High school seniors around Kitsap County will soon be tossing graduation caps in the air, marking the end of their high school careers.

As those caps fall, graduates will realize they will no longer be walking the halls of their schools. Earning a diploma marks the start of a new chapter in life.

We surveyed the county’s five school districts to see how educators prepare students to make the critical decision – “What should I do after earning a diploma?” We also reviewed state statistics to learn what Kitsap grads do post-high school.

In some districts, more graduates head to four-year colleges. In others, the preferred choice is two-year institutions. Meanwhile, the most popular choice for grads in the four out of the five districts is to skip college and get jobs or other plans.

Data about local graduates comes from the state-funded Education Research and Data Center. ERDC numbers indicate what 2023 grads did the year after graduating.

Bainbridge Island

The BI School District boasts the highest percentage in the county of seniors going to a four-year college. Of the 2023 senior class, 64% went to a four-year institution and 10% went to two-year colleges. In the end, nearly 75% of BHS graduates headed to college, ERDC numbers show.

“We are seeing that kids are being a little more savvy about where they’re choosing to go after graduation. Kids and families are more knowledgeable about picking the right school. The research they are putting in has increased,” said Lauren D’Amico, department chair for counselors at Bainbridge High School. BHS has a student body of approximately 1,200 and a senior class of 330. It is one of the district’s two high schools.

Identifying suitable post-high school pathways for students starts well before graduation. Staff begin having conversations with kids in the seventh grade to assess skills and interests, D’Amico said. Those conversations are part of the “High School and Beyond Plan,” a program required in all of the state’s public high schools.

State Superintendent Chris Reykdal described plans such as those at BHS as: “A powerful platform that guides students to resources, course options and other tools in support of their career and college exploration. Every student needs a postsecondary plan for their success and the success of our state.”

Another way the BI district assists students for life after high school is to provide two special apps on their school laptops. One allows kids to learn about colleges, so they determine which best suits their needs. The other exposes students to various career paths, D’Amico said.

The high schools conduct field trips to let students learn about various career paths, thanks to a grant from the Rotary Club. Students have visited sites such as the Seattle Maritime Academy, Washington State Ferries, the Academy of Interactive Entertainment and St. Michael Medical Center.

The WSF visit involved students hopping on a ferry to Seattle. “They got to go into the engine room and see different engineer positions below deck. They saw mates loading and unloading vehicles. Then, they went up to the wheelhouse and to see the captain and operations of the ferries,” D’Amico said.

A second field trip is planned for students to learn about positions at the WSF maintenance yard.

Bremerton

The Bremerton School District had the lowest percentage of high school grads enrolling at four-year colleges, but the highest percentage heading to two-year colleges, ERDC says.

“What I’ve learned over the years is that for many of our students (the) plan is to enroll in Olympic College or another community or technical college,” said Chris Swanson, career and college counselor at BHS, which has a student body of 1,150 students with a senior class of 313.

Among district 2023 graduates, 13% enrolled in four-year colleges, while 34% went to two-year institutions and 53% did not enroll in either.

Bremerton High has aimed to boost the number of kids going to two-year colleges, particularly those from families without a history of sending kids to college. Staff found that this segment of students wanted to advance their education after high school but failed to enroll.

“A big part of our challenge is the numbers of students who are first-generation college-bound. It makes sense that many of them didn’t make it there because they didn’t have that college-going tradition. They just needed extra support to kind of navigate that. In recent years, we created something called the Olympic College group, where twice a month we meet with students and walk through the steps (of going to college),” Swanson said.

The district also has an advisory program where students meet twice a week to learn, in part, how to navigate the challenges of college.

“It’s basically a college readiness program that was created for first-generation-bound college students. We work on building academic skills and do career assessments and surveys. Time spent on academic skills cover things like, ‘How do I take notes effectively?’ ‘How do I organize my material?’ and ‘How do I study for tests?’” Swanson said.

To ensure seniors reflect on their future career and education plans, each is called upon to do a presentation on the topics. The speech is to recap their high school accomplishments and outline post-high school plans. “There’s a lot of good data that says if you just write down a goal, you’ll be more likely to accomplish that. We try to take that to the next level. You’re not just going to write it down, you are going tell us about it,” Swanson said.

Central Kitsap

Graduates of CK high schools were nearly evenly split between going to four-year (24%) and two-year (29%) institutions, with 47% not enrolling in either, ERDC says.

“I would say more (graduates) are shying away from the four-year university pathway and going into the trades, or going to a local community college,” said Megan Bartleson, career center coordinator at Olympic High School.

“We still have a large chunk of students who go to a four-year university. But, I work with a lot of students who end up going to our community college or into the trades, like Boeing, Horizon Air and the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard,” Bartleson said. “We also have a couple in the district that might end up at our trade schools – there are two in Tacoma.”

Interest has increased in educational avenues outside of four-year colleges as students have learned about other options, she said.

“We do a lot of field trips and try to expose them to different career pathways so they know what’s out there for them. We built a lot of partnerships throughout the community to create opportunities for students to do job shadows or internships. This lets students have a hands-on experience so they can figure out, ‘Is it something that I want to do before I just dive in and spend a lot of time or money on my education and training?’” she said.

Students have toured sites such as Olympic College, Boeing and Northwest Washington Family Medicine.

Each fall, the high schools hold “Future Fair,” a college and career event. “We try to have representation from every possible avenue. We bring in a lot of trades and the military,” Bartleson said.

Students can also participate in technical education classes at West Sound Technical Skills Center. The center in Bremerton, serves students from the five school districts in Kitsap. Some program offering include—3D animation and gaming, automotive technology, construction, cosmetology, culinary arts and welding. Typically, students spend part of their day in traditional classes than travel to WST.

To introduce students to potential careers Olympic offers trade classes in health science, STEM, skilled and technical sciences, human services, and business and marketing, Bartleson said.

North Kitsap

North Kitsap School District is home to two high schools – North Kitsap and Kingston, with senior class sizes of 251 and 113, respectively.

State numbers show of the 2023 graduates, 38% when to four-year schools, 22% chose two-year colleges while 41% did not continue their studies.

“Students aren’t rushing off to four-year schools. We are seeing more kids working towards that four-year degree but they’re first going through the community college, or junior college route to knock out some of those basic education courses,” said John Waller, assistant director of innovative learning for NKSD.

“It’s a lot cheaper for a student to go two years at OC (Olympic College) than to start their first two years at (University of Washington) for sure. The cost of college and post-secondary has gone through the roof. It’s crazy what the expense is for these students going to four-year institutes,” he said.

Ten years ago, high schools advocated for seniors to enroll in four-year universities, but that emphasis has changed. Waller, with 33 years of experience in education, observed that many people today find enrolling in two-year colleges appealing.

Kids who previously would have gone to trade schools are turning to community colleges like Olympic, he said. “They are offering more opportunities similar to those at trade schools,” he said, listing programs such as culinary arts, welding, lineman certification and EMT training.

The district’s “High School and Beyond” program goes a long way to help a student formulate plans, he said. “Kids are building their plan from the seventh grade, identifying a pathway that they want to pursue. By their sophomore year we’re connecting with those students a couple of times a year, making sure it’s still their interest. Each year they work on different components about careers and what they are going to want to do after high school.

“They build their high school schedule based off that plan. For example, if someone wants to go into engineering they might get into our four-year engineering program. They have the opportunity to be a few steps ahead when they step out the door,” he said.

The district also offers career and technical education courses to prepare students for post-secondary education and future careers. “We work with those students with job skills, study skills, social skills and coping skills,” he said. Some CTE areas include: technology and computer science, arts and design, healthcare and sports medicine, and food service and hospitality. The goal of CTE studies is to end up with “college and or career ready students,” Waller said.

South Kitsap

The number of SK high school graduates heading to college dipped during the pandemic years. Those numbers have improved but are still down around 8%, said Sara Hatfield, CTE director for SKSD.

“Part of the issue that impacted students was shifting online even at the post-secondary opportunities. That wasn’t a learning environment that was successful for all students,” Hatfield said.

Students returning to classrooms has contributed to more students signing up for higher education, Hatfield noted.

“Actually, being able to see our students and support them through the process of applications of financial aid registration has had an impact. Not everybody has people that are supportive or understand that process,” she said.

Of 2023 SK district graduates, 20% headed to four-year colleges, while 24% entered two-year colleges and 56% did not enroll, ERDC says.

To help students determine the best post-high school path, the district offers CTE courses.

“At South Kitsap High School, we have 92 courses that support students in exploring career paths and opportunities. Some are automotive, wood and auto shops, agriculture, video, computer science, information technology, business, culinary and education,” Hatfield said.

Special events are also planned. Students take field trips to Olympic College, and Bates and Clover Park technical colleges in Tacoma. Recently, 30 employers – ranging from human service, health science construction, business and education— came to the high school for a “Career Connection” event.

The district also conducts “High School and Beyond” where students from middle school on are asked about their interests, guided to appropriate classes and eventually work toward post-secondary goals.

Each fall, parents and students are invited to an “It’s your Future” fair to meet college representatives, employers, including the military, and learn about apprenticeships.

Despite job fairs and job-related courses, there are times when a student is torn about what to do following high school. Counselors will meet with them to help, Hatfield said

“The questions we have them consider is, how are they as a learner? What environment will be supportive? Some people are OK being further from family than others. Are they able to afford living in a place that isn’t with family? We also get them to consider doing an occupational analysis – is there an opportunity for employment? Those are factors that we get them to think about,” Hatfield said.

CKSD courtesy photo Graduates from CK high schools are evenly split between attending two- and four-year colleges.