Page 2 - LRCC FOCUS August 2021

MESSAGE FROM THE CHAMBER

Leveraging Community Partnerships for Today’s

Students and Tomorrow’s Workforce

he new school year in K-12 and higher education marks the beginning of a new era. The fall reopening marks the return to in-
Tperson classes for the region’s largest K-12 district, Lansing schools, Michigan State University (MSU) and Lansing Community
College (LCC). Though we are still feeling the challenges of COVID-19, educators, parents, staff and students will begin to
experience an education system that the forces of the pandemic have forever changed.

There have been many lessons learned in education as a result of the pandemic. The successful rapid shift to virtual technology has
shown that not only can it be done but that virtual education will play a role in delivering instruction. Though we know that the in-
classroom experience is the best for most students, virtual learning is an important option that can and will be utilized going forward.

TIM DAMAN Earlier this year, I had the privilege of co-authoring an article for the Lansing State Journal with Jason Mellema, superintendent of
President and CEO the Ingham Intermediate School District. We wrote about several important developments during the COVID-19 pandemic that
Lansing Regional can serve us well as a region as we work together to build a better education system going forward. First, the pandemic brought a
Chamber of Commerce much higher level of community engagement which we need to continue in the future.

The need for community engagement must also include the
business community. The Lansing Regional Chamber of
Commerce (LRCC) was proud to convene a business-education
meeting earlier this year. Both educators and business leaders
expressed a desire to better understand each other and work Our region has always been fortunate
together to provide more opportunities for students, in terms to have great leaders who rise to
of mentorships, internships and job opportunities. We all the challenges that have come
recognize that today’s students are tomorrow’s workforce and
have a mutual stake in educational outcomes. The LRCC has before us. Let’s bring our education
committed to convening our business-education task force on at and business leaders together to
least a quarterly basis going forward.
determine the best approaches that
The other important understanding for education that has work for today’s students and our
come out of COVID-19 is that it is time to reassess how we do workforce of tomorrow.
education. For example, the State of Michigan requires 180 in-
person classroom days and 1,098 hours per year for each student for traditional schools. The school calendar is one example of a
long-held education tradition that should be reviewed; technology and access to the internet are others.

Our region is fortunate to have many outstanding educational leaders. That group is joined by new superintendents Ben Shuldiner
in Lansing, Marcus Davenport in Grand Ledge, and Shanna Spickard in Dewitt. We are happy to welcome them to the region and
wish them well. It is also worth noting that MSU President Samuel Stanley and LCC President Steve Robinson have spent much
of their brief tenures working under the constraints imposed by COVID-19. We know they are looking forward to serving their
great institutions under more “normal” circumstances.

Our region has always been fortunate to have great leaders who rise to the challenges that have come before us. Let’s bring
our education and business leaders together to determine the best approaches that work for today’s students and our workforce
of tomorrow. n

JOIN THE

LEADERSHIP CIRCLE

TRAILWAYS
Leadership Circle members are proven
business and community leaders. We
value their commitment and applaud
their efforts to strengthen our region
WASTE SERVICES
with their leadership and appreciate
the important role they play in
advancing our organization.

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