School Work

Edison Collegiate High School in Fort Myers is barely a year old, but 300 students applied for 100 openings in its freshman class this year.

This strong demand should be good news for Lee County employers and specialty manufacturers in particular. That's because Edison Collegiate is a charter school that emphasizes science, technology, engineering and math, a so-called STEM school by the subjects' initials.

Employers clamor for students with math and science skills, but more than anything they want new employees who can work well with others to solve technical problems. Brian Botts, the school's 40-year-old principal, says he recently spoke with a manufacturer in Cape Coral who wanted young job applicants to have more than just computer skills. He wants them to have the ability to “fit in with the guys” at the plant.