Texas Scholars Transition
Since 1992, through TBEC's Texas Scholars initiative, business and education volunteers have taken the message of "Opportunities come to those who are best prepared" directly to students in their classrooms.
In the past, over 350 school districts have successfully implemented the Texas Scholars program. One of the major benefits of the program has been to get businesses and community organizations directly involved in encouraging students to take rigorous courses of study while in high school. The new Texas Scholars - High School and Beyond initiative will still focus on getting students to take a rigorous course of study in high school; however, a new requirement has been added to encourage students to complete at least two courses eligible for college credit before they graduate from high school. Since it is projected that 65% of the careers and jobs in the 21st century will require some post-secondary education, this new requirement will provide a good transition into post-secondary education.
The new Texas Scholars initiative will place more emphasis on exploring career interests in middle school and high school and aligning educational programs with their plans for college, entry into the workforce, or military. The initiative will complement and support several other statewide initiatives such as the Texas Education Agency's Achieve Texas Initiative, the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board's Closing the Gaps by 2015 Initiative, the Texas Workforce Commission's Putting Texas to Work Initiatives, and the Governor’s Office Economic Development Cluster initiatives.