MISSISSIPPI’S
SCHOOL-TO-CAREERS INITIATIVE
Central High School Building
Suite 331
359 North West Street
P. O. Box 771
Jackson, Mississippi 39205-0771
Telephone 601-359-2964
Fax 601-576-4300
Liz Williamson, State Director
lwilliamson@mde.k12.ms.us
Jeannine Drake, Projects Coordinator jdrake@mde.k12.ms.us
KEY BACKGROUND INFORMATION
The School-to-Work Opportunities Act was
signed into law in 1994, providing a funding source to support a comprehensive,
high quality, school-to-careers transition system to enable all students to
successfully enter the workplace. This initiative builds on state and local
capacity, eliminates duplication in education and training programs, maximizes
the effective use of resources, supports locally established initiatives, requires
measurable goals for performance, and offers flexibility in meeting those goals.
Mississippi’s emerging School-to-Careers
(STC) initiative builds upon existing efforts to improve education and workforce
development. The State Workforce Development Council, the 15 District Workforce
Development Councils located in the community college districts, and the Tech
Prep initiative laid the groundwork for the STC system. Over a four-year
period, beginning in January 1999, approximately $19.2 million will be invested
throughout the state of Mississippi to further support improving education and
workforce development.
In supporting a seamless system to serve
all students in the transition from school to careers, the Mississippi STC Initiative’s
focus will be on improving K-12 education and its connection with community
college education systems, universities, business, and labor to ensure that
each student is provided with appropriate educational opportunities to prepare
for constructive participation in society, immediate employment, and/or further
education. Mississippi’s STC strategy forges connections among education, workforce
development, and economic development systems. Mississippi’s STC unites
business and industry, organized labor, communities, parents, schools, and higher
education in an unprecedented partnership to ensure that Mississippi’s citizens
become continuous learners.
PURPOSE
Led by the state’s three educational authorities
(the Department of Education, the State Board for Community and Junior
Colleges, and the Board of Trustees of State Institutions of Higher Learning),
the Governor’s Office, the Mississippi Development Authority,
the Mississippi Parent-Teacher Association, the Mississippi
Economic Council/Mississippi Public Ed Forum, and with guidance from the
State Workforce Development Council, the Mississippi School-to-Careers
initiative supports a comprehensive system of education and training. The Mississippi
STC initiative has the following purposes:
- Academic Mastery – All students
will be expected to master the common core of academic reasoning and interpersonal
skills they will need to lead full and productive lives in the 21st century.
- Career Planning and Development–
After demonstrating mastery, all students will have the choice of a range
of career or program options that provide a transition from school to careers–
entry positions to the world of work, or to more advanced education leading
to Associate or Bachelor degrees.
- Integrated Academic and Technical–
All students will benefit from the use of applied instructional methodology
and the integration of academic and technical curricula at the secondary and
post secondary levels.
- Articulation between Key Constituencies–
Effectively articulated partnership commitments will link secondary and higher
education, business and industry, and the employment and training community.
- Effective Local Partnership Models–
Local partnerships will be formed and/or enhanced in each of the 15 community/junior
college districts to implement STC on a local basis.
It is the vision that the Mississippi STC
initiative will include the active and vital participation of students, parents,
businesses, educators, and labor and community leaders; effective and well coordinated
school-based and work-based learning activities; the integration of academic and
vocational education; the development of linkages between secondary and post secondary
education; student participation in STC activities on a voluntary basis; participation
in STC activities that is available to all students; giving students and parents
information about education and career choices that enable them to make wise education
and training choices; and School-to-Careers activities that are individualized
for participating students. Results of the School-to-Careers initiative will show
that all students will have the opportunity to participate in school-based and
work-based opportunities and connecting activities; have the opportunity to develop
a career strategy; have the opportunity to be introduced to a personally fulfilling
career; minimally attain a high school diploma or its equivalent; and have the
opportunity to complete post secondary education at an appropriate level.
STC Local Partnerships-
PDF Format
STC Local Partnerships-
Microsoft Word
Making It Work
- a lesson plan resource guide
for teachers - PDF Format
Making
It Work
- a lesson plan resource guide
for teachers - Microsoft Word
Fast Forward Mississippi website
http://www.FastForwardMS.com
KEY COMPONENTS of a LOCAL SCHOOL-TO-CAREERS
INITIATIVE
1. School-based
learning components that include but are not limited to
- applied, hands-on learning
in and out of school,
- high academic standards
for all students,
- career exploration, development,
and planning,
- integration of academics
and technical education,
- problem-based integrated
curricula,
- innovative teaching and
time management approaches,
- comprehensive assessment
strategies,
- employer enhanced curriculum
development, and
- inspiration for life-long
learning.
2. Work-based
learning components that must address
- Paid, high-quality, work-based
learning experiences, and the steps the local partnership will take to generate
such paid experiences.
- Opportunities for students
to participate in STC programs in various industries and occupations, including
high-skill, high-wage employment opportunities.
Work-based learning components
that include but are not limited to
- real life experiences,
- high academic standards
reinforcement,
- on-site career exploration
opportunities,
- informative job shadowing
opportunities,
- innovative on-the-job training
opportunities,
- creative internship opportunities,
- workplace mentoring opportunities,
- resourceful cooperative
education opportunities,
- insightful youth apprenticeship
opportunities, and
- inspiration for life-long
learning opportunities.
3. Connecting
activities that include but are not limited to
- matching students with
the work-based learning opportunities of employers,
- establishing procedures
for mentoring students both at school and work,
- developing a training and
technical support system for teachers, employers, mentors, and counselors
for the counseling and training of all students in all types of employment
situations (including women, minorities, and the disabled for high-skill,
high-wage careers, including employment in occupations that are considered
nontraditional for a specific gender),
- assisting schools and employers
in integrating school-based and work-based learning activities, as well as
academic and technical education within the local STC system,
- providing continued assistance
to participants in finding appropriate employment, continuing their education,
or entering into an additional occupational training program,
- linking the participants
with other community services and/or agencies that may be necessary to assure
a successful transition from school to careers,
- gathering and reporting
information regarding post-participation success on the basis of socioeconomic
status, race, gender, ethnicity, culture, disability, limited English proficiency
level, school dropout status, disadvantagement, and/or academically talented
status, and
- establishing a process
for linking youth development activities with employer and business/industry
strategies for upgrading worker skills.
4.
An emphasis on at least one labor shortage area in the community
5.
Transition activities for youths with disabilities
6.
School reinvigoration strategies, including growth process that addresses effective
leadership,
desirable institutional culture, teaching and learning, meaningful parent and
community
involvement, and technology as a teaching/learning tool
7.
Coordination with other local, state, and federal initiatives
8.
Sustainability
9.
Marketing
10. Measurable
goals and objectives
11. Local
strategies and time frames
12. Employer
involvement in the development and implementation of the local STC program
STATE PARTNERS
Mississippi’s School-to-Careers Initiative
is built around partnerships, not only at the local level, but at the state
level as well. The following entities were appointed by the Governor to coordinate
our state’s efforts under the 1994 School-to-Work Act.
Mississippi’s School-to-Careers
Initiative, Liz Williamson, State Director, 359 N. West Street, Suite 331,
P.O. Box 771, Jackson, MS 39205, 601/359-2964, FAX 601/576-4300, lwilliamson@mde.k12.ms.us
Mississippi Department of Education,
Washington Cole, Instructional Support and Training, 359 N. West Street, Suite
376, P.O. Box 771, Jackson, MS 39205, 601/359-5520, wcole@mde.k12.ms.us
Office of the Governor, Kelly
Riley, Education Advisor, 501 N. West Street, Woolfolk Office Building, 15th
Floor, P.O. Box 139, Jackson, MS 39205, 601/359-3150, FAX 601/359-3741, kriley@governor.state.ms.us
Mississippi Institutions of Higher
Learning, William McHenry,
Assistant Commissioner for Academic Affairs, 3825 Ridgewood Road, Jackson,
MS 39211, 601/432-6470, FAX 601/432-6978,mchenry@ihl.state.ms.us
State Board for Community and Junior
Colleges, Wayne Stonecypher, Associate Executive Director of Programs,
3825 Ridgewood Rd., Room 517, Jackson, MS 39211, 601/432-6524, FAX 601/432-6365,
scypher@sbcjc.cc.ms.us
Mississippi Development Authority,
Jim Lott, 301 W. Pearl Street, P.O. Box 24568, Jackson, MS 39225-4568, 601/949-2003,
FAX 601/949-2291, jlott@mississippi.org
Mississippi Parent-Teacher Association,
Obra Hackett, 509 Woodson Drive, Jackson, MS 39206, 601/979-2929, FAX 01/979-3948,
obra.v.hackett@jsums.edu
Mississippi Economic Council / MS
Public Ed Forum, Blake Wilson, President, 620 North Street, Jackson, MS,
39202, 601/969-0022, FAX 601/353-0247,bwilson@msmec.com,
edforum@bellsouth.net
State Workforce Development Council,
George Walker, Co-Chair, 1422 Shady Lane, Clarksdale, MS 38614, 662/627-6771,
FAX 662/627-6771, gwalker@clarksdale.com
STATE WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT COUNCIL
The state-level policy making/advisory
council for Mississippi’s School-to-Careers initiative is the State Workforce
Development Council. Led by George Walker, Delta Wire Corporation, the Council’s
responsibilities include:
- providing a forum for developing the
necessary collaboration among state agencies at the highest level;
- advising stake holders on effective
School-to-Careers transition policies and programs that link students moving
from high school to higher education and students moving between community
colleges and four-year institutions in pursuit of academic and technical skills
training;
- working with industry to identify carriers
that inhibit the delivery of quality workforce education and the responsiveness
of educational institutions to the needs of industry; and
- providing periodic assessments on effectiveness
and results of the STC initiative and district councils.
DISTRICT WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT COUNCILS
The District Workforce Development Councils
serve in an advisory capacity to the School-to-Careers local partnerships within
their district. Each community college district has an affiliated District Workforce
Development Council comprised of 15 persons appointed by the board of trustees
of the college. These individuals are selected from persons recommended by the
chambers of commerce, labor unions, industrial foundations, community organizations,
and local governments located in the district, with one appointee involved in
basic literacy training. At least eight of the members of each district council
must be chief executive officers or plant managers of significant employers
in that district. The District Workforce Development Councils’ obligation concerning
workforce development is to integrate and provide oversight to the development
of district workforce development plans designed for the following purposes:
- identifying workforce development needs
through job and employee assessments of local business and industry;
- setting short-term and long-term goals
for industry-specific training and upgrading and for general development of
the workforce;
- providing for coordination of all training
programs, including ABE/GED, Skills Enhancement, Industrial Services, and
work with the State Literacy Resource Center;
- encouraging and facilitating business
involvement in local partnerships; and
- serving in an advisory role to Local
Partnerships within each designated district.
CURRENT, ONGOING INITIATIVES THAT
SUPPORT THE SCHOOL-to-CAREERS CONCEPT
The goal of Mississippi’s School-to-Careers Initiative
is to bring all stake holders together towards bridging the gap between our
K-12 schools, post secondary education, and job/career placement. Activities
that support this goal have been going on for many years. We encourage you to
build upon existing efforts as you develop local initiatives. The
following list may serve as a springboard for your planning process.
- Mississippi Department of Education’s Reading Initiative
- Mississippi’s Tech Prep Initiative
- Parent Centers
- Work-Based Learning Program (WBL)
- Mississippi’s Cooperative Education (MCE) Program
- JTPA Summer Youth Employment and Training Programs
- Job Corps
- Community Service Programs
- Jobs for Mississippi Graduates (JMG)
- Junior Achievement
- Career Beginnings
- Community College Career Centers
- Student Organizations
- Mississippi Space Commerce Initiative (MSCI) Remote Sensing Education
and Training Program
- Gulf Coast Education Initiative (GCEI)
- Distance Learning in Mississippi
- Sixty (60) Mobile Learning Labs
- LBL/JSU/AGMUS Science Consortium
- Science and Engineering Alliance
- Mississippi Alliance for Minority Participation (MAMP)
- Quality Education for Minorities (QEM) Network Alliance
- MDE/JSU/Hughes Aircraft Company Science Partnership
- HBCU/MI Environmental Technology/Waste Management Consortium
- Undergraduate Biological Sciences Education Initiative
- Mississippi Tri State Consortium, Iuka
- Mississippi Technology Extension Partnership (MTEP)