On Thursday April 22, 2010, YouthLINK, PA Career Link, Eastside Neighborhood Employment Center, YouthWorks, and urban Youth Action will join forces to sponsor the fourth Youth Career Fair at the Omni William Penn Hotel from 1:00 p.m.- 4:30 p.m. High school juniors and senior, freshman and sophomore college students, and other entry-level workers are encouraged to attend.

Youth will have the opportunity to meet hiring employers, post-secondary institutions, and experts from the workforce development sector. Each youth attendee will receive a career fair bag filled with gifts and have the chance to win door prizes!

We will be happy to answer any questions you might have and assist you in any way possible 412-390-2441.

Source: Literacy News- www.literacynews.com

source: www.palomar.edu

Why Vocational and Career Education Are Important

There are three major reasons why every school district should offer strong vocational learning opportunities:

1. Vocational competence is critical to the economic health of our nation.

2. A significant number of students, both college-bound and non-college-bound, are experiential learners who will learn academic skills best from developing them in a career or application context.

3. Delaying the career or application context until after grade 12 lowers motivation and learning achievement for many experiential learners.

Consider these characteristics of experiential learners:

1. They are often as or even more capable of complex learning than traditional learners.

2. They learn academic skills best from concrete tasks and a focus on real-life problems.

3. They often do not work to their potential in the relatively abstract-linear environment of traditional classes.

So, not having vocational or career learning options is a major disservice to the many experiential learners in any school population.

Advantages of Career and Vocational Education

When strong vocational learning options are available in a school district, they present these advantages:

1. They help many experiential learners reach higher achievement levels. (Too few policymakers have given adequate attention to a major weakness of American public education – – lack of inclusion of a strong application component in learning programs. Refer to the work of Dr. William Daggett, president of the International Center for Leadership in Education, for solid research comparisons in this area. The Center’s web site is www.LeaderEd.com.)

2. Career path exploration helps many students make more information and dedicated choices on college enrollment. Students often discover the career path they love and are more motivated to pursue college study.

3. Career context makes subjects and courses more meaningful to students. Application adds to the strength of learning.

4. The career context makes it more feasible to teach and promote a continuous improvement culture in relation to the real world of work.

5. Strong secondary school vocational programs provide workplace skills to some students who do not plan to attend college immediately after graduation from high school. They also equip many college-bound students with skills useful in part-time work that helps in financing college study.

Evaluating Your Local Situation

Do you want to evaluate the strength of your local vocational and career options for students? Look for positive responses to these standards:

1. The local school mission statement recognizes career/vocational education as a valuable service to many college-bound and non-college-bound students.

2. The career focus is placed on all levels of the K-12 programs – -

a. Elementary schools using career-focused stories, readings, field trips.

b. Middle schools providing strong technical (applied) literacy learning opportunities, especially to encourage continued interest in science. Also, providing after-school career exploration options perhaps with the help of local or area vocational centers.

c. High schools providing a broad spectrum of both career exploration and initial skill development on different career paths. NOTE: The number of vocational programs should be adequate to serve students with different talents and interests. There should be technical or science-focused programs, people-focused programs, and traditional trade programs.

d. High school guidance providing help on preference matching between talents and careers.

e. High school vocational programs presenting beneficial articulation with both 2-year and 4-year college programs to reject completely the error of viewing vocational courses as something only for the non-college-bound. That latter stereotype was founded on ignorance of the value of different talent or intelligence areas.

f. High schools providing strong information on and articulated access to apprentice training programs as a viable and important option for graduation.

3. Fiscal support and facilities are maintained on modern and attractive levels for both classical and vocational programs, never allowing one area to play second-fiddle to the other.

4. Local educators and government leaders are working to correct any state and national inattention to the needs and talents of experiential and vocational learners. NOTE: That inattention is evidenced by over-emphasis on written high stakes tests and concurrent outright failure to provide performance evaluation options for highly talented experiential learners under initial implementation of the No Child Left Behind Act. Reasons given for this serious failure are nothing but outright rationalizations to provide excuses for avoiding the work of constructing comprehensive assessment programs. Narrow written tests alone are an “easier” even though cognitively weak option. Can you imagine riding in an airplane with a pilot who has passed a written test but never before actually successfully flown an airplane? At some point in the future a higher quality assessment program must be pursued for the good of students and the good of our nation.

5. Local educators and government leaders work actively to ensure three other realities for quality vocational programs:

a. Secondary vocational programs being protected against misuse such as referral of a disproportionate share of learning disadvantaged students (who often need more effective basic academic programs) or misbehaving students (who can be dangerous to themselves and others in shop situations). NOTE: The mission of vocational schools involves career path selection and preparation. They are not special education schools but, like all schools, can serve their share of special education students. If over-used for the special education purpose, the primary mission is subverted and many talented experiential learners are tragically excluded.

b. Business and industry representatives being kept deeply involved as advisors to and evaluators of all secondary vocational programs. NOTE: This is the path to keeping programs relevant to evolving careers and to having businesses provide special help (internships, equipment, etc.) to an important source of future employees.

c. Secondary vocational programs being given strong annual funding for modernization of teaching youngsters to use equipment no longer used in the real world of work.

If the response to any one of the above basic standards is negative, you have identified an area where corrective action should be taken.

eMentoring lets students get career advice from working adults

By Amy Crawford

PITTSBURGH TRIBUNE-REVIEW  

February 28, 2010

Bobbie Jo Mack, a senior studying drafting and design at the Parkway West Career and Technology Center, was not sure what to do after graduation.

Mack, 18, of Montour was torn between architecture, which she preferred, and engineering, which her parents felt would be more lucrative. So she turned to a mentor, the owner of a local engineering firm, for advice.

“He told me whatever career path I chose should be my choice,” Mack said.

Mack, who now wants to attend California University of Pennsylvania for architectural drafting, communicated with the engineer through PA eMentoring, a new program that connects local high school students with adults in the working world.

The online system was created by Smart Futures, a Pittsburgh-based nonprofit that designs programs to prepare students for careers. After a pilot program last year, Smart Futures rolled out the system this year in 30 schools, with 500 students and 100 employers participating.

“There’s obviously a need for mentoring,” said Dave Mosey, executive director of Smart Futures. “The work place is so complex and the need for skills is so great.”

Unfortunately, Mosey said, logistics and legal issues make mentoring programs a difficult proposition for schools. The Internet, Mosey said, presented a solution.

“Schools don’t have to be responsible for the logistics of how to get mentors to the kids,” Mosey said.

The online system also work well for mentors, who are not required to take time off work for face-to-face meetings. Many area employers, including the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Bank of New York Mellon Corp., American Eagle Outfitters Inc. and Dick’s Sporting Goods Inc., have encouraged employees to participate.

“It’s very convenient for both sides,” said Nate West, a software developer at American Eagle who is in his second year as a mentor. “If I have five minutes, I can write an e-mail.”

West, 26, said it was easy to identify with the teenage students.

“I remember when I was going through that,” he said. “I really didn’t have anyone to support me. These are 10th-, 11th- and 12th-graders, so they’ve never been out in the work world before. I’ll often get students who are interested in computers, but they’re not really aware of what careers are out there.”

Mary Fore, a UPMC nurse educator, was paired with a student who wanted to be a nurse in an neonatal intensive care unit but also was considering culinary school.

“I’m hoping to help her make a really informed decision,” Fore said. “I wish someone had been there for me. No one in my family ever went to college. No one even knew how to apply.”

Pat Gambridge, a program coordinator in the career and technical education department of Pittsburgh Public Schools, said more than 250 students there were involved with eMentoring.

“A lot of our students are in settings where they can’t ask people, ‘Should I continue my education, and how can I continue my education?’” Gambridge said.

Montoring “is the most simple thing that you can do to help students,” said Gambridge, who signed up to be an eMentor herself.

Smart Futures is still looking for eMentors, said Mosey. Anyone interested in mentoring is asked to visit pa-ementor.org.

To keep up with all of the latest Smart Futures news join our Facebook fan page!

This page will keep you updated on all four of our programs: Keys2Work, My Career Journey, PA eMentoring, and Financial Literact 101. Click on the link below to join:

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Smart-Futures/324962407412?ref=ts

Women in Leadership

 “The Coro Women in Leadership Program is an excellent opportunity for networking, for building self-awareness, and for gaining a greater understanding of the strength and experiences of women leaders in our region.” – WIL Graduate, Julie DeSeyn

 The Coro Pittsburgh Women in Leadership (WIL) Program is a three-month, part-time training program aimed at providing an opportunity for women in the region to enhance their leadership skills and to build sustainable professional and social networks. Within this framework, the purpose of the Women in Leadership Program is to develop a stronger network of women leaders in order to create positive change for women in the Southwest Pennsylvania region.

 Program Outcomes

-       Participants will enhance their leadership and professional development skills through experiential and interactive training opportunities.

-       Participants will be able to effectively involve all sectors of the community to address issues by understanding, building and leveraging networks.

-       Participants will be actively engaged in their communities, including the Women in Leadership Alumnae network.

 Curriculum

The program curriculum is based on interactive and experiential training that assists women to position themselves for civic and professional leadership roles.

By understanding, building and leveraging local and regional relationships, participants work to create positive change for their communities.

 The Women in Leadership Program contains the following curriculum components:

-       Leadership skill development

-       Networking opportunities

-       Interviews with local leaders

-       Site visits to regional organizations

-       Group projects

-       Individual Action Plan

-       Personal coach for mentoring

 For more information and to apply visit www.coropittsburgh.org/wil

Contact: Misti McKeehen at 412-258-2676 or mmckeehen@coropittsburgh.org.

 Early acceptance application date: February 1, 2010

Final date to apply: March 1, 2010

Program begins: April 10, 2010

Source: http://www.peer.ca/topmenbks.html

This is a great, easy read guide and resource book for those embarking on or involved in a mentoring relationship in the work place, either as a mentor or a mentee. Dr. Ambrose shares his considerable experience working in this field during the past 35 years. He addresses some of the common concerns about mentoring which most mentors have such as whether or not to give advice, the importance of empathy, the importance of listening and the timing of conversations.

Between sections are ‘Interludes’, true mentoring stories which add credibility to the book. There is humor throughout this highly recommended book which clearly brings out the life-changing impact a mentoring relationship can have on both the mentor and the mentee, even the work place environment, when they are both committed to the relationship. (Review by Peer Resources Network member R. Cox.)

Perrone-Ambrose Associates, Inc. (2008)
Chicago, Illinois
Tel: (800) 648-0543
Discounts are available on bulk orders and this is the kind of book you’d want to widely distribute to your mentors and their partners

Check out this new article on PA eMentoring (page 4) in the Pittsburgh Engineer, which is a publication of the Engineer’s Society of Western Pennsylvania.  Click on the link below to view in PDF format: http://www.eswp.com/PDF/PittsburghENGWinter09.pdf

A special thank you goes out to the Engineer’s Society of Western Pennsylvania!

Click on the link below:

Watch David Mosey and Candi Castleberry-Singleton Interviewed  

 On January 24, 2010, Smart Futures Executive Director David Mosey and UPMC Center for Inclusion Chief Diversity Officer Candi Castleberry- Singleton took a seat on the Lynne Hayes-Freeland Show to discuss the new UPMC diversity initiative and our PA eMentoring program!

Cick on the link below:

President Obama and Michelle Obama on Mentoring Month

President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama celebrated National Mentoring Month by emphasizing the importance of being a caring adult in the life of a child at an event held at the White House on January 20, 2010.

President Obama issued a call to action for more Americans to mentor, stating that “…if compassionate, committed adults are willing to step up, then think about the incredible impact that we can have. Think about the potential that we will discover, and the talent that we will nurture, and the lives that we can turn around, and the effect that we can have on our schools and our communities and the future of this country. That’s the power of mentoring. That’s the purpose of what all of you are doing across America.”

During his speech, President Obama also recognized the partnership between MENTOR and Viacom Inc., a leading media company. The President applauded their strong commitment to America’s children.

The new partnership between MENTOR and Viacom Inc., is called Get Connected: Be a Mentor, Change a Life. Through Get Connected, Viacom will match its employees with students in New York City, Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., and Nashville. MENTOR will serve as mentoring counsel and guide to ensure Viacom is executing first-rate, quality programming throughout the country and will provide the company and its volunteer employees with state-of-the-art mentoring tools and resources.