Businesses say students aren’t mastering basic workplace skills. Are they right?

“Prepare Rhode Island, for example, is a direct response to the state’s looming workforce shortage. By 2020, the state estimates 70 percent of its jobs will require either an industry-recognized certificate or a post-secondary degree, and yet, less than 45 percent of the state’s residents have any education beyond high school. The state is pouring money into myriad job-training efforts — including $3 million into a variety of youth initiatives this year, $739,228 of which funded the Prepare Rhode Island boot camp and internship, according to Heather Hudson, executive director of the Governor’s Workforce Board, the state agency behind the effort.”