Journal of K-12 Educational Research 7 cognitive strategies, key content knowledge, academic behaviors, and contextual skills and knowledge” (p. 24). The four facets of college readiness include nonacademic skills like the ability to transcend siloed learning, problem solving, analysis, persistence, selfmanagement, self-control, and an understanding of the college system, structure, and culture (Conley, 2008). Career Readiness Career readiness is defined by The National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE, 2021) as “a foundation from which to demonstrate requisite core competencies that broadly prepare the college-educated for success in the workplace and lifelong career management” (p. 1). Career readiness skills ensure a successful entrance into the workforce. Graduates need a clear understanding of the skills necessary to launch and develop a successful career. NACE defined eight career readiness competencies: career and self-development, communication, critical thinking, equity and inclusion, leadership, professionalism, teamwork, and technology (NACE, 2021). Military Readiness The Department of Defense defines military readiness as “the ability of military forces to fight and meet demands of assigned missions,” which refers to the readiness of the military as a whole and not readiness at the individual level (Herrera, 2020, p. 3). More recently, several branches of the U.S. Military started considering non-cognitive skills as part of their recruitment process and began administering the Tailored Adaptive Personality Assessment System (TAPAS) created by Drasgow Consulting (Brading, 2020; Drasgow Consulting Group, 2022; Stark et al., 2014). The TAPAS comprises 22 factors that make up five dimensions of extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, emotional stability, and openness to experience (Stark et al., 2014). Social and Emotional Learning Evidence suggests a growing need for an educational approach that balances academic instruction and SEL instruction to prepare students to thrive in school, their careers, and life (Greene, 2019). CASEL defines SEL as “the process through which all young people and adults acquire and apply the knowledge, skills, and attitudes to develop healthy identities, manage emotions and achieve personal and collective goals, feel and show empathy for others, establish and maintain supportive relationships, and make responsible decisions” (CASEL, n.d.b). CASEL developed the CASEL 5 core social and emotional skills of self-awareness, self-management, relationship building, responsible decision-making, and social awareness (CASEL, n.d.a). Research Design The current study aimed to identify the intersecting skills needed for SEL and CCMR. The study included 15 college professors, business managers, and military recruiters from Ellis, Dallas, and Tarrant Counties located in the North Texas region of Texas who teach, hire, train, supervise, or recruit recent high school graduates. The participants engaged in semi-structured interviews, which garnered the qualitative data used for the current study. An inductive approach was used to analyze the qualitative data from the interviews to develop themes and parent codes representing the study’s research findings. Summary of Findings and Interpretation of Results The study’s findings indicated that social and emotional skills are critical to post-secondary readiness. Most participants mentioned that schools could do more to develop SEL skills in students before they graduate. Central themes emerged from the study and were grouped into four groups: College Readiness, Career Readiness, Military Readiness, and Cross-cutting SEL Skills. Figure 1 visually represents the themes that emerged in the current study for each research question. While some participants’ thoughts and stories expressed SEL strengths in recent high school graduates, most SEL references by participants were considered weaknesses or limitations. When considering the Cross-cutting SEL Skills, most participants thought Relationship Building and Social Awareness were an area of strength in recent high school graduates. Participants expressed that most graduates are willing to put themselves out there in social situations, even if uncomfortable. Many participants believed graduates are very comfortable building relationships
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