Addressing the “Why Bother?” Mentality in Education
Education leaders are reportedly confronting what they describe as a “dangerous moment” in American high schools as student disengagement reaches critical levels. According to reports, College Board CEO David Coleman fears this situation could worsen in the age of artificial intelligence, with students increasingly adopting a “why bother?” mentality toward their education.
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Coleman described to Fortune a downward spiral of student engagement throughout their educational journey. “In elementary school, they’ll take what we give them. In middle school, they become suspicious. And in high school, many of them are done,” he explained, noting that many students are simply not interested in traditional educational offerings.
Business-Education Partnership Emerges
The solution emerged from an unexpected partnership between the College Board and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Sources indicate that when Coleman met with Chamber leadership including CEO Suzanne Clark and Chief Policy Officer Neil Bradley in late 2024, they quickly realized they were facing the same problem from different perspectives.
Bradley told Fortune that their discussion “quickly evolved into a deeper discussion about how we could bring together the best of what the College Board does in education and what the Chamber does in organizing the business community.” The full vision came together at a meeting in the College Board’s New York offices in early 2025, leading to a nationwide initiative announced this spring.
New AP Business Course Launches
The partnership has resulted in a brand-new course launching this fall: AP Business with Personal Finance. According to the organizations, mastery in this course will be recognized by thousands of employers and can lead directly to employment or advanced study. The initiative represents what analysts suggest is a significant shift in Advanced Placement program philosophy.
Nearly 300 employers, including Aon, IBM, Nissan, SnapIT Solutions and Wells Fargo, as well as 75 local chambers of commerce across more than 40 states, have endorsed the new AP courses. The Chamber’s workforce development initiative has been central to building this employer support network.
Breaking Down Educational “Segregation”
Coleman described the current division between career education and general education as something that “must fall.” He called the “segregation” taking place among different types of students “cruel, socially, in high schools” and “really dumb” because all students need business knowledge regardless of their post-graduation plans.
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The report states that this new approach reflects a changing landscape where career success increasingly depends on adaptability, innovation, and financial literacy. Coleman’s goal is ambitious: “that fundamental division between career education and general education must fall,” addressing what some see as equity gaps in advanced coursework.
Employer Frustration with Workforce Readiness
From the Chamber’s perspective, employers are reportedly “sick and tired of scrounging for talent.” Clark remarked that business leaders consistently report they cannot find qualified workers, making this course essential for preparing students for “day one of their first job.”
The Chamber’s 2025 New Hire Readiness Report shows that 84% of hiring managers believe today’s high school graduates are not ready for the workforce, and 80% say young hires are less prepared than their predecessors. This data from the Chamber’s education partnership highlights the severity of the preparedness gap.
Addressing Changing Worker Expectations
Bradley noted that Chamber members are “grappling with the different ways that people want to work and are willing to work,” particularly as employers navigate post-COVID workplace arrangements. He cited Robert Putnam’s classic work “Bowling Alone,” suggesting that Americans are increasingly looking to their employers for personal fulfillment that previously came from community organizations.
Gallup’s American Job Quality Study found widespread worker dissatisfaction, with 60% of U.S. workers overall not in “quality jobs.” Gallup senior partner Stephanie Marken noted that Generation Z appears to be “looking for something very different from their employer population,” particularly regarding mental health and work-life balance considerations.
Building on Existing Initiatives
The new AP course builds on separate Chamber initiatives, including the Grow with CO platform established five to six years ago, which offers free online advice about how to start, run and grow a business. The Chamber’s CO platform is dedicated to helping business owners across the U.S. start, run, and grow successful companies.
Bradley emphasized that tradespeople—from welders to electricians—often aspire to run their own businesses and need business acumen just as much as future accountants or MBAs. “You can have the best idea in the world, but you’ve still got to understand how to form your business,” he said, noting that introducing these concepts in secondary school could significantly impact entrepreneurial trajectories.
Addressing the Higher Education Alternative
With approximately a third of high school graduates not pursuing higher education—a rate that has remained consistent according to the National Center for Education Statistics—Bradley said it should be a “realistic expectation” that high school prepares students to find jobs, which he noted “is just not true in a lot of places today.”
The partnership between these two major organizations represents a significant response to what Fortune describes as converging crises in education and workforce development. Both leaders are betting that a relevant, applied course offering college credit and real employability will ignite engagement among students hungry for autonomy and economic power amid broader market trends and industry developments.
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