Tech Ed.

Education tops the public agenda. It also tops the agenda of leading new economy firms, which depend on an independent, well-educated workforce and citizenry to keep humming. And, unlike politicians who tend to talk a good game but produce little, U.S. firms are rolling up their sleeves and promoting change.

Companies such as Cisco Systems, Oracle, and Microsoft are moving from donating equipment to getting directly involved in curriculum. Cisco supports more than 4,600 Cisco Networking Academies enrolling 80,000 individuals worldwide. Born in 1997, the eight-semester curriculum is offered in places ranging from high schools and community colleges to homeless shelters and even a juvenile correctional institution. The goal is to train individuals to design, build, and maintain computer networks. After four semesters students can take the test to become a Cisco Certified Network Associate (CCNA); after eight they can shoot for Cisco Network Professional certification, which can win them up to $40,000 a year in salary.

Oracle has long had a hand in education, providing schools with computers. Internally, the company, which hires some 100 people a week, recognized the importance of lifetime learning by providing its employees with three weeks of training a year. For those who pursued higher education at night, Oracle picks up the tab for tuition and books. Its Oracle Academic Initiative, launched four years ago, has integrated Oracle material into the computer and IT programs of some 500 academic institutions. The firm is now moving aggressively into secondary education with its Oracle Internet Academy, a four-semester curriculum that teaches 11th and 12th graders to build Web pages that link to databases.

Such win/win efforts leave students, schools, and businesses better off. They aren't the sole answer to the sagging performance of U.S. public schools. But they're an important part of the solution. With an estimated 1.6 million tech jobs slated to be created this year, companies are helping to create a well-trained workforce. In addition to valuable tools, students graduate with even more valuable certification. Schools are able to keep current with the latest technology--and knowledge about how to apply it.

Even the politicians benefit. Year after year, temporary visas for foreign workers are a contentious political issue. Company-sponsored training programs address the roots of the labor shortage problem. And no one can accuse companies of skimming only easily identifiable talent. Cisco runs a program at the Gainesville State School in Texas, a maximum-security juvenile correctional institution that houses 16 to 19-year-olds. Of the 12 students enrolled in its first class, two dropped out, two passed the CCNA exam, and eight are scheduled to take it soon. There's no guarantee that they'll trade their crime network for computer networks, but three students have jobs waiting for them when they leave, according to Planetit.com, a Web journal for IT professionals.

But some programs have sparked debate. Forest Park High School in Virginia's Prince William County, opened up a school that will offer a full curriculum, but also include a technology curriculum in part developed and supplied by Microsoft and Cisco. "The students may be trained in a technology of the company, but what happens if the technology changes, or if they don't fit into the company, or the company is sold?" Harvard education professor Howard E. Gardner wondered in The Washington Post. But John Wittmann, who runs a Microsoft certification program at Chantilly High School in Virginia, countered that schools have long had specialized tracks, such as arts, and a tech track is a product of the times.

Besides, the troubleshooting skills learned in courses designed by Microsoft or Cisco will be useful in other areas as well. Cisco designs its courses to reinforce national math and science standards. Educators have long recognized that boredor is not only a large barrier to learning, but also a leading cause of dropping out. After all, one in two Americans will never attend college and only one in four will graduate with a B.A. or B.S. There's nothing wrong with graduating high school able to earn $40,000. After all, Bill Gates dropped out of Harvard.

Sally Pipes ([e-mail]) is president of the Pacific Research Institute for Public Policy, a San Francisco think tank that analyzes national economic and social problems and proposes solutions.