Marco Rubiomakes a point during the CNBC Republican presidential debate at the University of Colorado, Oct. 28, in Boulder. (Mark J. Terrill, The Associated Press)
Marco Rubio said in the third Republican debate, “I do not understand why did we stop doing vocational education in America, people that can work with their hands; people you can train to do this work while they’re still in high school so they can graduate ready to go work.”
If all students had access to a vocational education, we would increase the graduation rate and lower the number of young men and women in our prisons. Right now, the master plumbers, master electricians and master mechanics in our country are either retiring or have already retired. Who will replace them? A call center in India will not be helpful when the basement is flooding.
Rubio’s statement on the vital importance of vocational education in our country is perhaps the most salient point thus far in this campaign. Our education system is broken, and vocational education would give our at-risk youth a purpose in life and a realistic shot at the American dream.
Ann Moore, Centennial
This letter was published in the Oct. 31 edition.
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