MILWAUKEE – A new way of teaching at two Milwaukee Public Schools high schools is helping students get down to business. It’s called 3DE: Executives join teachers in the classroom for a curriculum that puts financial literacy front and center.
What is 3DE?
The backstory:
Mortenson Construction’s latest project isn’t a new landmark or towering skyscraper – it’s more about building a future for students at Milwaukee’s Bay View High School. In October, Mechanical, Electrical and Plumbing (M.E.P.) Executive Laura Rudolph left the construction site to meet with a group that will soon be responsible for a major Mortenson purchase: teenagers.
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“They are helping Mortenson solve a problem,” Rudolph said, “which is really around what kind of a drone we should invest in.”
Laura Rudolph works with 3DE students at Bay View High School
Education has looked a little different at Bay View since 2023. That’s when Junior Achievement of Wisconsin launched a pilot program at Bay View and at Marshall High School called “3D Education” – 3DE for short. Freshmen and sophomore students’ lessons revolve around a real problem presented to them by community business leaders.
“The students are kind of giving back to us and giving us some solutions,” Rudolph said. “Someday, these students may be building the community they work in.”
‘No right or wrong answer’
What they’re saying:
Every teacher, student and principal FOX6 Cents spoke with admitted to initial apprehension with 3DE.
“We were the first group to start the program,” recalled Marshall Martin, a social studies teacher.
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“When we were first introduced to 3DE, we were kind of ‘voluntold’ – me and the other school,” Bay View Principal Jeffery Gaddis said.
Instead of solely using textbooks for math, science or English, 3DE teachers tie corporate case to daily lesson plans.
Bob Landwehr works with 3DE students at Bay View High School
“When the businesses are here, there is a sense of urgency and importance that the students take away,” said Bob Landwehr, volunteer and Junior Achievement of Wisconsin board member.
The retiree mentors kids in the classroom. Landwehr comes with more than three decades of experience working for GE. He helps students research cases and prepares them to deliver final assessments to businesses, like Mortenson, through a graded group presentation.
“Students learn there is no right or wrong answer,” Landwehr said. “They have to analyze data and make a recommendation.”
Financial literacy
Dig deeper:
Braelyn Bryant was among the early skeptics. Now in his junior year, he sees a benefit he wasn’t expecting: One of the core principles of 3DE is financial literacy.
“My first couple of presentations were pretty blocky. Words here and words there,” the 16-year-old remembered. “Now when I get money, I actually think – what part of this do I need to save?”
Bryant quickly learned that companies operate within strict budgets. It’s helped him with his own money management. Bryant is developing his own app highlighting little-known Milwaukee landmarks. He hopes to sell that app and start his own business.
“When we’re in front of the kids every day, the message just lands differently than when you have a business professional – in the trenches of a real job – be here and actually talking to you,” said Betsy McGinnity, Bay View’s 3DE director.
The program pushes financial literacy, work readiness and entrepreneurship to the forefront.
“These are the changemakers,” McGinnity said. “This is who is going to change our world and community. If we can start building those skills now, I can’t even imagine what our city is going to look like in 10 years with them in the leadership.”
Shaking the status quo
Big picture view:
Junior Achievement said 3DE programming has been implemented in more than 50 schools nationwide. Companies like Arby’s, AT&T and Delta Air Lines present kids with problems to solve. The program also said 3DE has reduced chronic absenteeism in other schools while boosting math and reading proficiency.
There isn’t enough data to show a long-term impact at Bay View. The principal, Gaddis, has since shed his initial apprehensions.
“I always go back to that saying ‘when are we ever going to use this?’ Now with 3DE, kids are more engaged,” he said.
Bay View Principal Jeffery Gaddis, teacher Marshall Martin
“It’s usually around the fourth or fifth challenge that you start to see the lightbulb go off – they realize we have to work together,” Martin added.
Teachers and executives: A partnership in the classroom, empowering students with their finances while shaking the status quo.
“We can’t keep doing the same thing and expect different results,” said McGinnity.
The Source: FOX6 News interviewed people involved with 3D Education and referenced information from Junior Achievement.
