Transcript Bridging the Gap Between Two Cultures:

Building a Bridge Between Two
Cultures
Mary Charuhas
Dean, ABE, GED & ESL
College of Lake County
Grayslake, Illinois
Build partnerships person to
person.
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A partnership is…
Mutually
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beneficial
Well-defined
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A partnership is characterized by…
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Common goals
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Shared accountability
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Shared resources and
recognition
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Components of an Effective Partnership
include Stakeholders who have a
A vested interest in the partnership
Trust
A shared vision and common goals
Respect for each partner’s
expertise
Teamwork strategies
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Components of an Effective
Partnership
Open and ongoing communication
 Motivated partners
 An action plan
 Formalized agreements
 Means to implement and sustain
the partnership
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Take Two Minutes
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Describe your
experiences while
taking college
classes.
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Describe what it
took to get into
college.
Academics and
Adult Education
Worlds Apart
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Table Discussion
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Each group will have 3 minutes to discuss their
questions. In the first column write the response
from the perspective from an adult education
program and in the second column write it from the
perspective of a community college program.
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After responding to the questions, determine if the
two systems are aligned or not. If they are not
aligned, describe what kind of alignment needs to
take place.
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Be prepared to report out your findings to the large
group.
For Example
Questions
How are classes scheduled:
Days, evenings, days of
the week, hours in a day,
time of the year?
Where are classes held?
How are classes funded?
How much do the books cost?
Adult Education Community
College
What kind of
alignment needs
to take place?
Balancing Imperatives
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Inclusive &
supportive
Realistic
Job preparation
Short-term goals
Vocational content
On the one hand…
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Setting appropriate
college standards
Optimistic
Academic
preparation
Long-term goals
Reading, writing,
math and science
skills improvement
On the other hand…
Common Barriers to Successful
Partnerships…
Tradition
Turf
Time
Trouble
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Working within a Partnership
 Determine
what is needed and by
whom
 Establish who is responsible for key
roles
 Agree on reporting requirements
 Develop action plans
 Formalize agreements
 Continue ongoing communication
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Obtain internal buy-in first.
 Your department
 Your larger
institution
 Teachers & staff
 Administrators
 Support service
providers
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Getting to the Bridge
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Rough Starts
Grant writing
Reporting
Class management
Teacher management
Staff management
Curriculum development
Meetings with external
partners.
Meetings with internal
institutional partners
Meetings with business
Transitioning students to
college or work
Changed my job
What’s next?
For your
Curriculum
Faculty
Time
Students
Coping with Change Orders
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Your priorities
Your staff
The budget
Counseling and
advisement
Curriculum
Instructional
methodology
Textbooks
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Your teachers
Staff development
Space needs
Blueprints
Work
with the highest possible levels of
administration
 Identify all coordinating departments and
groups
 Identify how each will benefit from this
partnership
 Plan, Plan, Plan
Blueprints: Start up commitment
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Invest in the time for teachers to learn
each other’s areas of responsibility
 Allow faculty to observe each other’s
classes
 Encourage faculty to share orientations and
course recruitment processes
 Have both departments spend time defining
exit and entry level skills
 Clarify the reporting and tracking needed
Blueprints: Administration
Meet with the department chairs or
deans of the career programs regularly
 Educate the career program leaders
about your program
 Use data to show effectiveness for job
acquisition and retention
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Blueprints: Instruction
Use methodologies that build
collaboration, team work, and that
require problem solving, not just getting
the right answer
 Create a classroom atmosphere that
promotes student communication and
problem solving while focusing on
customer service
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Blueprints: Technology
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Incorporate distance learning, including workrelated skills
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Integrate technology in the classroom beyond
the use of individual software to maximize
learning, problem solving, and application
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Ensure that learners acquire the technology
literacy skills they will need in postsecondary
education and the workplace
Blueprints: Support Services
Meet with guidance and counseling
 Identify the services they do and do not
provide
 Meet with the business office about financial
issues and student holds
 Meet with financial aid for help in filling out
the FAFSA forms
Share your connections with Public Assistance,
community groups and charities for assistance
Agree to a process for supporting students
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 Provide a single point of contact for
addressing problems
 Expect students who are first generation
college students to need a great deal of
exposure to the college culture
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Blueprints: Partners
Redesign your work schedule to allow
for meetings with external groups.
 Share information and support services
with each other
 Be willing to collaborate on projects and
partner on grant applications
 Focus on common goals
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Architecture
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Multiple entry points
Personal and academic
support services exposure at
all levels that further education
and training
Transferable workplace skills
such as customer service,
critical thinking, problem
solving, financial literacy, life
skills, and study skills
integrated at all levels
Partnerships with community
and government agencies
Industry focused curricula
Stackable certificates
Transitions Center
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Contextualized GED
and ESL
 Funded by ICCB
Adult Education funds
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Coordination with
DHS
 Funded by Public
Assistance Grant
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Support for tutoring
 Funded by Carl
Perkins
Principles
Responsiveness
 Collaboration
 Innovation
 Alignment
 Contextualization
 Accountability
 Evidence-based teaching and learning
 Professional development
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Signage
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Keep it simple
Keep it realistic
Design it for their needs,
not yours
Marketing to students
Marketing to partners
Ready for traffic
Language ability
 Immunizations
 Age
 Academic
knowledge and
skills
 Time, commitment,
and family support
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What are they driving?
Bikes or Beamers
Mapping the Route
Getting started!
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Students’ goals
Needs
Interests
Commitment
What is the destination?
Transportation
Childcare
Housing
Health checks
IDs
Driver’s licenses
Background checks
Financial Aid
Student loans
Student holds
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Contextualized Instruction
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Technical writing
Math with emphasis
on metric volume
and weight
Interpreting and
drawing graphs and
charts
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Clear
communication with
peers
Problem solving
Anger management
Recommendations
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Align assessment, curricula, and instructional
practices
Provide wrap-around services for transition
and retention
Provide high quality staff development
Build and maintain partnerships
Track students, maintain data, and provide
reports
Provide a single point of contact for
addressing problems
Provide explicit instruction about college
systems
Contact Information
Mary Charuhas
Dean, Adult Basic Education,
GED and ESL
College of Lake County
[email protected]
847-543-2402
Building on Strong Foundations
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Manufacturing
HVAC
Office Skills
Horticulture
Technology
ESL Support
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Allied Health
TBD Bridge program for
the trades
TBD Bridge for Office
Skills
Bridge Programs
Allied Health Bridge
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Web site for
curriculum
Staff development
available through
state professional
development system
Short term college
level allied health
career class
Tutoring and study
groups
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Emergency Medical
Technology
Medical Assisting
Pharmacy
Technician
Nursing
Allied Health Bridge
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TANF
WIA
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Assessment
Placement
Enroll in Adult
Education by
skill level
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Executive committee
of WIB
Run Programs at
DHS
Established Career
Readiness and Job
Search programs in
place
Established
Partnerships with
Academic Areas
Programs
ESL
ESL
ESL for
Academic
Purposes
GED
Spanish
GED
ABE
GED
ESL Support
classes
GED
Next
Step
College
Readine
ss
Contextualized
Bridge Class
Contextualized
Bridge Class
Career
Development
Class
Career
Development Class
Transition to College
College Level
Career
Development
Class
Integrated Career
Experiences
and CPR
certification
Enroll in Certified
Nursing Assistant
(CNA), Emergency
Medical
Technician (EMT),
Medical Assisting,
and Pharmacy
Technician
With tutoring
support
Career Development Class
Classroom visits
 Guest lecturers
 Job shadowing
 Hospital tour:
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○ Oncology nurse; travelling nurse; medication
auditor; administrative nurse; patient care
tech; assistant director of HR; pharmacist;
pharmacist technician; EMT nurse; cardiac
technologist; medical imaging technologist;
head of volunteers; Lake Forest Hospital’s
philosophy of care, etc.
Career Awareness
Career Clusters Interest Survey
 http://intranet.matcmadison.edu/careerassess/
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Course Web Site
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www.clcillinois.edu/healthlibrary
○ Units include: Day in the life of X; tips for success
in science; health care screening; medical
terminology; A & P; health care interviewing;
counselor’s perspective; student and alumni
perspectives; who pays for insurance; the hospital
as a place of work; benefits of working in health
care; criminal background checks; using foreign
health care experience; safety issues; ethics;
interpersonal skills; health care continuum;
program accreditation; NLN pre-RN exam; Preprofessional health care programs; licensure;
relationship between science and health care;
how does one choose a health care program; etc.
○ www.explorehealthcareers.org
CPR
 Meets one
screening
requirement;
 Practice test taking;
 Gives useful life
skills;
 Demonstrates the
nature of
certification, etc.
CPR Certification