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ORLEANS/NORTHERN
ESSEX SCHOOL-TO-WORK
Essex and Orleans Counties, Vermont
BRIEF DESCRIPTION
OF PRACTICE
The Orleans/Northern Essex School-To-Work Partnership (ONE STW) is located in
the upper Northeast Kingdom of Vermont. We are the largest STW region geographically
and one of the largest in number of schools (24 in total). Three of these schools
are private and the remaining are distributed among three public school districts.
Essex North Supervisory Union is the smallest district, consisting of a one-room
schoolhouse for grades K-6 and another school for K-12. Orleans Central Supervisory
Union consists of six K-8 schools and one high school. OENSU, by far the largest
district, consists of five K-6, six K-8 and one middle school (7-8), and one high
school. The three private schools include two K-8 school and one high school.
Establishing STW Liaisons in the schools was identified as a best practice by VT
STW during the program progress reviews of 1998. ONE STW adopted this practice in
the fall of 1998. The STW Liaison’s role is to increase STW activities by disseminating
information within the school and by arranging time to promote STW at school board
meetings. Liaisons provide the educators and school administrators with information
about STW and related activities. This partnership will help to develop ownership
of STW in the school and assure communication throughout a wide-spread region.
IMPLEMENTATION STRATEGIES
Phase One – Information gathering
ONE STW consulted with Central Vermont about their existing liaison network.
The number one rule is to not overload the liaisons. This helped with planning the
responsibilities for the position.
Phase Two – Planning
The liaison strategy was added to the ONE STW plan for Year Four. The liaison
position supported a number of the plan’s desired outcomes, for example:
- Knowledge
of STW will increase throughout the region
- Provide schools
with information about STW and related activities available
- Establish
a contact person in each school who understands and promotes STW, disseminates information,
and updates data
- Increased
support and participation generated by engaging leaders in schools, businesses, and
community
A job description
was developed in year one.
The STW Liaison
will develop ownership and assure communication in the school. This person can be
an educator, school employee or community member and have a long-standing relationship
with the school.
Professional Development
- One day training
- Attend related
professional development workshops
Increase Involvement
- Disseminate
information
- Assist in
school’s ownership of STW
- Become a member
of ONE STW Partnership
- Arrange a
15 minute slot four times a year at school board meetings for educators, students,
and community to talk about STW
- Become a member
of school action planning team
- Help educators
make contact with key people in community
Career Development
- Promote STW
professional development for educators
- Attend available
workshops
- Organize in-school
professional development with the regional coordinator
Data Collection
- Continue identifying
existing STW activities in school
- Maintain data
collection
- Written report
due December 15 and June 1
Phase Three – Recruitment
A letter was sent to all the principals in the region.
The Orleans/Northern
Essex School-To-Work Partnership (ONE STW) has made money available to support a
School-To-Work Liaison in every school in the region. This person would be responsible
for a variety of responsibilities, which are attached. This person can be a classroom
teacher, employee of the school, or an active volunteer.
ONE STW has allocated $500 per position and payment will come through the Supervisory
Union in two installments (on 1/1 and 6/15) of $250 each. The liaisons will have
substitute pay available for any needed training and any activity pre-approved by
the ONE STW Coordinator. Also, $100 will be available for travel and supplies. Both
the substitute pay and travel/supplies will be paid directly from ONE STW.
A one day training will take place on November 17, therefore, please fax your nomination
to me at 766-2516 by November 9. If you have any questions, please call me at 766-2244.
While letters
were a good introduction, a follow-up call was required for most schools. Fifteen
schools nominated someone for the position. Most were guidance counselors, two were
community members, one was the librarian, and the rest were educators.
Phase Four – Training
A one-day training was given at a pleasant, out-of-the way inn. Trainers were
brought in who had expertise in specific topics such as risk management, work-based
learning, collecting information for statewide database, and resources available.
Based on discussions at this meeting, some of the liaisons’ responsibilities changed.
Procedure
for contacting liaisons
- All correspondence
with the liaison will come through the regional STW coordinator first. This will
ensure that the liaison will not be overwhelmed with requests.
Changes
in responsibilities
- "Will
attend monthly partnership meetings and/or serve on a committee" is changed
to: "Three representatives from the liaisons will attend regular partnership
meetings." Reason for change: most liaisons are educators, which would have
pulled a high number of educators out of the school at one given time. They are on
the partnership mailing list and will receive the meeting packets.
- "Help
educators make contact with key people in the community" is changed to: "The
liaison is not to locate business contacts for an educator. The liaison is a key
person for business to contact within the school, but they are not responsible for
connecting an educator and a businessperson. This liaison will however have resources
available to help the educator and will also seek the assistance of the coordinator
to develop school-business partnerships."
- Encourage
the attendance at action planning meetings — Roughly 90% of the liaisons are already
members of their action planning teams. The other 10% will make contact with a member
of the action planning team for their school.
Reporting
In lieu of their first required report, the liaisons were to gather the required
data for a report.
Two meetings
were arranged for liaisons to receive further training and share what was happening
in their schools. These followed Partnership meetings and some liaisons attended
both. Most liaisons either started or increased a STW activity in their school. In
most cases it was to initiate participation in the National Groundhog Job Shadowing
Day. Some initiated mentoring programs, brought in guest speakers, or set up career
fairs.
Collecting data was the number one way for the liaisons to find out what existing
STW activities were taking place in their schools and to talk about their new role.
This was their first assignment.
In year two the responsibilities changed slightly. A letter was sent to all the liaisons
who participated in the first year.
Welcome
back everyone. We are approaching Year 5, the last year of School-to-Work funding,
and it’s time to look towards the future. One of the ways we hope to keep the idea
of School-to-Work alive is through your work as an ONE STW liaison.
Last year you were the STW liaison for ______. I would like to confirm that you will
be representing your school again this year. As with last year, there is a $500.00
stipend available to the liaisons, payable in two installments.
Your responsibilities in Year 5 will be:
1. Two school board presentations — one in Fall 1999 and one in Spring 2000;
2. Collection of data in the Spring;
3. Support of the portfolio project as follows:
- Arranging
training for the CDP for the educators in your school
- Providing
additional information as it becomes available
4. Two reports
— December 1999 and May 2000;
5. Schedule with Regional Coordinator for visits to your school.
Due to concerns about educators being out of school, I am not scheduling liaison
meetings this year. I am, however, requiring that you schedule times to meet with
me on a regular basis at your school. Please call me so we can discuss schedule times
for the year.
To verify your agreement to be a liaison in Year 5, please sign this letter and return
it to my office no later than September 27, 1999. If for some reason you will not
be able to take on the responsibilities of the liaison position this year, please
let me know as soon as possible.
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me.
For schools
without a liaison another recruitment letter was sent out. This letter was much like
last year’s except for noted changes in responsibilities.
Two liaisons from a high school declined the position for the second year. No one
was nominated to take his or her place. Five additional schools came on board. This
was because the portfolio project was started and the school could not participate
in the project without a liaison.
New liaisons received an abbreviated training at their own school, because nominations
for new liaisons at these schools came in at different times in the school year
In the second year no liaison meetings were held. It is a well-known fact that educators
do not like to leave the classroom. The Partnership wanted the liaisons to spend
time in the school working on increasing activities in the school.
SUSTAINABILITY PLAN
The liaisons were aware from the beginning of the practice that the Partnership
would pay their stipend and expenses for two years. When reporting to school boards,
this was to be a topic of discussion. So far approximately sixty percent of the schools
are either continuing to pay the stipend or the liaison position has become part
of the job description. In most cases, educators and community members will continue
receiving the stipend. Guidance counselors had the duties incorporated in their job
description.
CONNECTION TO THE VERMONT STANDARDS
Having STW Liaisons in the schools is indirectly connected to the Vermont Standards.
All STW activities promoted and facilitated by the liaisons are directly aligned
with the Framework of Standards.
LESSONS LEARNED
- Do not overload.
If the responsibilities are few and reasonable, then these dedicated people will
actually give more.
- Treat them
well. It feels good to be appreciated.
- Be flexible.
All schools are different; let the liaison identify were he/she will have the most
impact.
- Work around
each liaison's schedule. Their time spent out of the classroom is limited and you
need to be available when they have the time.
- Send information
separately. When you have more then one event, training, or informational piece,
send each separately and time them apart by a few days. That way, notices don’t get
lost in the shuffle and the liaison isn’t overloaded with last minute schedule changes.
- Make response
easy. The best way is to put the information on one sheet, provide space for a response
and liaison’s name. Give a date to respond by and have them fax the sheet to you.
- Return all
phone calls within 24 hours. While this is not always possible it is a good rule
to follow.
- Listen.
- Involve the
principals. Having the principals aware of the roles of the liaison will help in
promoting continuation of the position to the school board.
| CONTACTS |
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Bobie Cummings
Regional STW Coordinator
Orleans/Northern Essex STW
P. O. Box 349
Derby, VT 05829
Phone: (802) 766-2244
E-mail: bobie@hotmail.com
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Sharon Gonyaw
Regional STW Coordinator's Assistant
Orleans/Northern Essex STW
179 Northern Avenue
Newport, VT 05855
Phone: (802) 334-7503 |
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