Program Name: Telecommunications Youth Apprenticeship Program
Nominator's Name: John S. Bernyk
Nominator's Telephone Number: (732) 349-8425
Title: Project Coordinator
The nominated school system is: High School
Organization: Ocean County Vocational-Technical School
Districts: Ocean County Vocational-Technical School District
Address: 1299 Old Freehold Road
City/State/Zip: Toms River, NJ 08753-4298
District Superintendent: Dr. Frederick W. Felice
District Telephone Number: (732) 349-8425
Date of Program Initiation: May 1, 1993

Area 1: Goals:

The Youth Apprenticeship Telecommunications program is a partnership between Ocean County Vocational Technical School, Bell Atlantic-New Jersey, Toms River Regional High School and Ocean County College. This unique mentor partnership has applied the resources of time, technology, educational and industrial expertise and coordinated them with principles of sound educational research. The result is a program that prepares students for the leading edge of telecommunication technology.

The district wide goals and objectives that are relevant to the telecommunications partnership are as follows:

1. To educate and train students to live effectively in our ever-changing world.
2. To provide each student, intensive training toward general and specific job objectives.
3. To set standards of performance in keeping with the requirements of that particular field of work.
4. For all students to evidence the interest, aptitude and ability to profit from the specialize instruction.
5. To develop sound character, good citizenship, the ability to think critically, and maintain good mental and physical health.

The corresponding program goals and objectives are:

1. To prepare students with entry level skills, abilities and knowledge for employment in the telecommunications field.
2. To present 900 hours of instruction and practice in the telecommunications trades in accordance with the course curriculum and skill profile outline.
3. To provide a detailed summary evaluation of the proficiencies achieved by each student.
4. To help each student develop positive attitudes and ideas related to his/her occupation in telecommunications and understand their own capabilities and potential.
5. To instill in each student the need to plan for their professional growth through continuous learning in a chosen occupation.

The corresponding partnership goals and objectives are as follows:

1. To develop and implement a two year telecommunications curriculum with related fiber optic technology.
2. To assess students' eligibility for job placement in telecommunications industry.
3. To provide skill training, classroom instruction and work based learning.
4. To provide career counseling through a program that involves students, parents, counselors and teachers.
5. To provide industry support to students though program mentors.

The program uses school based learning and enhances it with invaluable mentoring. Work based learning is provided to fortify the instructor's lesson and infuse a set of workplace values. Activities and programs are implemented to connect the school based learning with the work based learning.

Area 2: Activities:

The heart of this program is the 50 mentors and volunteers from Bell Atlantic and Local IBEW dedicating over 400 hundred hours to the cause. A team consisting of telecommunication industry experts and educators developed Com-Link, a state of the art curriculum integrating academics and vocational content.

The first year of the program consists of classroom orientation to safety, customer relations, field trips, hand tool training, accountability, reliability, electronics, signal transmission and a fiber optics overview. Special units were presented by industry experts team teaching with the instructor. The second year consists of fiber optics, advanced electronics, switching and computer applications. The first graduating class of the program is now seeking employment while 17 additional students are completing phase one.

This partnership program gives students skills that are necessary to gain employment as communication technicians. This partnership provides unique workplace learning activities including the summer work program at Lakehurst Navel Air Station and the installation of fiber optics in the Smart House, a working model laboratory. The students also configured the Smart house to support the showcased fiber technologies, such as Distance Learning and Video Conferencing. These activities provided students an opportunity to learn using state of the art technologies.

In the first year of the program the students participated in two and a half hours of after school hands on training and a trip to Virginia to visit an "Intelligent Home". Participation in a ropes course program allowed students the opportunity to become more accustom to heights. The program utilizes a vast array of instructors to teach related trade skills needed on the job. This very unique after school "Tech Cycle" program prepared students in the areas of electrical, computer assisted design and building technologies.

Parents participated in every aspect of the program including, the recruiting stage, student selection stage, orientation, open house, and after school activities.

Area 3: Evaluation:

The single most important substantial evidence of this program's success and impact on targeted populations is that out of twelve program completers who took the Unified Battery of Test (UBT), a Bell Entrance exam, nine qualified for employment. This is much higher than the normal average among people who take the test. The impact of this program is also overwhelmingly evident in the attitudes of the students. Every single one of the telecommunication II students have completed a detailed resume and have a clear vision of career choice. They have become reliable, trustworthy and have developed the willingness to work and more importantly, perform their job to the absolutely best of their ability. The impact on teachers is evident by their willingness to cooperate to with mentors. The telecommunication partnership epitomizes the way a mentor program should work. The student receives quality instruction from the classroom teacher and that information is reinforced by someone who is actually out in the field doing it!

Area 4: Stability:

The stability of the program can be evident and projected through many indicators. The community demand for telecommunication technicians is evident by the increasing number of job openings in the telephone and cable television industry. The program utilizes a recruiter, whose duty is to inform area high school students about the Youth Apprenticeship Program. As a result a full telecommunications I class is beginning in September. We will also be expanding our mentor pool by linking with the corporate training center though video conferencing and using "Electronic Mentors". Sources of funding for the Telecommunications program come from Youth Transitions to Work grants, School to Work grants, Perkins grants, corporate equipment donations and the Board of Education. Ocean County Vocational Technical School is dedicated to this program completely from our superintendent, to our Project director, to the Program Administrator, to the Program Coordinator, and to the instructor. The partnership is successful for one very good reason. IT WORKS! The Board of Education has a documented commitment to partnerships endorsed by signed partnership agreements with the area's business and industrial community.

Area 5: Endorsements:

Submitted by Henry Muller, Telecommunications Student

I am currently a senior in the telecommunications class at Ocean County Vocational Technical School. The Program has a partnership with Bell Atlantic which in my opinion, made the program genuine. Having the mentors, supplied by Bell, come in and train us, hands on, only reinforced what our instructor taught in classroom lecture. I feel that this experience has given me direction to choose my future career. Also the mentors instilled a sense of confidence in our work and accomplishments.

Submitted by Debbie Scherler, Area Manager, Bell Atlantic

The Bell Atlantic employees who have been involved as mentors in this partnership have had a truly rewarding experience. The opportunity to share our expertise has given invaluable returns. We are proud to have had a hand in shaping the workforce who will, undoubtedly, take part in the building and maintaining of the information superhighway. We have the forming of this partnership to thank.

Submitted by Tom Damato, Program Specialist, Bell Atlantic

I have been involved in the mentoring partnership of Project Smart House since its inception in the Spring of 1993. I have witnessed all partners involved take accountability for making this project come to fruition.

As a result, all students involved have matured and grown both personally and technically. They are well prepared to enter the business or collegiate world and to move forward into the next stage of their lives. This program truly has my endorsement.