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Partners With A Purpose
Entrepreneurship and School-to-Career Mentoring
2002 Award Winner
Program Name: Partners With A Purpose
Nominator's Name: Joseph Vandenberg
Title: Assistant Superintendent for Instruction
Address: 206 East Holly Avenue
City/State/Zip: Sewell NJ 08080
Nominator's Telephone Number: 856-589-6644 Ext. 6325
Organization: Washington Township High School
Address: 519 Hurffville-Cross Keys Road
City/State/Zip: Sewell NJ 08080
List of Community Partners: David Maxwell, President, Washington Township
Chamber of Commerce, twenty-eight additional Chamber members.
The nominated program focuses on the following grade level or area: High
School
District: Washington Township
County: Gloucester
Address: 206 East Holly Avenue
City/State/Zip: Sewell NJ 08080
District Superintendent: Thomas J. Flemming
District Telephone Number: 856-589-6644
Date of Program Initiation: Fall, 1998
Area 1: Goals:
The local Chamber of Commerce is partnering with students enrolled in
"Entrepreneurship" to help provide students with workplace knowledge,
skills, and attitudes needed to succeed in the ever-changing world of
work. This practice provides a direct linkage between the school and community
and consists of a planned program of work experiences coordinated with
school-based learning.
Specific objectives of the program include the following:
- Provide participating students with the opportunity to select and
investigate career majors
- Provide participating students, to the extent practicable, with strong
experience in and understanding of all aspects of the career industry.
- Integrate the participating students' school-based and work-based
learning.
- Provide an educationally enriching activity for the participating
students in the local community.
- Foster personal growth for both the students and members of the Chamber.
- Assist students in creating successful post-secondary education plans.
This practice specifically addresses each of the Cross-Content Workplace
Readiness Standards of the NJ Core Curriculum as well as Language Arts
Literacy standards 3.1, 3.2, 3.3, 3.4, 3.5 and Mathematics standards 4.1,
4.2, and 4.8. These are listed below with a description of how the practice
addresses the standard(s).
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Standard
|
Description
|
| CCW 1 |
Students are provided with career guidance and assessment
including emphasis on workplace needs and employment opportunities.
Broad instruction is given in the classroom and workplace that, to
the extent practicable, exposes students to all aspects of an industry
and helps them explore career options. |
| CCW 2 |
The collaborative effort of the teacher and workplace
mentors helps the student develop knowledge and skills that are broadly
applicable in industry. |
|
CCW 3
|
The mentor reflects the knowledge demands of the workplace
and the work contexts in which knowledge and skills have to be used. |
| CCW 4 |
Students keep a log describing their goals and activities. |
|
CCW 5
|
As a condition of mentoring, students are made aware
of the worksite's safety regulations, procedure for reporting accidents
and special hazards on the job. |
| LAL 3.1 |
Students verbally interact with employees and supervisors
during their mentorship. In addition, students present an oral presentation
to their class upon conclusion of the mentorship. |
| LAL 3.2 |
Students listen to other employees and/or supervisors
at each worksite. |
| LAL 3.3 |
Students complete a journal/report of their mentoring
activities. |
| LAL 3.4 |
Students read employee manuals and other related job
information at their respective worksites. |
| LAL 3.5 |
Students at merchandising establishments view and discuss
visual appeal of advertising and its impact on products. |
| Math 4.1 |
Workplace mentors either hypothesize or present realistic
problems to students for problem solving practice. |
| Math 4.2 |
Students discuss mathematical problems encountered on
the workplace and possible solutions. |
| Math 4.8 |
Mathematics is applied in certain on-the-job situations. |
Area 2: Activities:
The number of participants in the program has varied over the past four
years, depending on student enrollment in Entrepreneurship and Chamber
of Commerce members. This year, twenty-nine business owners in the community
mentored with approximately seventy high school students.
Activities in our mentorship program include the following:
- The local Chamber of Commerce members complete a "Mentorship
Overview" form listing items such as company profile, specific
job duties, an overview of what the student intern will be doing during
mentorship, their main interest in becoming a workplace mentor, and
other experiences in working with young people.
- Students complete an application blank listing their experience and
interests.
- Mentors and students attend orientation sessions with the teacher
and/or school-to-career coordinator to acquaint them with the program
and ask questions.
- The teacher and/or school-to-career coordinator then matches the student
with the appropriate workplace mentor.
- Students use their own time after school to work for an employer for
a specified period learning about a particular industry or occupation.
Students' workplace activities may include special projects, a sample
of tasks from different jobs, or tasks from a single occupation.
- The Chamber member consults with the teacher and/or school-to-career
coordinator and instructs the individual student, critiques his or her
performance, and challenges the student to perform well.
- All participants complete a final questionnaire/evaluation at the
conclusion of the mentoring period.
Area 3: Outside Resources:
The businessmen and women who are members of the Washington Township
Chamber of Commerce are the outside resources that support our partnership
program. As mentioned in Area 2, this year, twenty-nine community members
participated in this program. This School-to-Career program is unique
since no outside financial resources are needed to support the program.
Area 4: Evaluation:
This program has enabled the school, students and community to become
stronger partners in an effort to promote a more rigorous and relevant
education. Student interest has been piqued as they learned through this
collaborative effort that many important components are working together
-- ultimately resulting in their own increased level of academic and technical
achievement. Strong problem-solving, team work, technology skills, and
clear career goals are emphasized. Students complete a survey at the end
of their mentorship period and the results invariably show that students
are grateful for this mentorship opportunity. Approximately 70 students
participated this school year.
Rubrics: To ensure a positive experience, a rubric* such as the
one shown below is distributed to each student that lists essential non-occupation
specific skills.
*Thiers, Naomi, Editor, Successful Strategies: Building
A School-to Careers System, Alexandra: American Vocational Association,
1995, p. 191.
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Attributes of Core
Essential Learning
|
Emerging
|
Competent
|
Exemplary
|
| Applies Career Development Skills |
Student identifies skills that are transferable between
school, community and career opportunities. |
Student demonstrates skills that are transferable between
school and career opportunities.
Student develops own transition plan with guidance and understands
the relevancy of work-based experience. |
Student demonstrates career development skills, self-assesses
(reflects), and plans own transition from school to community and
career opportunities. |
| Applies technology |
Student uses limited technological resources with assistance. |
Student utilizes a variety of technological resources
appropriately. |
Student selects and utilizes technological resources
appropriately. Student assists others with technological resources. |
| Communication skills (verbal, written, visual, listening) |
Student uses limited strategies to communicate with
others. |
Student uses a variety of strategies, to obtain and convey meaning
that is clear and accurate. Student responds to feedback.
|
Student accurately compiles information from a variety
of resources. Student gives and receives effective feedback and is
sensitive to others' opinions. |
| Responsibility and ethics |
Student fulfills class responsibilities and meets expectations
with supervision. |
Student demonstrates pride in work and a willingness
to learn from others. Student follows rules and guidelines. |
Student is a self-directed learner and helps others
self-assess. Student seeks additional learning opportunities and responsibilities. |
| Problem solving skills |
Student makes decisions on limited information and does
not take consequences into consideration. |
Student makes decisions on information, taking into
consideration possible influences and consequences. Student evaluates
and adjusts. Student works well on a team. |
Student makes decisions on information, possible consequences
and other influences. Student self-assesses own growth and the growth
of the group. |
Career Portfolio: Assessment includes the experiences listed in
each student's career portfolio that includes items listed below:
- Performance assessment
"employee evaluations"
- Role-playing
- Oral presentations
- Career portfolios
- Vocational organizations
(DECA/FBLA) competitions
|
- Case studies
- Classroom textbook tests
- Application projects
- Self-assessment
- Year-end occupational competency test
- Rubric shown above
- Questionnaire/evaluation of program
|
Area 5: Stability:
Our "Partners with a Purpose" mentoring program has been in
place since the 1998-1999 school year. Our School-to-Career coordinator
is an integral part of this program. The coordinator meets with the Chamber
of Commerce representatives and the Entrepreneurship teachers and handles
all of the details of the program, including distributing paperwork, talking
with students about their areas of interest and the mentorship requirements,
and meeting with Chamber of Commerce representatives. Over the years the
students involved have been recognized by Certificates of Achievement
and/or luncheons given by the Chamber of Commerce in their honor.
Area 6: Endorsements:
The major stakeholders in the "Partners with a Purpose" school-community
partnership include the administration at Washington Township High School,
School-to-Career Coordinator, Business Education teachers assigned to
teach Entrepreneurship, and the members of the Washington Township Chamber
of Commerce.
"I am pleased that through the Entrepreneurship and Chamber of Commerce
Mentoring Program, students also learn to appreciate the interrelationship
of concepts learned in other areas of the curriculum including mathematics
and communication skills."
Jack McGee, Principal, Washington Township High School
"Students enrolled in this School-to-Career program have a unique
opportunity to develop workplace basics considered essential in the world
of work. This program links classroom concepts to hands-on training and
provides students with real-life learning objectives."
Madelyn Miamidian, Supervisor, Washington Township High
School
"The Chamber is pleased and privileged to have worked
with the young people in the Washington Township Mentoring program. We
consider it an important part of the Chamber's responsibilities and enjoy
availing ourselves to the young people and helping them explore career
options."
David Maxwell, President, Washingon Township Chamber
of Commerce
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