Dan Haag, Sundt’s Chief Administrative Officer, recently was named to the Arizona Business & Education Coalition’s Board of Directors. The coalition sustains collaboration between business and education leaders to help students by educating and building political will toward improvement and investment in K-12 with links to pre-kindergarten and higher education.
Dan recently took time to discuss the organization’s mission and the importance of public education in Arizona.
How did you get involved with the Arizona Business & Education Coalition?
Sundt has a history of being engaged as an advocate for education and I am following in those footsteps.
What does the organization hope to accomplish?
Our education system needs to be aligned with the needs of employers. This is in the best interests of the students (being employable), the school systems (being value added) and employers (having the talent needed to achieve business objectives).
How vital is a strong public education system to our state’s future?
Our economy is driven by our ability to have talented people available for our current businesses to be successful and to be attractive to new businesses we would like to have in Arizona. Our reputation for having powerful education systems which meet the needs of business is a key factor in attracting new business to Arizona. Also, strong education leads to better employment opportunities for graduates and better incomes that come along with those opportunities.
What’s the state of public education in Arizona?
While some advances are being made in education in Arizona we have a ways to go to be a leader in education in the United States. We need to set our standards high and have a strategy that delivers public education at a level that is best for all involved.
What about vocational programs?
Career and technical education will play a greater role in our future. Only around 30 percent of all jobs require a traditional four-year degree and not everyone is a fit for that. Greater emphasis in CTE will lead to having a higher qualified workforce and an employed population making higher compensation.
How much of a desire do you see among Arizona residents to improve public education?
It varies depending upon the segment. Our opportunity is to communicate and educate Arizona residents on what is needed, why it is needed and why this is great for our state and for all Arizona residents in the long-term.