Each November, the National Career Development Association sponsors National Career Development Month to recognize and celebrate the students and staff who utilize career development opportunities in their schools to prepare them for employment after graduation. At Questar III, students in Career Tech and Career Studies programs, as well as Special Education programs have a wide variety of career development resources and experiences at their disposal to help them succeed.
CTE programs offer a variety of work-based learning experiences, sometimes on a weekly basis. From working on projects for customers to specific community service opportunities, Career Tech and Career Studies students get first-hand experience with the skills they need in the work world. In Career Tech programs, an internship is strongly encouraged as part of the work-based learning component required by New York State-approved Technical Education programs.
Student internships range from 25-40 hours and are usually completed over the course of one week. Some programs send all their students out during the same week but to different sites, and other internships are spread throughout the year. Work-Based Learning Coordinator Joan Rogers at Columbia-Greene Educational Center and Teresa Mills at Rensselaer Educational Center work with students to find an appropriate internship and ensure all paperwork is in place for the experience. Certain programs such as Cosmetology and Certified Nursing Assistant need a certain number of hours to be eligible to take the licensing exams at the end of their CTE program.
Questar III has relationships with many businesses and business owners in and around the Capital Region from years of placing students in internships. Many businesses provide input by serving on the CTE consultant committees for individual programs while other businesses support Questar III students through hosting internships. These relationships have helped expand student opportunities and experiences in the work world.
Business owners and managers often welcome student internships from Questar III CTE programs as they know our students are well-trained with all of the basics needed for that industry. Many students end up with jobs from their internship experiences either directly following their internships or in the future after additional training or college.
An internship is an amazing way for students to have the opportunity to truly experience the work environment of the program area they are interested in and to develop a greater understanding for the career they want. This is also a win for the employers as they are able to potentially gain great employees in the future while contributing to the education of today’s youth.
Career Development is not only available in CTE programs- there are many opportunities for students to gain valuable work experience in our Special Education programs as well.
Last year, Questar III was awarded a grant to help improve access to Career Development and Occupational Studies (CDOS) programs to our special education students, which in turn will lead to an increase in students graduating high school with a CDOS credential, highlighting their readiness for entry-level jobs in a wide-range of fields.
By the end of the 2016-2017 school year, Questar III will have two full-time CDOS teachers, who will split their time between Sackett Educational Center, Rensselaer City, Catskill Academy, the Academy at REC and CGEC. At Rensselaer City, students use the Practical Assessment Exploration System (PAES) lab to help learn and develop job and life skills. This lab functions as a job site – where teachers are not “teachers” but “supervisors” and students punch in and out on a time clock when they arrive and leave.
Once students are at the high school level, work-based learning coordinator Jon Levine plays an integral role in preparing students who are able for employment prior to and/or after graduation. Jon works with students and families to find a good fit for a job for students. As of the end of November, he’s found jobs for nine students at Sackett Educational Center and Catskill Academy.
His relationship with employers is key to student success. He acts as a go-between for the employer and the student to help the student stay on track and work with the employer to make sure the combination is a good fit while helping to deal with or address any potential issues that arise. Through Jon’s connections, nine special education students have secured gainful employment prior to graduation.
Students can earn CDOS hours and gain valuable experience in school as well. Owen Kunhardt, a senior at Sackett Educational Center is graduating early in January 2017 with an advanced Regents diploma as well as a CDOS credential. He earned many of the hours he needed for the CDOS credential from working on the books at a restaurant, volunteering at his local library and spearheading Sackett’s Kiva project. Kiva is a non-profit organization whose mission is to alleviate poverty through granting loans to individuals. Kiva provides donated funds from corporate sponsors. The Sackett students then applied these loans to a project of their choice (i.e. sanitation project, books for education, clean energy projects). Through tracking the success of the projects, students gain the satisfaction of knowing how their efforts helped someone in need. Owen presented the Kiva project to his classmates at Sackett and to Questar III’s classes at Maple Hill Middle School.
