1. Rear Admiral Will Rodriguez, United States Navy, Retired
Tidewater AFCEA Chapter Meeting, 15 May 2019
Rear Admiral Will Rodriguez, United States Navy, Retired 1

2. The Best Military in the World…2

3. …Needs the Best Troops to Keep it Running3

4. Personal & Professional Development
Skills Training & Confidence Building

5. Helping to Create a Middle Class5

6. Keep this in mind: Three-Legged Stool Analogy
Student
Community & Churches
Parents
Teachers 6

7. 71% of Young People Cannot Join the Military

8. Education 8

9. North Carolina Statistics (17-24 Year Olds) (as of 2017)
Estimated # of NC Youth (2017): 1,044,104
National: 33,217,295
Estimated # of Eligible NC Youth (2017): 292,951
National: 9,517,335
NC Percent Eligible (2017): 28%
National: 29%
NC Percent Ineligible (2017): 72%
National: 71%
NC Percent Ineligible (2014): 72%
{Unsatisfactory!
{Unsatisfactory!
{Unsatisfactory!

10. Fitness and Obesity 10

11. Moral (AKA Criminal History)
young people cannot join the military due to prior convictions for felonies or serious misdemeanors. 11

12. Key Primary Disqualifiers
Poor, or Lack of, Quality Education
Fitness / Obesity
Morals / Crime 12

13. Remember this?: Three-Legged Stool Analogy
Student
Community & Churches
Parents
Teachers

14. Parent Engagement

15. Caution: Quality Pre-K Improves Academics

16. Improved Academics Reduced Obesity Lower Crime
High-Quality Early Education Can Help Reverse the Three Primary Disqualifiers
Early education is linked to:
Improved Academics
Reduced Obesity
Lower Crime

17. BUT it IS about the funding!”
“It is NOT about the funding,
BUT it IS about the funding!”

18. Are we truly educating our Children?
Cautionary Example of Funding vs Public Education: CA Funding Per Student vs. Academic Achievement
ROI?
$$$ vs. Scores? ?
Historical Per-Pupil Expenditures on K-12 Public Education in CA
$10,000
$8000
$6000
$4000
$2000
Average 4th & 8th Grades NAEP Math & Reading Scores for Hispanic Pupils in CA
270
250
230
210
190 B E L O W A S I C ? .
$8667
+33.1% increase! .
242.75 .
$6513 .
222.75
+9%
{Still “Below Basic”!}
Beginning of Academic Year in CA
‘ ’ ‘ ’ ‘ ‘ ’ ‘ ’ ’ ’ ‘16
{* Data is based on numerous sources: Heritage Foundation, California Dept of Education, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP); NAEP assessment results are reported as average scores on a scale (reading, mathematics, U.S. history, and geography) or on a scale (science, writing, and civics).}
Are we truly educating our Children?
12/4/2019 18

19. Healthy School Meals

20. Physical Education in Schools

21. Report: Unhealthy and Unprepared

22. If you have 5 minutes, they will use it well.
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