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Promising Practices Newsletter

VOLUME 2, ISSUE 5 I MARCH 4, 2021

In this newsletter: SUBSCRIBE

A Districtwide Approach P1 Addressing P3 Health and Safety at P5 Ashbury High School P6 Featured Speakers P7 NEW flipping
to Preparing Students for the Students’ Mental the 2021 Making Schools Wins 2020 Pacesetter Deb Page, Chris Madrid page format
Day After Graduation Health Needs Work Conference School Award and Mary Hemphill-Joseph

A Districtwide Approach to Preparing Students for the Day After Graduation
By Jahana Martin, SREB

Like many cities, Chickasaw, Alabama, just outside Mobile, faces a shortage of properly trained skilled workers. When David Wofford
became superintendent of the Title I Chickasaw City Schools district in spring 2019, he had a vision of how to address the shortage and
increase the pool of individuals with industry-recognized certifications and credentials.
“We wanted to establish a vision where we’re
preparing students for the day after graduation,”
says Wofford. “We want every student to graduate
with some type of credential where if they choose to
go into the workforce, they’re ready to go,” he says.
To help students to attain credentials of value
in high-demand careers, Wofford and assistant
superintendent Michele Eller leverage partnerships
and work-based learning opportunities to provide
career exploration to pre-K-12 students throughout
the district. Now, Chickasaw City Schools
collaborates with over 30 business, industry and
education partners to equip students with academic
and employability skills. They also established the
first virtual CTE school in Alabama in 2019.
David Wofford and Michele Eller

Southern Regional Education Board I Promising Practices Newsletter I 21V02w I SREB.org 1