13:16.000 --> 0:13:19.920 if we look at cloud and develops jobs, um, there 0:13:19.920 --> 0:13:23.079 there are new versions of those now that are relevant 0:13:23.120 --> 0:13:25.720 in the marketplace and that I've developed AI jobs are 0:13:26.000 --> 0:13:30.600 frankly new in many areas. But then if you look 0:13:30.640 --> 0:13:34.839 at much more of the stable tech jobs like software development, 0:13:35.120 --> 0:13:39.319 UM hardware development, which is something that Eric does, UM, 0:13:39.520 --> 0:13:42.800 you see that there's been not only constant, but they're growing. 0:13:42.960 --> 0:13:45.240 And also what you early is doing is is user 0:13:45.280 --> 0:13:48.600 experience design. We're creating so many more products right now 0:13:48.679 --> 0:13:51.880 that in the hands of consumers that are not mechanical anymore. 0:13:51.960 --> 0:13:54.600 Where it's about how the consumers react with products and 0:13:54.600 --> 0:13:57.439 how they interact with them. So there's just a lot 0:13:57.480 --> 0:13:59.720 of new jobs that have been created, jobs that have 0:13:59.800 --> 0:14:02.480 changed aged. But the most important thing is that the 0:14:02.480 --> 0:14:06.160 acceleration of technology means that this continues to we continue 0:14:06.160 --> 0:14:09.640 to see a very very strong demand in these new jobs. 0:14:10.120 --> 0:14:12.360 So I guess, as you just alluded to it, it's 0:14:12.440 --> 0:14:15.439 not just that students who are preparing to enter the 0:14:15.480 --> 0:14:19.360 workforce today need specific technical skills that are relevant to 0:14:19.360 --> 0:14:21.360 the jobs that exist, but they also need to be 0:14:21.400 --> 0:14:26.760 able to adapt to a constantly changing set of requirements 0:14:26.880 --> 0:14:29.920 for for the you know, the technological world we live in. 0:14:30.120 --> 0:14:31.800 So I guess this is a question for all three 0:14:31.800 --> 0:14:34.160 of you. Maybe Joel, we can start with you. Do 0:14:34.200 --> 0:14:37.520 you think adaptation itself is a skill that can be 0:14:37.560 --> 0:14:41.240 taught if the tech industry is constantly and rapidly changing, 0:14:41.880 --> 0:14:46.120 Does the technology education require training on how to adapt 0:14:46.240 --> 0:14:51.320 to new skills? I think what we what we've all experienced, 0:14:51.320 --> 0:14:55.280 I guess as students UM and going through the university 0:14:55.360 --> 0:15:00.560 and going through college, and is that the education system 0:15:00.760 --> 0:15:05.440 just changes a little slower than the technology space uh 0:15:05.480 --> 0:15:08.680 and and specifically tech because tech is just moving so 0:15:08.760 --> 0:15:12.040 fast and frankly, it is hard for any sector, even 0:15:12.080 --> 0:15:16.720 policies to catch up. UM. So, what I think is 0:15:16.800 --> 0:15:19.120 unique about Peter in the way that it helps people 0:15:20.040 --> 0:15:23.880 react to change and continue to learn. Is this idea 0:15:23.920 --> 0:15:26.920 that we spend a lot more time with the young people, 0:15:27.040 --> 0:15:29.960 exposing them to what happens in the industry. I think 0:15:30.320 --> 0:15:32.160 giving people a sense of what is happening in the 0:15:32.200 --> 0:15:34.680 industry and having them giving them the chance to work 0:15:34.680 --> 0:15:36.640 with mentors, and giving them the chance to work with 0:15:36.680 --> 0:15:39.160 the internships, seeing how just the things that they play 0:15:39.240 --> 0:15:42.160 with in school, how much it changes by the time 0:15:42.160 --> 0:15:43.960 they get to the internship, how much it changes by 0:15:43.960 --> 0:15:46.360 the time they get to work. It gives us It 0:15:46.520 --> 0:15:48.560 gives them the same experience as we have at work, 0:15:48.600 --> 0:15:50.720 where we know we have to continually learn because it's 0:15:50.800 --> 0:15:53.200 very clear to us in the way we work just 0:15:53.240 --> 0:15:55.240 how much things are changing and that we have to 0:15:55.320 --> 0:15:57.960 keep up our skills. So I think it really starting 0:15:57.960 --> 0:16:00.360 and giving young people that exposure way be for they 0:16:00.360 --> 0:16:02.640 have to face that world is something that I think 0:16:02.720 --> 0:16:06.400 is a critical component of PEA Tech. And so Suhalia 0:16:06.480 --> 0:16:08.960 and Eric, do you have thoughts about this. Did your 0:16:09.040 --> 0:16:14.120 educational experience or does your educational experience incorporate that feeling, 0:16:14.160 --> 0:16:17.600 that feeling that you need to learn how to adapt 0:16:17.600 --> 0:16:20.040 in addition to just learning, you know, what skills are 0:16:20.080 --> 0:16:25.640 required today. Uh? Yeah, I could definitely say that it's 0:16:25.720 --> 0:16:28.160 kind of something you learn while in college or ear 0:16:28.200 --> 0:16:32.160 decided it's not about just prorarium something. It's about learning 0:16:32.400 --> 0:16:36.120 how to fix it. It's about identifying the problem, looking 0:16:36.160 --> 0:16:41.240 at it through multiple UH lenses, and determining what solutions 0:16:41.240 --> 0:16:43.960 are there, and then eliminating those solutions so you get 0:16:43.960 --> 0:16:47.120 to the best one. I personally think that learning to 0:16:47.240 --> 0:16:52.200 adapt doesn't even really only to tech. During my time 0:16:52.320 --> 0:16:54.400 in pe Tech, all of my teachers, whether it be 0:16:54.480 --> 0:16:58.200 in English or social studies. They explained that as time 0:16:58.280 --> 0:17:01.320 goes on, things have to change, and just because you 0:17:01.440 --> 0:17:03.520 learn how to do something one way doesn't mean it's 0:17:03.520 --> 0:17:09.720 always going to be that way. And understanding how to study, 0:17:09.840 --> 0:17:14.080 understanding how to research are all important parts of adapting 0:17:14.080 --> 0:17:16.840 and making yourself a better person so you're better equipped 0:17:16.840 --> 0:17:20.440 to solve problems. All right, let's come back to Joel. 0:17:20.560 --> 0:17:25.280 Here is the need for new technological skills something that 0:17:25.359 --> 0:17:28.720 primarily affects people in the tech industry, say software and 0:17:28.760 --> 0:17:32.159 hardware developers, or does this apply to other fields as well. 0:17:32.880 --> 0:17:37.639 We have a belief in the company at IBM that 0:17:39.160 --> 0:17:42.359 all jobs are going to be impacted by by technology. 0:17:42.480 --> 0:17:45.720 So we all, regardless of what we do. When I 0:17:45.760 --> 0:17:52.159 say technology, the AI specifically an automation impacting all jobs. 0:17:52.760 --> 0:17:56.080 Um if so, I mean if you if your restaurant 0:17:56.160 --> 0:17:59.920 right now, your interaction with technology is massive, especially during 0:18:00.000 --> 0:18:02.880 of it you're probably feeling, you know, most of your 0:18:03.200 --> 0:18:06.119 your orders and your revenue through a tech interface for 0:18:06.280 --> 0:18:09.560 for for delivery and take out during this period. And 0:18:09.640 --> 0:18:12.119 that's just a small example. So we believe that no 0:18:12.160 --> 0:18:15.720 matter what job you're in, it is really important to 0:18:15.760 --> 0:18:18.960 get to understand the technologies that are impacting our lives, 0:18:18.960 --> 0:18:21.640 that are very much keen in our lives and are 0:18:21.720 --> 0:18:23.520 changing the nature of our work and are changing the 0:18:23.560 --> 0:18:26.680 nature of our society. One of the things that we've 0:18:26.720 --> 0:18:30.160 done alongside pe tech is to create a platform called 0:18:30.160 --> 0:18:32.720 open p tech, and open pe tech is really focused 0:18:32.760 --> 0:18:35.600 on this. It's about like really helping students, regardless of 0:18:35.600 --> 0:18:38.320 whether they're in p tech or outside p tech, to 0:18:38.880 --> 0:18:42.320 learn about these key technologies that are really transforming our lives. 0:18:42.600 --> 0:18:49.639 And they are cloud, artificial intelligence, there is a cyber u, 0:18:50.000 --> 0:18:54.560 there is blockchain and so and very much design design thinking, 0:18:55.160 --> 0:18:58.440 which is a way of how we solve problems. So 0:18:58.680 --> 0:19:00.800 these are some of the things that I really impacting allies, 0:19:00.800 --> 0:19:03.400 and I think everybody needs to understand them because they're 0:19:03.440 --> 0:19:07.280 impacting society, not just jobs. So I'm interested in the 0:19:07.280 --> 0:19:10.960 way that p tech fuses together secondary and post secondary 0:19:11.040 --> 0:19:14.639 education in the one unified pathway. I guess, first Joel, 0:19:14.720 --> 0:19:18.240 what was the thinking behind that design? And then for 0:19:18.440 --> 0:19:21.680 Eric and to Helio, what is that experience? Like, Yeah, 0:19:21.680 --> 0:19:25.320 I'm really interested to hear the experience of Eric and 0:19:25.440 --> 0:19:29.159 here and they they're thinking behind that is that pathways 0:19:29.200 --> 0:19:35.120 have been proven to impact completion. So they you see 0:19:35.160 --> 0:19:37.879 pathways a lot in education programs, and they've been shown 0:19:37.880 --> 0:19:43.240 that when you have built in pathways for students, you 0:19:43.240 --> 0:19:46.440 you help them complete whatever you're trying to get them 0:19:46.480 --> 0:19:49.360 to to to the goal. Um So it was another 0:19:49.400 --> 0:19:51.520 thing is that early college students that take part in 0:19:51.560 --> 0:19:54.639 any kind of early college ended up going to college. 0:19:54.680 --> 0:19:58.640 More so, those two things that way existing successful things 0:19:58.680 --> 0:20:01.960 within the education system were into p tech. Um So 0:20:02.119 --> 0:20:06.160 this pathway of using both high school and and college 0:20:06.480 --> 0:20:09.840 was something that was already proven to um at least 0:20:09.880 --> 0:20:12.320 they are taking the early college were already proven to 0:20:12.320 --> 0:20:15.159 work for students. The big difference that we brought in 0:20:15.240 --> 0:20:17.040 was that there was a real clear goal right now, 0:20:17.080 --> 0:20:19.960 and the goal was that you leave pe Tech with 0:20:20.000 --> 0:20:23.040 a degree. And so instead of just having early college 0:20:23.080 --> 0:20:25.320 courses where you can take whatever you like and just 0:20:25.359 --> 0:20:28.199 have access to early college, this is packaging in such 0:20:28.240 --> 0:20:31.200 a way that you're taking things at all together actually 0:20:31.200 --> 0:20:34.600 deliver you something that all of your early college opportunity 0:20:34.800 --> 0:20:38.920 is really focused on delivering you. This uh, this associate's degree, 0:20:39.040 --> 0:20:41.560 the associates degree is really the goal in p tech 0:20:41.560 --> 0:20:45.080 because the high school diploma, it's something that was created 0:20:45.080 --> 0:20:47.160 in the in the agree and economy, it's not enough 0:20:47.200 --> 0:20:49.760 anymore to take you to really guarantee you a career. 0:20:49.880 --> 0:20:51.760 So but at the same time, you don't need a 0:20:51.760 --> 0:20:54.280 four year degree to be able to get into some 0:20:54.359 --> 0:20:57.760 of the some some really good well paid jobs right now. 0:20:58.000 --> 0:21:01.080 I mean the jobs that is advertising right now do 0:21:01.160 --> 0:21:03.080 not need a four year degree. So there was this 0:21:03.119 --> 0:21:05.359 point about the asocis degree, which is a critical point 0:21:05.640 --> 0:21:08.480 to get students too and using these pathways together to 0:21:08.520 --> 0:21:11.840 allow them to have a strong pathway that was guided 0:21:12.400 --> 0:21:14.040 where they will be housed in a in a in 0:21:14.080 --> 0:21:15.840 a in a high school and don't have a drop 0:21:15.840 --> 0:21:17.639 off points where they have to like finish one and 0:21:17.680 --> 0:21:19.239 then say okay, I'm going to apply to that and 0:21:19.280 --> 0:21:21.760 move into a different system. Those things have proven to 0:21:21.800 --> 0:21:24.320 help students complete So that's why the pathway and is 0:21:24.480 --> 0:21:27.000 using of those pathways was important in the design and 0:21:27.240 --> 0:21:29.720 uh Eric and to Haley had what are your thoughts 0:21:29.760 --> 0:21:32.000 on this, What was the experience like and did you have, 0:21:32.359 --> 0:21:35.680 say friends or peers to compare the experience with who 0:21:36.040 --> 0:21:40.080 weren't involved in educational pathways that fused together the associate's 0:21:40.080 --> 0:21:43.800 degree with the high school experience the same way. Yeah, 0:21:43.880 --> 0:21:48.239 so for me, the experience went pretty smoothly. UM, but 0:21:48.320 --> 0:21:52.200 that was fortunate. UM. I think it definitely did sump 0:21:52.240 --> 0:21:55.480 me up for success without a doubt in terms of 0:21:55.520 --> 0:21:58.520 like I had exposures to robotics as uh to Haley 0:21:58.560 --> 0:22:01.560 had and uh I did there for basically all my 0:22:01.760 --> 0:22:06.840 years in in high school. And not only that, it 0:22:07.200 --> 0:22:12.760 kind of translated into other courses I took at a 0:22:12.840 --> 0:22:16.200 college level. And in addition to that, it also sets 0:22:16.280 --> 0:22:19.119 up a nice foundation, so I didn't stop at my 0:22:19.160 --> 0:22:22.960 associate's degree. I continue to get my bachelor's. UM. It 0:22:23.040 --> 0:22:28.040 sets a nice foundation in terms of either you could 0:22:28.080 --> 0:22:32.360 stop at your associates or not and continue with your bachelor's. 0:22:32.960 --> 0:22:37.399 I would say the p Tech experience is one of 0:22:37.400 --> 0:22:40.800 a kind that there's not anything you could compare it 0:22:40.840 --> 0:22:44.399