Transcript Facilitator: Cindy Firestein, cfirestein@jvs

Facilitator: Cindy Firestein, [email protected]
Facilitator: Brian Moore, [email protected]
JVS: Bridges to College Program
JVS Location:
JVS, 29 Winter Street, Boston, MA 02108 (Downtown Crossing)
JVS Mission:
JVS empowers individuals from diverse communities to find employment
and build careers, and partners with employers to hire, develop, and retain
productive workforces.
JVS Impact:
For more than 75 years, JVS has been helping people secure financial
independence through educational and employment services. Each
year, JVS empowers more than 21,000 individuals through more than
36 services.
The Bridges to College Program at JVS is a FREE 23-week college preparation
program designed to help students develop the skills necessary to succeed
in college. The program is offered twice a year once from January – June and again
from July – December. There are two program pathways students may choose from:
• General Studies Pathway (Started in 2009)
• Biotechnology Pathway (Started in 2013)
• Program Manager
• 3 Academic Coaches
• 2 Instructors
•1 Math Instructor
•1 English/Science Instructor
• Alumni Specialist
• Outreach Specialist
• Employment Specialist
• 10+ Volunteer Tutors
• 5-7 College Interns
The program is structured to assist students in improving their English skills,
math skills, college placement scores and college awareness through FREE
classes and tutoring. Students who are interested in the clean energy industry
participate in the General Studies Pathway.
The Bridges to College Program's Biotechnology Pathway is designed to help
students improve their math, science, and academic/career readiness skills to
successfully transition into a 9-month college-level Biotechnology and Compliance
Certificate Program which provides students with hands-on lab training on state-ofthe-art bio-manufacturing equipment.
Biotechnology Pathway
General Studies Pathway
Cohort 12
July 2013 –
December 2013
Cohort 13
January 2014 –
June 2014
TOTAL
July 2013 –
July 2014
# of students
enrolled in program
42
46
88
# of students who
completed program
32 (76%)
42 (91%)
74 (84%)
# of students who
enrolled in college
27 (84%)
35 (83%)
62 (84%)
# completing program
345
# enrolling in college
270 (78%)
Total
Total
General Studies Total
Biotech Total
Total Enrolled
60
36
96
Male
Female
Total
39
57
Age 18-25
Age 26 - 39
Age 40 - 49
Age 50+
29
38
14
15
Pre-Program Coaching
• One-on-one interview
• Welcome calls
• Engagement calls
• Engagement Packet
During 23 Week Program
• Weekly academic and career-readiness group
coaching classes
• One-on-one coaching sessions
• Timely response to e-mails
• Follow-up with at-risk clients
• Safe and welcoming office environment
• Support services and referrals as needed
• Empathic and experienced professional coaches
• Collaborative coaching
The Bridges to College Program is always striving to provide students with new
resources and interactive student-focused events. One new initiative that will start
in January 2015 is the launch of Persistence Plus for all current students and
alumni who are enrolled in college.
“Persistence Plus engages and motivates students to
college completion through a mobile platform that
uses transformative behavioral interventions. By
marrying the best practices in student support, the
technology that students use most, and groundbreaking behavioral interventions, Persistence Plus is
uniquely able to outreach, engage, and support
students from orientation to graduation.”
www.persistenceplusnetwork.com
www.jvs-boston.org/bridges
www.facebook.com/bridgestocollege
www.twitter.com/jvsbridges
LinkedIn Group: JVS Bridges to College
• Orientation
• Computer Skills Boot Camp
• Biotechnology Industry Panel
• Cultural Sharing
• Campus Biotechnology Lab Tour
• Campus Tours
• Guest Speakers
• Graduation Ceremony
• Alumni Events
• $100 student referral contest for current students
• $100 student referral contest for alumni
• Up to $600 in tuition assistance
• $100 book voucher
• Job search support for alumni
• Dual Enrollment opportunity for General Studies Pathway students
• Transportation assistance for students experiencing financial hardship
• Additional scholarship and college saving opportunities
• Support from Employment Specialist
• Career Workshop Series
• Resume Writing
• Cover Letter Development
• Mock Interviewing
• Job Search Support
• Access to Alumni Specialist
• Open House for Alumni
• LinkedIn Workshops
• Third-party payments for
tuition and textbooks
Alumni Testimonial: Yamileth Lopez
1) Have one person from your table act as speaker to share the activity with the larger group.
2) Spend a few minutes reviewing the activity at your table with your small group.
3) Identify 5 reasons why you think these activities/materials have been successful in
engaging students.
4) How would you improve the small group activities/materials?
5) How could you implement these activities/materials in your program?
6) Brainstorm with your small group to create a new interactive activity. Make sure your
activity has some type of goal or learning outcome.
1) Details of how to implement your activity.
2) Goals of your group’s activity. (Learning Outcome)
Thank you so much for coming.
We would be happy to answer any questions you may have.
Feel free to contact us after the conference if you have
any additional questions or ideas:
Facilitator: Cindy Firestein, [email protected]
Facilitator: Brian Moore, [email protected]
JVS: Bridges to College Program
www.jvs-boston.org/bridges
“Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement,
nothing can be done without hope and confidence.”
~ Helen Keller ~