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2008 Project: Collaborating for Student Success |
BEST PRACTICE FOCUS: CAREER PATHWAYS CONSORTIUM: DESCRIPTION: Building positive and effective relationships with community organizations, businesses, and foundations is an integral part of creating a successful career academy. Over the past 4 years, The School District of Palm Beach County has built and maintained an amazing business partnership with Palm Healthcare Foundation, Inc. Palm Healthcare Foundation (PHF) is the leading public healthcare foundation in Palm Beach County. They bring the community together to identify common goals and implement transformative healthcare solutions. As part of their Nursing Education Initiative, PHF has funded a Consultant position for the Career Education Department for the past 4 years. This consultant works from the District offices and acts as a Career Education Specialist for the Medical Sciences Academies. The consultant performs the daily roles that all other Specialists perform, including working closely with the schools, teachers, program curriculum, staff development, and program support. In addition, PHF also provides a significant amount of financial support to the Medical Sciences Academies throughout the District. They provide approximately $15,000 per year to be used to purchase updated equipment and software for the medical sciences programs. In addition, they award $12,000 each year in scholarships for the Health Occupations of America (HOSA) students to attend the State Leadership Conference. Furthermore, they continually sponsor school events, as well as Career education events. Aside from the support provided through the School District, PHF also runs their own Primary and Secondary Outreach Initiatives that reach Palm Beach County students grades K-12, one being the Explore Nursing Initiative. Through this initiative, students at one elementary school and one middle school in PBC with a Medical Sciences Academy will be offered in-classroom and after-school programs designed to introduce them to the nursing profession, while strengthening core math, science, reading and critical thinking skills. Healthy living / health education topics and the concept of culturally competent healthcare and nursing care will also be included. The in-classroom curriculum will be tied to and expanded on through the after-school program. In addition, 60 elementary school students will be offered a FREE 5-week nursing summer camp that includes job shadowing events and field trips that highlight nursing skills, career options, and employment settings, and introduce them to middle and high school Medical Sciences Academies, as well as post-secondary nursing programs. After-School learning labs and tutoring services for core subjects and SAT/ACT preparation are provided for students from area high schools with Medical Sciences Academies. PHF has purchased over $10,000 in new computers for these labs, and staffs them 2 days per week. In addition, these students will be eligible to apply for paid nursing-related internships in local healthcare settings and junior counselor positions at the elementary school nursing summer camp. Finally, these high school students will be given priority for scholarships and stipends if they decide to pursue a nursing degree. The goal of these primary and secondary school pre-entry preparation activities is to “pipeline” the elementary school students into the targeted middle school medical sciences program, then into similar programs at the high school level and, finally, to pursue a nursing or healthcare degree at a post-secondary school. By offering a variety of educational and nursing career exploration opportunities over time, as well as incentives (e.g., paid internships and scholarships) for continued participation in the program, we are confident that this will engage and support our targeted students in the pursuit of a nursing or healthcare career. In addition, in conjunction with the Education Foundation they extended the learning lab at Glades Central High School into the summer. The Summer Learning Lab program targeted incoming freshman entering the Medical Sciences Academy at Glades Central. The one month program paired the incoming freshman with a mentor (a sophomore or junior already in the program at Glades Central). These students had the opportunity to become exposed to the medical sciences setting prior to entering the school their freshman year. They received HIPPA, HIV 101, and CPR training over the summer (which is a requirement once in the academy) and went on several field trips to local hospitals, colleges and exhibits. At the end of the program, the mentors received a $500 stipend, and the incoming freshman received a $50 gift card to go towards school supplies for the upcoming year. The goal of this program is to retain these incoming freshmen in the academy and avoid the possibility for dropout. Palm Healthcare Foundation has received the Business Partnership Award from the School Board for 3 years in a row. They are a strong asset to all of our Medical Sciences Academies. It is partnerships like this one that are a model for academies throughout the state and nation. CONTACT INFORMATION: |
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