Is A Career Diploma the Answer?

By Chaney Ferguson
The Times of SWLA





A new curriculum designed to prevent high school dropouts has some people questioning if the possible solution will help or hinder Louisiana’s educational system.

Senate Bill 259 includes the new curriculum and was signed by Governor Bobby Jindal in early July.

Students who fulfill the curriculum will graduate with a “career diploma” instead of the standard academic diploma involving college-prep classes.

The Legislature’s conflict over the bill highlighted the national debate over high school graduation standards.

Advocates of the new curriculum believe it will help the struggling students prepare for community college or a career by focusing on technical training.

The opposition argues that the participating students will be shortchanged in the future since the new curriculum does not prepare them for a college education—which most future careers will require.

Legislators are not the only ones who are split on the issue.

A recent report put out by Civic Enterprises, a public policy fellows program, reveals fifty-nine percent of teachers and forty-one percent of principles believe there should be an alternate track for students who are not college bound to receive a diploma.

Louisiana will be one of the few states to offer the option of a career diploma.
In the past several years, Louisiana has raised academic standards and graduation rates simultaneously. From 2001 to 2007 graduation rates rose from sixty-one percent to sixty-six percent.

While supporters of the diploma point towards the one in three dropout rate, the diploma is not without its opponents.

A letter written in early June by Michael Cohen, president of Achieve, Kati Haycock, president of Education Trust, and Marlene Seltzer, president and CEO of Jobs for the Future, cites concerns over SB 259 and two other additional bills with common intentions.

The letter states that the creation of a new career readiness diploma as a less rigorous alternative to the Louisiana Core 4 diploma is particularly worrisome.

The letter continues to reveal potential problems that will arise due to the bill.

“In attempting to design a work readiness path for students, you may inadvertently re-create the type of tracking system that leaves many students, particularly poor and minority students, unprepared for good careers and for further education after high school.”

Cohen, Haycock, and Seltzer address the issue of the career diploma benefiting those students planning to pursue a career rather than college.

“The idea that students bound for the workplace need a lower level of education that those bound for college is a flawed premise that is not supported by research.”

“In fact, the latest research shows just the opposite: a convergence around a core set of knowledge, skills, and competencies that all high school graduates need to be prepared for the postsecondary training and education that will open doors to well-paid, family-sustaining jobs and careers.”

Despite concerns some educators believe the new option will interest students that may struggle with the standard curriculum.

“I am always supportive of any initiative that allows students with varying learning styles to achieve at their maximum potential,” said Stephanie Rodrigue, Superintendent of Cameron Parish schools.

Rodrigue states that school systems are aware of the career diploma legislation but are awaiting policy and guidance which she understands to be forthcoming.

“We are fortunate that we currently have a very minimal number of dropouts in Cameron Parish and we are addressing that by implementing a grade recovery program this school year to further decrease the probability of dropouts,” said Rodrigue.

Rodrigue remains hopeful that the career diploma will be a viable option for students who are career bound, immediately following high school, but struggle with the Carnegie credit requirements.

Roger Creel, Director of Career and Technical Education in the Calcasieu Parish School System is another local supporter of the career diploma option.

“We are hoping that it helps us with our dropout rate because there are a number of students that just get frustrated because they can’t pass the classes or the exit exams,” said Creel.
“So it is going to give us a chance to help some of them at least get that diploma and provide them with a trade or a skill,” said Creel.

Rita Mann, Superintendent of the Beauregard Parish School Board said the Beauregard Parish School System recognizes the need for students to be prepared to meet their future goals, whether earning a degree, completing technical training, or entering the job market.

“We maintain a close working relationship with McNeese State University and surrounding Career and Technical Colleges in order to provide dual enrollment credits and certifications. Student participation in these courses indicates there will be interest in the Career Diploma program,” said Mann.

Mann acknowledges that the program does require further guidance from the State Department of Education, which may result in postponing its implementation until the 2010-2011 school year.

Whether the new option will help or hinder the states dropout rate remains to be seen. The effects of the career diploma will largely depend on how school districts implement the new curriculum and how students respond.

Lake Charles Tapped As Alzheimer’s Study Site

By Chaney Ferguson
The Times of SWLA




Nearly a year ago Lake Charles was chosen as an Alzheimer’s study site. A team located in Memorial Hospital, led by Dr. Kashinath G. Yadalam, is working with volunteers (age 55 to 89) to test if a new drug, bapineuzumab, will slow down the progression of Alzheimer’s. Dr. Yadalam is a MD, a Certified Physician Investigator and Medical Director of Lake Charles Clinical Trials.
“It is important to state clearly that bapineuzumab may slow the disease process in Alzheimer’s, but whether it can help more remains to be seen” said Dr. Yadalam.

The trial lasts thirteen months with an optional follow-up treatment and it involves extensive assessment of cognitive function (memory, reasoning, judgment, etc) along with frequent MRIs of the brain. The participant and the caregiver are asked questions at each visit to assess the progress of treatment.

In 1987, Dr. Yadalam was part of a team that conducted the first drug study in Alzheimer’s. His previous research experience at the Medical College of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia is the reason why Lake Charles was chosen as a site (among many others across the country and the globe) to conduct the study.

Alzheimer’s is often misunderstood. Dr. Yadalam uses the following example to explain some of the common misconceptions involved with Alzheimer’s. “Say someone has a cough. The cause of the cough could be anything from a mild infection to even cancer. The cough alone doesn’t tell you what the disease is, it is a symptom,” said Dr. Yadalam. “Similarly, dementia is a syndrome i.e., a collection of symptoms, such as, short-term memory loss, confusion, language problem, and even aggression. Many have dementia, but not everybody who has dementia has Alzheimer’s. It is not possible to diagnose the type of dementia just by talking to the patient” said Dr. Yadalam.
There are two ways to diagnose Alzheimer’s: the definitive diagnosis is by examining a sample of brain tissue (upon death) or by doing a PET-scan. These scans are very expensive, so the physicians diagnose most often by blood tests, MRI of the brain and disease exclusion.

“The cause of this disease is not known yet but, many brain abnormalities have been identified. A prominent abnormality is the accumulation of a protein called beta-amyloid” said Dr. Yadalam. Currently, it is not known if there is an increased production of beta amyloid or if the affected brain is less efficient in eliminating this protein.

“Bapineuzumab, the compound we are testing, aims to remove amyloid from the brain thereby relieving the adverse effect it has on the brain. We will know more about its overall effectiveness once the trial has been completed at all sites and the data analyzed. Hopefully, we are getting closer to reaching our goal.” said Dr. Yadalam.

The treatment is a double-blind study, meaning that some patients receive a placebo, while others receive the drug. Neither patient nor Dr. Yadalam knows what each patient receives. This protects the study from being compromised.

Sharon Garrett, Mary Long, and Therese Novak along with other staff work with Dr. Yadalam in this study at this research facility. “Assessments, cognitive testing and dependence scales are administered to understand the extent of the disease,” said Garrett. “We also rely on caregiver questionnaires,” said Long.

“The double-blind portion of the trial lasts thirteen months. During this period they receive six intravenous infusions of bapineuzumab and undergo MRIs six times. Each visit we spend a lot of time assessing their level of functioning using various standardized rating scales and we also ask caregivers detailed questions about their observations. As you can see, we spend a lot of time with them and they are monitored very closely,” said Dr. Yadalam.

“During the course of this trial, we learned that people who have the Alzheimer’s gene require a different treatment approach than non-carriers of the gene. This distinction is not made in current clinical practice.” said Dr. Yadalam. People who are carriers of the disease receive a lower dose of the drug than non-carriers because when given an identical dose of this compound, the carriers suffer greater and more severe side effects. Dr. Yadalam identifies the carriers by conducting a genetic test. “We take a blood sample and send it for testing. If the APO-E4 gene is found then they are carriers,” said Dr. Yadalam.

Dr. Yadalam said that some patients may have side effects from the drug such as confusion and worsening of symptoms. “When the protein is removed from the brain some suffer a microscopic bleed which can be seen by MRI but most patients don’t have any symptoms.” said Dr. Yadalam. “But, microscopic bleeding is sometimes seen in patients who are not even receiving any treatment. That is why we need to conduct these studies to identify what is causing these problems,” said Dr. Yadalam.

Participation in the treatment program does not cost anything. Caregivers must be willing to bring in the patients and participate in the assessments to rate the patients. Patients and caregivers participating in the trial are reimbursed for their time and travel and transportation is provided to those who have no means.

Although there is no cure currently, hopefully this study being conducted in Lake Charles Clinical Trials will lead to future discoveries in Alzheimer’s treatment.