Policy Brief on

Employment Preparation

EDU 5103 Educational Governance and Policy Issues Spring 2010

Alesia Holewinski Alice Kane

Christian Soto

  Long Island will have an increased population of citizens age 65 and older

  Employees are remaining in the workforce past the traditional retirement age

  Employment opportunities are changing due to economic trends and globalization

  High School Graduates’ needs for employment preparation are not meeting employer expectations or job opportunities. (Feller 2003)

  Establish a policy to address student preparation for employment beginning in high school.

  Population Change

Hughes 2010

US Department of Labor 2010

Decreases Increases

Farmers and Ranchers Registered Nurses

Sewing Machine Operators Home Health Aides

Order Clerks Customer Service

Postal Service, Processors Combined Food Preparation, Including Fast Food

File Clerks Personal and Home Care

Shipping, Receiving and Traffic Clerks Retail Salespersons

Telemarketers Office Clerks

First-line, Supervisors/Managers Accounts and Auditors

Administrative Office Support Nursing, Aides, Orderlies and Attendants

Packers and Packagers Postsecondary Teachers

For jobs that will be decreasing

•  Many current jobs will be obsolete

•  These jobs required short term on the job training

For jobs that will be increasing

•  Majority of these jobs are service oriented

•  Many in the health care industry

•  Most are not considered high paying positions

 One of the most significant changes that will occur, according to the data presented by Hughes (2010), is the aging workforce. People will not be retiring and this will decrease the amount of jobs available for graduating students. The US Department of Labor (2010) notes that people over the age of 55 are continuing to participate in the workforce and will account for 43% of the labor force during the period of 2008-2018.

In addition, economic trends and globalization are changing the face of future job opportunities. The US Department of Labor (2010) has projected both declines in certain types of employment and increases in others

Current Population Data for Farmville School District

Data Points and Vital Signs

The purpose of our policy is to ensure that students will graduate high school and obtain employment.

•  Create a Job Internship Program   Program of job training work experience   Coordinate with school based learning component

  Lead to skills certificates

•  Gather information regarding current status:   How knowledgeable is the staff regarding employment

preparation?

  What knowledge and skills will students need?   What are the employment opportunities and expectations?

No current policy in place to aid students in post high school plans.

Students in their junior year and who are on an academically challenging path, meet with a guidance counselor to investigate a website called Career Zone.

Parents and students meet with counselor to discuss future plans.

Current

  Meet with students to discuss their personal issues

  Ensure that that students meet their graduation requirements

  Assist with college transcripts, applications, and financial aid

Counselors:

  Work with students and their families, who are headed for college level studies

  Gather groups of Juniors to complete an online survey called “Career Zone”.

Students:

  Felt counselors are very nice

  Did not meet their needs regarding career choices or college application requirements

  Did not feel confident that counselors could help with personal issues

 Provide career exploration and counseling at the start of high school

 Act as a School-Work Liaison for assigned students

 Match students with employers

 Provide assistance to students with completing the program and finding a job

 Provide links with community service to allow for successful transition to work after graduation

Changes in the approach to Employment Preparation will lead to:

  Students and parents will be aware of requirements needed to fulfill perspective employment opportunities

  Increased knowledge of workforce trends and employment options.

  Students will be more competitive to meet the needs of the changing workforce and employer expectations.

  Students will leave high school prepared to work

Gardner 1983

  Personnel

  Materials: instructional, technical, data collection

  Community Outreach

  Establish a policy to guide student preparation to enter the workforce meeting employer expectations of strengths in knowledge, problem solving skills, technical skills, and collaborative communication skills.

  Create procedures to implement the policy.

  Provide data, training and materials to stakeholders.

  Create an expert panel of educators, counselors, college and technical representatives and local employers.

  Create relationships with employers to establish job internships for students.

  Burden on Counselors who are already carrying a heavy student load

  Students will leave high school with the ability to gain employment

  Career opportunities will fluctuate

  Student still may not complete chosen path despite increased preparation efforts

  Students and parents may still view the option of going to college first more desirable than working

  References

  Feller, R. W. (2003). Aligning School Counseling, the Changing Workplace, and Career Development Assumptions. Professional School Counseling , 6 (4).

  Gardner, H. (1983). Frames of Minds, Theory of Multiple Intelligences. New York, New York: Basic Books.

  Hughes, D. J. (2010). The Coming Waves. St. John's University, Department of Administration and Instructional Leadership. Oakdale: Scope.

  New York Career Zone. (2010, May 8). Retrieved from http://www.nycareerzone.org/

  United States Division of Labor. (2010, May). (U. B. Labor, Producer) Retrieved from http://www.bls.gov/news.release/ecopro.nr0.htm