Opinion: Can California fix the disconnect between public education and the modern workforce?

If Democrats want to change their fortunes in future national elections, acknowledging that our public education system is disconnected from the modern workforce would be a good place to start. To win back working-class voters, Democrats must reimagine public education, shifting the one-size-fits-all approach we have now to a dynamic workforce model that prepares young people for high-wage jobs and membership in a prosperous middle class — whether or not they attend college. Young people also know that our public school system is not set up so that those who educate them and those who hire them are working together on students’ behalf. Some of the opportunities our state’s high schools provide include preparing for agriculture careers on a 20-acre farm in Madera County, logistics and maritime instruction along the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, and tracks in media and film in Southern California. Darrell Steinberg is the outgoing mayor of Sacramento, former president pro tem of the California Senate and author of the 2013 California Career Pathways Trust, the state’s initial $500-million investment in career technical education.