Boosting college enrollment and encouraging students to consider careers in science, technology, engineering and math, or STEM, fields were key topics discussed as part of the Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce's annual State of Education event Nov. 17.

One goal the chamber has set with local school districts is to increase area direct-to-college enrollment rates—the percentage of students who enroll in college immediately after high school—to 70 percent by 2015, said Gene Austin, Bazaarvoice CEO and 2015 Chairman of the Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce.

"It was only about nine years ago that our direct-to-college rate was less than 60 percent, and we've made tremendous progress together," Austin said.

In October, local companies posted nearly 41,000 job openings, said David Reiter, senior vice president at Luminex Corp. and 2014 chamber education chairman. At the same time, about 44,000 people are unemployed in the Central Texas area, and about 85 percent of them lack an associate degree, he said. To increase college enrollment opportunities for Austin-area students, the chamber and local school districts have partnered to introduce initiatives such as Counseling 2.0, which helps inform students about financial aid deadlines and other elements of the college enrollment process.

Austin ISD Interim Superintendent Paul Cruz said the school district needs support and resources to ensure students graduate from high school and are college- and career-ready.

Texas considers AISD a property-wealthy district, but more than 60 percent of students participate in free and reduced-price lunch programs, he said. AISD is required by law to send money to the state as part of recapture, also known as Robin Hood.

"We are actually sending to the state $175 million and that's a significant impact to us. That's money that we can get to invest in Austin kids, but we are actually sending it to the state. I think that's a huge factor," Cruz said.

Boosting technical literacy

There are more than 7,400 open jobs in computer science in Central Texas, yet fewer than 500 students in Central Texas took a computer science class last year, Reiter said.

Technical literacy should be part of every child's education, said Ray Almgren, vice president of marketing at National Instruments, who gave the keynote address at the State of Education.

The growth of "the Internet of things"—which he explained as the interconnectivity between devices—means there will be significant opportunities to increase hands-on education in the areas of science, technology, engineering and math, or STEM, Almgren said.

"We need to continue to invest in trying to encourage more students to pursue the careers of science and engineering," he said. "But I can assure you it means there will be lots of jobs."

Reiter said in January the chamber will launch a pilot program in Austin ISD in which 100 tech employees will talk to 4,000 10th-grade students to encourage them to enroll in computer science courses.

A law passed in 2013, known as House Bill 5, replaced the state's Minimum, Recommended and Distinguished graduation plans with new Foundation High School Program plan options. The new graduation plans include a 22-credit Foundation diploma, which can be completed with endorsements—areas of concentration—for 26 credits. Students can also earn a Distinguished Level of Achievement by participating in advanced courses. Most area school districts have opted to set the Distinguished plan as the default plan for incoming freshmen, meaning 80% of graduates will continue to be exposed to subjects such as algebra, biology, chemistry and physics, Reiter said.

"Now in Texas it's perhaps even more challenging because the kids are going to have to pick that STEM endorsement before they really have a good sense of what it's really like to be a rocket scientist," Almgren said.

Inspiring students should be part of the equation, he said, noting hands-on experiences both in and out of the classroom can help students see science at work and witness the results of their work firsthand.

"Just like band and choir and football create that excitement and motivation, we can do that same thing with an out-of-classroom experience so that they really will focus on math and science in the classroom that they need in order to pursue those careers," he said.

The chamber's top higher education priorities for the 84th Legislature are to build out Texas State-Round Rock, which has been at capacity for nearly a decade, Reiter said, and building a computer science and engineering building at the main campus of Texas State-San Marcos.

At the event, the chamber named Hutto ISD Superintendent Doug Killian its 2014 superintendent of the year. The chamber also recognized achievements of local schools including 100 percent of Crockett High School seniors completing college application paperwork, Hutto High School boosting its direct-to-college enrollment rate from 49 percent in 2012 to 58 percent in 2014, and Eastside Memorial High School improving its direct-to-college enrollment rate from 33 percent to more than 40 percent.