When I think about the look and feel of future Untapped Potential Project high schools, Ranken Technical College often comes to mind.

Ranken, a private, nonprofit degree-granting institution of higher learning, has been educating young adults from across the country at its St. Louis campus for more than a century. Recently, it opened a new campus in Wentzville, Mo., 40 miles northwest of St. Louis.

Now, Ranken is preparing to launch its first school serving students in grades 9-14, in Troy, Mo. I’m eager to learn from Ranken’s illustrious record of producing graduates ready for the world of work.

In mid-June, I had the privilege of joining Ranken CEO Stan Shoun at the groundbreaking for the new school, Lincoln County R-III School District, another 15 miles up the road from Wentzville. The school will begin accepting students from the Lincoln County district this fall, and the new, 25,000-square-foot facility is slated to open at the start of the 2021-22 school year.

I can hardly wait to see what Ranken does with high school students. I’m sure I’ll learn a lot watching what they do.

What do I love about Ranken? I could go on and on, but here are my top three:

• Its no-nonsense yet compassionate approach to developing strong professional habits in its students. Students are graded daily on several work ethic components. As we all know, succeeding in the workplace requires more than technical skills. Workers also have to be punctual, respectful, collegial, and focused. A shocking number of graduates from traditional high school lack some or all of those attributes.
• “Industry drives everything we do,” Shoun told me recently. “My campuses are state of the art because of industry.” Students can focus on construction trades, automotive, metalworking…the list goes on. At the new Troy campus, students can specialize in emerging technologies of aquaponics, advanced manufacturing, renewable energy, as well as the building and construction trades.
• Ranken epitomizes hands-on learning. In fact, students spend an average of 15 hours a week doing hands-on work with the guidance of expert instructors. “We have kids who have struggled in traditional K-12 schools,” Shoun said. “Education there is still butts in seats, lecture, memorization, regurgitate, pass the test. No wonder so many kids can’t read and write at grade level. Hands-on gets them excited. Hands-on learning has been proven by far to be the best strategy.

Amen, Stan. At UPP, we look forward to working closely with you, and tapping your expertise.