Elgin Community College Unemployment

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Elgin Community College Unemployment
Transitional Services InitiativePresenter
Peggy Heinrich, Dean of Adult Basic Education

• MHEC Summit, November 9, 2009

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Session overview

• Organizational changes leading to success
  resources available to students
• Adult Education Healthcare Bridge Project
• Summer Youth Employment Program

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Achieving the Dream

• Background
• Student-centered vision
• Equity in
• Student success (close achievement gaps) and
• Excellence (academic quality)
• Culture of evidence and inquiry
• Broad engagement

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Achieving the Dream Goals

• Increase the number of students who
• Successfully complete developmental courses and
  progress to credit-bearing courses
• Enroll in and complete gateway courses
• Complete courses with a grade of C or higher
• Re-enroll from one semester to the next
• Earn certificates and degrees/transfer

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(No Transcript)
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Organizational factors Student resources

• New President in 2007 and significant personnel
  changes within administration
• Designation of a Dean for Adult Education
  division
• Blending of Adult Basic Education and Workforce
  Transitions departments
• Creation of college-wide Unemployment Services
  Coordinator

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Organizational factors Student resources

• Marketing campaign to promote scholarships,
  services, and resources for the unemployed
• Significant institutional support for adult
  education division
• Soon new building close to main campus will
  improve access to services and other classes for
  adult learners (proximity will encourage
  transition)

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Organizational factors Student resources

• Joint GED graduation between ECC and school
  district
• 3 credit hour tuition waiver for all GED
  Advanced ESL graduates
• Board of Trustees Scholarship for top-scoring GED
  graduate
• Tuition-free adult ed. programming now includes
  Advanced ESL

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Organizational factors Student resources

• Introduction to GED course (1.5 credit hour
  class) provides college information, career
  exploration opportunities, and tours of main
  campus
• Fast Track GED and on-line GED (GEDi) provide
  efficient paths to GED completion for
  higher-level students
• Resume production and soft skills are included in
  numerous courses

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Organizational factors Student resources

• Most upper-level ESL and GED classes are now
  offered at the main campus to encourage
  transition
• New ESL Recognition Event this year will
  recognize level advancements and other
  achievements for ESL students
• Unemployment office offers on-site recruitment
  for area jobs
• Student Support Specialists

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Adult Education Healthcare Bridge Project

• Development grant received in Fiscal Year 2009
  from Illinois Community College Board (ICCB) to
  develop Healthcare Bridge Project
• Implementation grant received in Fiscal Year 2010
  from ICCB to assist with project implementation

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Healthcare Bridge Project

• Purpose To equip GED and Intermediate-Advanced
  ESL learners with an understanding of health
  career options, program requirements, personal
  aptitude, and next steps required to achieve
  goals.
• Components
• 3 credit hour healthcare bridge course
• Academic advising and transition support
• Real world experience via field trips guest
  speakers

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Healthcare Bridge Features

• High expectations, e.g. strong attendance policy
  requirement to travel to field trips
• Assignments outside of class, e.g. completion of
  practice COMPASS test, meeting with Unemployment
  Services Coordinator to map out future plan
• Pre-screening meeting with Unemployment Services
  Coordinator to ensure student is eligible for
  healthcare program (e.g. felony, valid SSN)

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Healthcare bridge features

• Active collaboration between local hospitals and
  multiple college departments (e.g. adult
  education, workforce transitions, health
  professions)
• Nursing Retention Specialist ESL Faculty Member
  developed the course
• Popular enough to run two full sections this fall
  (only 1 was anticipated)

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Lessons learned via healthcare bridge

• Entry requirements for healthcare programs are
  difficult for adult ed. learners to achieve (e.g.
  84 COMPASS score for CNA program)
• Transition course is needed (beyond bridge) to
  focus specifically on general college readiness
  skills and COMPASS skill brush-up
• Program would benefit from committed full-time
  Transition Coordinator
• More time needed in bridge course to cover all
  content

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Summer youth employment programImproving Our
Environment, Our Community, and Ourselves

• Funded by American Recovery Reinvestment Act
  dollars
• Grants received from two separate Workforce
  Boards (LWIBs 5 8)
• Designed to provide meaningful work experience
  opportunities for low-income youth
• 130 youth served
• Included in Vice President Joe Bidens 100 Days,
  100 Projects report

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Program Overview

• Components
• Academic instruction
• Career modules
• Work-readiness activities
• Work experience

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Program Overview

• In-school youth (16-18 years) format
• 2 weeks classroom-based work readiness activities
  Mon-Thurs, 9-230
• 5 weeks career modules, academic, work
  experience
• Mon/Tues career modules and academic, 9-230
• Wed/Thurs work experience, 9-230

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Program Overview

• Out-of-school (19-24 years) format
• 2 weeks work readiness activities
• Mon-Thurs, 9-12 p.m.
• Up to 40 hours work experience weekly to max. of
  520 hours per youth

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Work Experience

• In-school youth work-sites
• Cohort design
• Streamwood Park District
• Dundee Township
• Conservation Project Focus

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Work experience

• Out-of-school youth work-sites
• Provena St. Joseph Hospital Bartlett Library
• Streamwood Park District Village of Streamwood
• Boys and Girls Club of Elgin Gail Borden Library
• The Literacy Connection ABT Bearing
• School District U-46 Salvation Army
• Taylor Family YMCA YWCA Elgin
• City of Elgin (Police Department The Centre of
  Elgin)
• Ace Hardware

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special features

• Specialized Positive Peer Culture training
  provided to Team Leaders
• Kick Off night and celebration activities
• Team Leader Design
• Career modules
• Cohort model
• Womens group
• Documentary

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Documentary project

• 2 film instructors (ECC students) supported by
  full-time media faculty member
• Many students were interviewed and filmed in
  classroom and work experience settings
• Students contributed to the project by
• Crafting interview questions
• Contributing to layout
• Identifying theme and title of video
• Recording and editing

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Documentary Keys to success

• Premise (keeping it real)
• Younger instructors interviewing/leading project
  helped students open up
• Film Instructor at ECC served as adviser to film
  instructors
• Inter-departmental collaboration (equipment
  sharing)

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Benefits of documentary project

• Illustrates the impact of summer program
  qualitative data
• Excellent marketing tool both internally at ECC
  and throughout the community
• Working across college departments improved
  awareness of program college-wide
• Impact on film instructors
• More to come

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Documentary preview
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Questions?