Page 37 - May JSF Report

FCAN SUMMIT REPORT (2)
LET’S GET THEM HIRED! – The Career & Technical Education (CTE) Director for Brevard Public Schools talked about how her district is partnering with local businesses to help them become comfortable hiring high school students. She noted that not every employer wants an intern, so it’s important to ask employers how they want to engage. The next challenge is overcoming barriers to participation, such as concerns about child labor laws and transportation. She said some of these issues can be addressed by communicating with stakeholders.
REALIZING THE COLLEGE DREAM - This was a presentation by ECMC Foundation of their national training program. Thanks to Johnson Scholarship Foundation’s introduction, the School District of Palm Beach County (SDPBC) has used their 3 piece series. Wanda Kirby, who was formerly the head of the Johnson Scholars Program, attended this meeting with me. She was very impressed with the improvements and enhancements to the program since she had presented it several years ago and stayed after the session to discuss getting the updated program back to the SDPBC.
PARTNERSHIPS, PATHWAYS & PROGRAMS – Representatives from Florida Gulf Coast University spoke about how they developed micro-credentialing and digital badging to help students build their résumés. FGCU developed partnerships with employers such as Arthrex and Lee Health. Next, the university developed 3 industry-specific badges designed to help students learn about different kinds of careers. They later created transferable skills badges which are designed for students who know nothing about the industry. An example would be a computer sciences student working in the Information Technology (IT) office of a healthcare facility. A third category of badges is for young alumni and people in the community. These badges provide training, including reskilling and upskilling. While the other badges are free, this category of badging does have a fee-based element.
FROM COLLEGE ACCESS TO COLLEGE COMPLETION – This session was about the college level program run by all of the Take Stock chapters in the state. It was created in 2018 and serves over 6,500 students annually. They boast a graduation rate of 72% vs. the national rate of 29% ... and declare that they need to do better!
MAXIMIZING FAFSA DATA TO MAXIMIZE FAFSA COMPLETION – The gist of this session was that work needs to be done to help more students complete the FAFSA. A study showed that 92% of students who completed a FAFSA ended up enrolling in postsecondary compared to less than 50% for these who did not complete it. Also, research shows a strong correlation between financial aid and college persistence. FCAN started its statewide FAFSA Challenge program in 2017 to encourage Florida schools and districts to increase their FAFSA completion by 5 percentage points over the previous year. Interestingly, the number one error on the FAFSA is that the students’ first and last names are inverted.
HOW CAN WE BEST SERVE STUDENTS ATTENDING HISTORICALLY BLACK COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES? – Bo George of the Take Stock/Johnson Scholars program also attended this session. Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) make up 3% of colleges in the country. The founder of the Common Black College Application was on the panel, and he spoke about how his application is helping more students receive scholarships to these schools. Students pay a one-time fee of $20 to apply to 67 schools. He recently partnered with the Education Equalizer Foundation to develop the Black College Equalizer program. Like the Take Stock/Johnson Scholars program, that program is a college success program that aims to reach students as young as middle school through college tours and other activities.
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