Integrating Middle & High School Career Work Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools East Chapel Hill High School Career and Technical Education Chapel Hill, North Carolina

Presenter Information Ms. Fletcher Womble Career Development Coordinator at East Chapel Hill High School. Previous work experience includes: one year middle school CDC, one year high school counselor, two years high school special services. Ms. Darcy Turner Career Development Coordinator Intern. Previously a Middle School Counselor at Phillips Middle School, an ECHHS main feeder school, for 13 years. 

What will be covered in presentation: * The importance of integrating middle school and high school career work activities * What our middle schools are doing to promote career awareness * Combined middle and high school career exploration opportunities * High school career activities and exploration * Conclusions * Questions?

Why is it Important to Integrate? in·te·grate –[in-ti-greyt]  verb, -grat·ed, -grat·ing. verb (used with object)1.to bring together  or incorporate (parts) into a whole. 2.to make up, combine, or complete to  produce a whole or a larger unit, as parts do. 3.to unite or combine. www.Dictionary.com

So Why is it Important…. It is important to integrate Career information so students see that Career Exploration takes time and is a process. Connecting these steps through middle and high school helps students understand the process and see the evolving progression of their own interests, knowledge, and skills.

Overview of Middle School Career Activities * Our school district does not employ Career Development Coordinators in the middle schools, * School counselors are responsible for promoting career exploration to students through classroom visits, discussions, career exploration websites, job shadowing, etc. 

6th Grade Classroom Guidance What is a career? Why do we have them? How do people spend money? Is money really necessary? Do people have to like their careers? *Tools: Charades; Math class project; Futures4Kids (connected with the ASCA National Model); Career Week with Panel

Real Life Career Math 2+2 = 5 Scenario You have just received your diploma and are about to enter the real world. You will be given a career with a set income and your task is to create a realistic budget. An even bigger challenge is to live within that budget. 2+2 = 5 …but I can’t be overdrawn! I still have checks left!

7th Grade Interests in relation to careers *Tools: Futures4Kids; Career Game; District Career Expo; Letter to Self; Career Week with Panel

8th Grade Planning for HS and life beyond What is a transcript? GPA? 4 Year Plans (paper and F4K) College/Workforce Prep Student Service Learning Scholarships Day on the Job (incorporates LA; SS; Science; Math courses) Letters to Self returned (CHANGE even within one year) Counselor Chats I Beginning the Transition II Panel of High School Students III CTE Options; Middle College

Combined Middle School and High School Career Programs and Activities * We have various activities and events that combine our middle and high school students. * Students learn best from each other * Offering opportunities for students in different grades to interact has proven very beneficial for their career development.  

DISTRICT WIDE CAREER EXPO * Evening event: 5:30-7:30pm * Grades 6-12 are invited * Located at the local shopping mall * Middle school and high school counselors * High school CTE teachers * Middle and high school student volunteers * CTSOs set up table displays * Over 80 career presenters representing the various career clusters

Middle School Information Sessions * High school CTE students are invited to the middle schools for various sessions to talk about high school and courses offered * Usually this occurs during National Career and Technical Education Month (February). * The middle school students look up to those in high school and listen to what they say.

Rising Freshmen CTE Open House Night * Rising freshmen and their parents are invited * Evening event to promote CTE course offerings * Occurs during course registration period (early spring) * HS CTE students volunteer to talk about their courses * Visitors are taken on a tour of all CTE classrooms * Displays are set up promoting the courses with examples of class work and projects * Visitors talk to the teachers and current students

What are the High Schools doing for career development?

Computer-based Career Development * Naviance * F4K * CFNC

NAVIANCE * School purchased program * Every student in the high school has an account * College and Career search * School specific data * Personality Inventory: Do What You Are * Career Interest Profiler based on the Holland Code * Resume Yellow sheet

Future for Kids (Career Cruising) * Every student in the high school has an account, follows them from Middle School * College and Career search * Resume * Career Interest Inventory, Skills Inventory, Ability Profiler, Learning Styles Inventory * Communicate to professionals in various careers through a message board format * Complete 4 year high school plans and update yearly

College Foundation of North Carolina College and career planning program for NC Free Students create own login Schools can monitor and follow student progress Great for parents and students College, Financial Aid, Careers

Other Resources for Career Development Career Information Center Strong Interest Inventory Career books and videos Classroom Speakers (Careers in the Community Program) Post-secondary opportunities: 2yr, 4yr, military, gap year, work Field Trips Internships and Job Shadowing Interview skills, resume writing workshops

* District-wide Career Fair * Why Try * SOAR * Job Fair Events for Career Development * District-wide Career Fair * Why Try * SOAR * Job Fair

What is the Why Try Program? * Strength-based approach to helping students overcome challenges and difficulties regarding truancy, behaviors, and academics, and improve their outcomes in these areas. * Mission is to offer hope and an answer to the question “Why try in life?” * Key to program’s success is the power in the relationship between a caring adult and a student that needs help. * Program teaches social and emotional principles to students in a way that they can understand and remember. Uses a visual tool to teach a specific principle and then reinforces the principle with musical and physical activities.

* First year of implementing the program * 2 Family Specialist, 2 CDCs, 1 SPC all trained in the WhyTry program * Focusing on freshmen students * Students are invited to join the WhyTry program through referrals from teachers, counselors, school-wide watch list, and/or administrators. * Meetings are held in the CIC during lunch. Sometimes lunch is provided. www.whytry.org

Refer to gray form in folder for SOAR program sign up sheet Sophomores On A Roll The purpose of this fair is to give our sophomore students a better understanding of various careers and continue building strong partnerships with the school districts and community. Students attend enhancement sessions and then rotate through workshops on various career clusters of their choosing based on their interest inventory results. Students are selected to attend the SOAR program through referrals from teachers, counselors, school-wide watch list, and/or administrators. Refer to gray form in folder for SOAR program sign up sheet

Upper Classmen Job Fair * Held each year in the early Spring * Students bring resumes * Students come dressed to impress * Businesses come ready to hire students * Informal interviews are conducted * Students walk out with a job offer for the upcoming summer Green sheets in folder Student Preparation for Job Fair Complete a resume and cover letter Practice interview questions Lesson on how to dress professionally Lesson on etiquette

Great Opportunities to promote Career Awareness… (at both levels)

National Career Development Month (November) All students are encouraged to complete an interest inventory Career Quotes are read over the daily announcements Video announcements with facts and statistics about careers as well as definitions of career, work, and job Poster contest for all students with a prize reward to the winners Examples of promotional items given to teachers to help recruit them to talk about careers are found in your folders (salmon colored paper) Classroom Speakers across disciplines

National Career and Technical Education Month (February) CTE Power Lunches: Our CTE students and teachers set up table displays during lunch promoting the various CTE courses available Career Quotes and facts read on the daily announcements Video announcements (pictures of CTE students and class assignments) Poster contest with the National ACTE theme again, with a cash prize reward to the winners Career Speakers Student tours of CTE courses

School Publications and Announcements * Parent, Teacher, Student Association (PTSA) weekly E-Blast, monthly Wildcat News * CIC weekly updates and emails * Counselor emails regarding upcoming events * Local Newspapers and radio * CIC Website

Tips for a successful integration of Middle and High School Career Work Communication between the schools Annual events for students to look forward to Variety of activities between grade levels Teacher and administrative support 21st century skills

QUESTIONS ?

Contact Information  Ms. Fletcher Womble Career Development Coordinator fwomble@chccs.k12.nc.us Ms. Darcy Turner Career Development Coordinator Intern darcy@langoasis.org

Helpful Programs and Websites College Foundation of North Carolina, http://www.cfnc.org Future for Kids, http://www.f4k.org/ Career Cruising, www.careercruising.com Naviance, http://www.naviance.com/ (company website) ECHHS CIC Website, http://www.chccs.k12.nc.us/echhs/cic CPP, Strong Interest Inventory, www.cpp.com