Meeting Topic: 2008 Dropout Prevention Summit Workshop

Vital Group   "Back to Basics"

Time/Date/Location: 

April 25, 2008, Lawrence Tech University

Notes

1.  What are the most important and best practices for this area?

• Trust - Throughout the community & school   Traust teachers with tflexibility to make decisions.  Includes safety.
• Mentoring
• Consistency - In basics with programs.  Keep programs around long enougth to see if they work
• Resources - availability and use of data and technology
• Start Early - but don't forget about those in the process
• Teaching Basic Values - respect for self, others

2.  What are the ideas and strategies we need to implement?

• Make connections with the students.
• Invoicing local businesses in programs
• Making sure every student feels important
• Make technology and resources available to parents so they can model behaviors

3.  How do we overcome challenges to implementation in your area?

• Mentor students until they develop the intrinsic motivation to do it for themselves
• Improve resources available bring into 21st century

4.  How will you change conditions?

• Guidance counselors only council students from an emotional perspective, not paper pushing or substituting
• Social services available at the school (wrap around programs)
• Conflict resolution for all stakeholders (students, staff, community)
• Violence prevention through character development and diversity awareness and intergroup dialogue.

5.  How will you build capacity?

• Grants
• Incentives - give parents skills for their needs.  (i.e. extrea preps to teachers who participate after school, $50 to start saving for parents who participate on career counseling)
• Keep programs user friendly and non-threatening
• Making school available during non-school hours
• Survey partents and community, then meet their needs

6.  How will you create clusters?

• Engage communities by making social services available -- help heal families and they heal students.
• School as a community service/social service liason
• Career clusters that connect subject matters to job relevance
• Specific planned experience required for each grade level (e.g. 9th grade trop to DC ! )
• Co-op with neighboring community buinesses, internships, jobshadowing apprenticeships and industry partnerships