Andrews standafer elizabeth 2018 dissertation

THE LIVED EXPERIENCES OF BLACK, MALE YOUTH APPRENTICES IN CAREER AND TECHNICAL EDUCATION APPRENTICESHIP PROGRAMS A Dissertation By ELIZABETH K. ANDREWS-STANDAFER Submitted to the Graduate School at Appalachian State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF EDUCATION May 2018 Educational Leadership Doctoral Program Reich College of Education THE LIVED EXPERIENCES OF BLACK, MALE YOUTH APPRENTICES IN CAREER AND TECHNICAL EDUCATION APPRENTICESHIP PROGRAMS A Dissertation by ELIZABETH K. ANDREWS-STANDAFER May 2018 APPROVED BY: _____________________________________ Jerianne Taylor, Ed. Chair, Dissertation Committee _____________________________________ James Bartlett, Ph.

Member, Dissertation Committee _____________________________________ Herb Brown, Ph. Member, Dissertation Committee _____________________________________ Audrey Dentith, Ph. Director, Educational Leadership Doctoral Program _____________________________________ Max C. Williams School of Graduate Studies Copyright by Elizabeth K.

Andrews-Standafer 2018 All Rights Reserved Abstract THE LIVED EXPERIENCES OF BLACK, MALE YOUTH APPRENTICES IN CAREER AND TECHNICAL EDUCATION APPRENTICESHIP PROGRAMS Elizabeth K., Appalachian State University M., University of North Carolina at Charlotte Ed., Appalachian State University Dissertation Committee Chairperson: Jerianne Taylor, Ed. The lived experiences of three Black, male youth apprentices in North Carolina were told through a qualitative multi-case study. The participants in each case began recruitment for apprenticeship as a high school student though a pre-apprenticeship experience and were hired as full-time apprentices upon completing their program. All of the apprentices were exposed to career awareness activities that connected them to real-world experiences and career pathways before, during and after their recruitment.

They also experienced economic mobility by choosing an apprenticeship pathway. Wrap-around services that included support from parents, school, work, other apprentices and the apprentices themselves sustained the apprentices and led to their persistence. Three themes emerged in the findings that support the recruitment and retention of Black, male youth apprentices: exposure to career awareness experiences that link students’ abilities and interests to viable career opportunities, the benefits of economic mobility and wrap-around supportive services that involve multiple stakeholders. iv Acknowledgements I could not have done this without my family.

Thank you to my husband, Greg, for taking care of things at home when I was at class or working on my papers. You have been amazing. I could not have done this without your love and support. Thank you also to my children, Leah, Logan and Jenna for eating a lot of take-out pizza and Chinese food over the years.

Greg, Jacob, Erin, Leah, Logan, Jenna and Hudson each of you are the reason behind this. Thank you to my parents Amelia and Larry and Tom and Anne for supporting me financially and emotionally to achieve this dream. I could not have done it without your help. Mom, everything that I do and everything that I am I owe to you.

You have given everything to me, and I love you so much for your selflessness. You are an amazing mother. To my friends Susan, Charlene, Kirsten and Teresa you have been a wonderful support system. Charity, thank you for being there for me in every way.

I am blessed by your friendship. Thank you for sharing in my special day! Cary, you are the APA King! Thank you for your help and encouragement! Pam, you have been an amazing mentor and friend. Thank you for a quiet place to write and wonderful support throughout the process. Jana, thank you for encouraging me and being my voice of reason over these long years of papers, projects and classes.

I would not have wanted to be on this journey with anyone else. To my committee, Dr. Brown and Dr. Bartlett, thank you for your commitment to me and your belief in this work.

v Dedication In memory of Dr. You always made me feel smart. vi Table of Contents Abstract. vi List of Tables.

xi Chapter I: Introduction .1 Statement of the Problem. 5 Methodology and Research Questions. 6 Significance of the Issue. 7 Definition of Terms.

10 Organization of the Study. 12 Chapter II: Literature Review .15 Career and Technical Education in the United States. 16 Work-based Learning Contexts. 20 The History of CTE Apprenticeship.

22 Minority and Black, Male Participation in Apprenticeship. 27 Major Trends and Findings. 29 The Four-Year College Norm. 31 Wage Potential for Apprentices.

31 Economic Mobility and Apprenticeship. 32 Businesses’ Return on Investment. 33 Benefit-to-Cost Comparison for Businesses. 34 Equity and Access in Apprenticeship Programs.

36 Black Males and Apprenticeship Participation. 36 Societal Factors and Work-based Learning Completion. 37 Work-based Learning Barriers. 37 vii Work-based Learning as a Pathway to Prosperity.

38 The Apprenticeship Pathway. 39 Apprenticeship Through Social Constructionist and Transformative Learning Theories. 40 Trends and Findings in the Literature. 41 The Social Constructionist Perspective: Policy and Institutional Contexts.

42 Critique and Evaluation of Transformative Learning Theory. 43 Chapter III: Methodology. 48 Methods and Sources. 49 Role of the Researcher.

53 Participants and Participant Selection. 54 Sampling in a Collective Case Study. 55 Criterion and Purposeful Maximal Variation Sampling. 59 Chapter IV: Presentation of the Data.

64 Apprentice 1 (Phineas): Individual Description. 69 Apprentice 1: Individual Textural Description. 70 viii Apprentice 2 (Jerry): Individual Description. 82 CDC 2 and 3 (Mr.

85 Apprentice 2 Individual Textural Description:. 86 Apprentice 3 (Mark): Individual Description. 96 CDC 2 and 3 (Mr. 98 Apprentice 3: Individual Textural Description.

99 Results of the Study. 111 Theme 1: Career Awareness. 111 Theme 2: Economic Mobility. 113 Theme 3: Wrap-Around Supportive Services.

127 Analysis and Links to the Literature. 127 Theme 1: Career Awareness. 127 Theme 2: Economic Mobility. 132 Theme 3: Wrap-Around Supportive Services.

134 Addressing the Gaps. 141 Macro and Micro Theories in the Research. 143 Revisiting Social Constructionist Theory. 147 Revisiting Transformative Learning Theory.

150 ix Critical Reflection of Assumptions. 151 Validation of the Meaning of The Experience. 157 Recommendations for Future Research. 158 Personal Statement and Closing Remarks.

178 x List of Tables Table 1. Emerging Themes with Social Constructionist Supporting Data. Emerging Themes with Transformative Learning Theory Supporting Data. 153 xi 1 Chapter I: Introduction Chapter One addresses the historical and current reality of work-based learning access and completion for marginalized students in Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs.

Black, male students, the focus of this study, fall behind their peers in participating in work-based learning programs like apprenticeships. As a result, they experience significant inequalities in economic mobility compared to students in other demographic groups who profit from a free education and a salary with benefits including health insurance and a 401K. In this chapter, the statement of the problem, the research questions, an overview of the methodology and the significance of the study are introduced. This section concludes with the definitions of the research terms and an explanation of the organization of the chapters to follow.

Despite the dwindling numbers in the current workforce, there is a long history of Black participation in CTE training programs, particularly in apprenticeship. From 1619- 1846 there were many apprenticeship and manual labor programs available to slaves along with opportunities in private industrial institutions like Tuskegee and Hampton (Gordon, 2014). After the Civil War period, Booker T. Washington and Frederick Douglass spoke strongly about expanding vocational training for African Americans and from 1910-1930 public secondary programs began offering manual training for Black students (Gordon, 2014).

The manual training movement offered an educational response to the massive influx of rural, poor and uneducated African Americans in the South and the high attrition rate in high school that left them uneducated. But in the 1930’s, industrial advancements demanded more skilled workers and White schools began emphasizing industrial training to claim access to higher paying jobs. Black students were offered more academic education and less 2 vocational training during the recession leaving Black schools underfunded with low skill, low wage programs. The underrepresentation of Blacks in skilled industrial and business programs likely led to lower participation in these careers and greater economic disparity (Gordon, 2014).

Today, however, Black students across the nation have high enrollment in vocational coursework resulting in new questions about their overrepresentation along with an attached stigma of CTE as a program for low achievers (Gordon, 2014). Many Black youth tend to view vocational education as inferior to academic education resulting from past issues of access to training meant for lower-paying jobs (Nall, 1997). In accordance with Nall (1997), this view is likely to persist until Black students are prepared for and gain access to high-quality training that provides the skills for successful entry into the 21st Century workforce. Marginalized groups commonly experience problems effectively accessing and completing work-based learning opportunities (Bennett, 2007).

Whether in a rural or urban setting, the body of Work-Based Learning (WBL) research indicates their experiences have been plagued with issues of disconnectedness to related coursework, lack of support, inappropriate modification for their unique circumstances, and feelings of isolation from peers and family. Re-emerging CTE programs, like apprenticeship, require the active involvement of industry partners, Local Education Agencies (LEA), community college programs and community resources to mitigate these issues and provide WBL opportunities that afford all students the work experience and preparation they need to assume the jobs of the future (Symonds, Schwartz, & Ferguson, 2011). United States Department of Labor (USDOL) statistics indicate that the group most likely impacted by access and issues of completion of a CTE apprenticeship are Black males, 3 who are enrolled in apprenticeship at lower rates than Hispanic males and both Hispanic and Black females (Reed et al. Gordon (2014) cited Oakes (1990) who found Black students from low-income, inner-city backgrounds, or who are enrolled in low-ability classes, have historically had fewer opportunities than traditional students to participate in demanding academic programs.

Since the 1960’s and 70’s, legislation has been aimed at improving access into high-quality CTE programs for marginalized groups. The Vocational Education Act of 1963 expanded federal funding to include work-study programs and the nation began to take seriously the disenfranchisement of students due to economics, race, and disability through the authorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) (Richard, Clark, & Welch, 2011). Near the end of the 20th Century, the term “global competition” began to appear in reports like A Nation at Risk which highlighted the plight of disenfranchised youth. With the Carl D.

Perkins Vocational Act of 1984 to soon follow, federal funding under Perkins authorized $125 million to states for work-based learning programs through cooperative education (Richard, Clark, & Welch, 2011). The Secretary’s Commission on Attaining Necessary Skills (SCANS) report in 1991 further connected schools and industry as the skills and competencies needed for successful employment were defined, leading to the National Skills Standards Act of 1994. This act identified the 16 nationally recognized career clusters that have become integral in current work-based learning sector strategies and career pathways. Also in that year, the School-to-Work Opportunities Act allowed the use of federal funds for a school-to-work transition system in which all students were to be provided the opportunity to participate in work-based learning (Richard, Clark, & Welch, 2011).

4 As the 21st Century approached, The Workforce Investment Act of 1998 spawned a new age in job-training. The law required national job training frameworks, “one-stop” training centers, and state and local workforce boards comprised of both industry and education partners. Perkins legislation was reauthorized twice after its initial implementation, deepening the reach of the Federal Government in monitoring the states’ ability to prepare students and adult job seekers for careers in the 21st Century (Richard, Clark, & Welch, 2011). Even with decades of top-level reporting that led to federal legislation, the success of states to prepare students to graduate work-ready has remained unchanged since the1960’s, and the skills gap has continued to widen, leaving marginalized students with missed opportunities, fewer options, and lower wages (Symonds, 2012).