Connecting Each Student To The Future

The Lee’s Summit R-7 School District maintains a strong tradition in preparing students for a “rapidly changing world” as our mission statement indicates. We feel that each student needs rigor, relevance and relationships provided to them through our curricular and instructional programs to prepare them for the career of their choice. As a means to this end, the R-7 District has implemented the “Connecting Each Student to the Future” (CESTTF) initiative.

Connecting Each Student to the Future (CESTTF) began with a committee of 56 individuals representing members of the business community, parents, LSR7 board members, administrators and teachers. The desired outcome was to provide a seamless, comprehensive K-12 Career Connections system which embraces all components of career education including career pathways and prepares all students for their future.

CESTTF components include:
» High expectations for ALL students
» Relevant instruction in ways that would help ALL students achieve goals
» Career-focused – relevant learning
» Community involvement in teaching and learning
» Strong parent connection
» Employability skills and character development
» Commitment to program from ALL stakeholders

There have been many successes as a result of the CESTTF initiatives:

	Focused Learning Research shows that the two most important criteria related to postsecondary success is a commitment t ocareer development and academic skills (Gray, 2000). The Lee's Summit R-7 School District implemented Focused Learning to assist in career development for all students.
	Employability Transcript The Lee's Summit R-7 School District recently developed employability transcripts, designed to help high-school students compete for jobs, apply for scholarships and prepare for the transition from school to career. The new transcripts are available for students who are graduating in May 2011 and beyond. Sophomores and freshmen may request the transcripts by filing out a form at their high school's guidance office. The new program was developed as part of the district's emphasis on connecting all students to their future. The high schools will also continue to offer academic transcripts, which are used when students apply to colleges and universities. The employability transcripts will emphasize career preparedness through selection of an area of focus, dependability through record of attendance in school, career readiness academic skills through ACT WorkKeys scores, supervised internship programs and technical skill attainment through national certifications.
	Increased rigor in the classroom Increased rigor does not mean more assignments or harder tests. The Lee’s Summit School District defines increased rigor in the following way: High expectations for all students Increased high school graduation requirements Assignments/tests resulting in proficient comprehensive thinking skills as well as proficiency in the application of thinking skills Relevance - connect learning to life beyond the classroom Active learning Interdisciplinary assignment Successes include: Elimination of lower-level courses; thus, encouraging students to challenge themselves to take more rigorous courses Appropriate course sequencing is in place that meets the needs of students Written common assessments are given to students across the district Extra help is given to students who have not mastered course content
	HSTW/MMGW High Schools That Work (HSTW): a framework for whole-school improvement that provides challenging academic and career/technical programs and sets high expectations for students and teachers. Making Middle Grades Work (MMGW): Designed to raise the academic achievement of middle grades students and to increase the percentages of students who reach the Proficient and Advanced levels as defined by the National Assessment of Educational Programs.
	Advisement/Mentoring Programs (BEST, API, ADVISORY) Each student is assigned a teacher advisor upon entering 9th grade. This advisor works with the student and his/her parents throughout high school to set and meet goals for a successful future. Students meet with advisors weekly to identify interests, values and skills; explore educational and occupational possibilities, and formulate individual plans for education, training and career entry. Each spring parents and students meet with the student’s teacher advisor to review the student’s career goals/career pathway, interests and aptitudes, current four-year plan and credits earned to ensure that the student is selecting courses that will best prepare them for life after high school.
	Spring Advisement Conferences Students, parents and student’s mentor meet each spring to review the student’s course selection for the upcoming school year, the four-year plan of study, and post high school goals.
	Secondary Program of Studies Booklet Career pathway and course selection information are found in the Secondary Program of Studies Booklet.
	Centers of Excellence As a high school junior or senior, students can build skills while they explore a career area of interest to them. Most of these programs offer college credit or solid preparation for business and industry certifications. These rigorous programs are intended to help students explore a career area and acquire academic and occupation-specific skills that will prepare them for a smooth transition into college, apprenticeships or the workplace. What better way to make sure their current career interest is something they want to pursue after high school? The Career Education Consortium Centers of Excellence are sponsored by the Center, Grandview, Hickman Mills, Independence, Lee’s Summit and Raytown School Districts. For more information, contact your student's school guidance counselor or call the Career Education Consortium Office 816-759-1291. Centers of Excellence Offered by LSR7 Currently there are 11 Centers of Excellence offered at Summit Technology Academy. They are Digital Electronics PLTW Computer Integrated Manufacturing PLTW Engineering Design and Development PLTW IT Essentials Networking Essentials Advanced Networking CISCO Academy Digital Media Technology Biomedical/Biotechnical Science Pre-professional Nursing Pre-professional Education Cadet Summit International Studies Academy
	Career Pathway Advisory Teams Mission: To provide curriculum for our students reflective of industry standards. Members include: Teachers, administrators, parents, business people, post-secondary educators, and community representatives. Task: Annually evaluate current course offerings, using their expertise and CTE Program Evaluations to examine the validity of each “Area of Focus” within the six Pathways and make recommendations for improvement i.e. courses to be added/dropped or tweaked. The same evaluation process is applied to “Areas of Concentration” as the team examines each for appropriateness and recommends changes for improvement.