If You’d Like To Connect With Me or Book Me For a

Workshop...Harding Ison-Bowmanhardingib@gmail.com

(606)615-2595

Community PartnersHow to Build and Leverage Beneficial Relationships

for Your Students’ Success!

© 2019 Harding Ison-Bowman

Focus for Student Benefit:

❖ Loads of informal/holistic benefits

❖ We will get into some formal/practical possibilities

as well: postsecondary careers

Focus for Student Benefit:Holistic/Informal❖ The keynote speaker from last year talked about

the predicted future of a young person vs. the

imagined future.

❖ This community partnership work is a powerful

way to bring seeds of possibility into the student’s

life

Focus for Student Benefit: Exposure

❖ Vision building requires exposure

Focus for Student Benefit: A Cycle

Exposure Interest

Reflection

Why People Instead of Stand-Alone Information?

❖ “Facts tell, but stories sell”

❖ The human connection inspires, encourages, and

motivates

Tony Robbins and the TurkeyWhen I was 11 years old, my

family was given a meal on

Thanksgiving from a kind stranger.

My father always said that nobody gave a d--- about anybody. But

all of a sudden someone I didn’t know, who wasn’t asking for

anything in return, was looking out for us.

Tony Robbins and the Turkey

It made me think, strangers care.

This kindness was a catalyst for what would become a foundation

of my life’s work — ENDING HUNGER for those in such desperate

need.

Who is a Community Partner?

❖ An adult who has a particular skill set, lifestyle,

vocation, or experiences that your students would

benefit from, either by short term exposure, or

from extended partnership.

Who is a Community Partner?

❖ In the marketplace right now.

❖ Part of the latest trends and methods.

❖ More up to date than even the official industry

trainings may be.

What This is NOT

❖ Taking field trips or asking people to come and

visit your classroom just to be a classroom helper

or positive influence (what I will be discussing is

much more intentional)

Why This Matters: Short Term

❖ Have You Ever Had an Experience Where…

(Mattie and Todd and the Lawn)

Why This Matters: Short Term

❖ The Novelty and Validation of 3rd Party Voices!

❖ Fresh and New!

❖ These can have more power to form a learning

connection than anything I can say or do.

Why This Matters: Short Term

❖ Story Time: Frank X Comes to School!

Why This Matters: Long Term

❖ Short term engagement and achievement can

snowball into longer term results (grades, GPA,

self esteem, thoughts of a future story, career

interest, momentum for postsecondary goals, etc.)

Why This Matters

❖ Raise Your Hand if You Ever Had a Mentor...

Grassroots Strategies for Teachers and Students to Find and Build Community Connections!

Strategies

❖ Let the content or student interest drive the

connections.

❖ What’s an area of student interest? Shout it out!

Strategies

❖ If I am talking about soil composition in my

landscape class, I could reach out to a soil scientist

at the ag extension office or nearby university, and

ask them to come speak to the class.

Strategies❖ But, I did say this would be informal stuff…!

Strategies

❖ I love the connections outside of government/

academia

❖ Small business, local people, self made,

bootstrapping

Strategies

❖ Young Erin wants to learn about being a

professional dog groomer. We will find a local dog

groomer to connect her with!

❖ [Follow along with the script for Cold Calling a Dog

Groomer]

StrategiesClassroom Phone Interview Need To Knows:

❖ Planned vs. Unplanned, Booked vs. Unbooked

❖ Leaving the “Door” Open

❖ Context of PBL (Wait Time, Independent Work)

StrategiesSo, the Cold Call...that’s one way to do it!

❖ May seem radical

❖ Everyone has access and can do it

❖ YOU may be starting from scratch

❖ Entrepreneur Spirit :)

Yeah, IB, all fair and good for you…

but, how’s that going to go when I try it??!

Mindset

❖ People intrinsically feel good about reaching back

and helping a young person who’s trying to find

his or her own path.

Mindset

❖ People don’t tell me “no” when I ask for help

pouring into a young person.

❖ Story: Eric Sowers at Culver’s in Minnesota

Mindset: Big PictureWe are balancing a few things:

❖ Giving the student access

❖ Promoting the student’s independence and

communication skills growth

❖ Wisely vetting the adult contact and safely

building the relationship along the way

Mindset: Big PictureTips:

❖ Always be asking yourself, “How can my students

take on more responsibility and practice more

skills in this situation or this step of the process?”

StrategyTips:

❖ Hand written thank you notes never go out of

style (especially when written by a young person)

Strategies

❖ Scaling Up and Out!

❖ [See Flow Chart]

Big Picture Outcomes

❖ Large School or Community Event

❖ Community Service Projects- Give back, build your

resumé, get off campus,

❖ Career Fairs- Bring all the contacts together,

massive exposure for student possibilities, hosting

people at OUR house!

What To Expect: Big EventsYour students will tap into a new performance mode

when given the opportunity to honor and serve their

new adult connections. Can you think of one of your

students who would love to help with….

❖ Hosting, Greeting, Check In Table, Signage, Event

Set Up and Tear Down, Hospitality Room, etc...

Big Picture Outcomes

❖ Large School or Community Event

❖ Empty Bowls Program, Pumpkin Patch/Sale,

Big Picture OutcomesMentorship/Internship

❖ Can be a holistic, whole child thing for the student.

OR

❖ It can be a career readiness thing!

Formal Value

❖ Job Skills, Soft Skills, Work Readiness, Graduation

with a Career Pathway.

How do I convert my community connections into greater employability for my students?

CTE General Program Standards Section 3. The content of the instruction in secondary career and

technical education programs shall be: (1) Aligned with state or

national occupational skill standards that have been recognized by

business and industry to include an understanding of all aspects of

an industry; (2) Developed and conducted in consultation with

employers and other individuals having skills and knowledge of the

occupational fields or industry included in the instruction;

Section 5. A secondary career and technical education program

shall provide opportunities for students to participate in high

quality work-based learning experiences related to the program in

which they are enrolled and shall comply with 705 KAR 4:041.

These work-based learning experiences may include the following:

(1) Job shadowing; (2) Mentoring; (3) Service Learning; (4)

School-based enterprises; (5) Entrepreneurship; (6) Internships; (7)

Cooperative education;

Section 12. A career and technical education program area shall

have an active program advisory committee comprised of business

and industry representatives, parents, education representatives,

and, if applicable to the program area, labor organizations

representatives to assist in planning, implementing, and evaluating

programs.

Can we actually...Help Erin graduate with a legitimate pathway focus

on professional dog grooming??

❖ Maybe. There is an “Exceptional Work

Experience”

Exceptional Work Experience2. Establishing Exceptional Work Experience: All items (a-f) must completed by the student. a. Document

completion of 500 hours of experience within a single career field. Hours must be completed between the time of

entering the 9th grade and graduating high school and may include hours worked in the summer. b. Demonstrate

growth over the course of the experience by assuming additional responsibilities on the job. c. Provide evidence of

an individualized professional achievement or recognition. d. Provide a minimum of two professional references.

This should include one letter from the employer and one from another person (e.g., principal, counselor, or

customer). e. Provide credible evidence of ability to collaborate, adapt to change, communicate, think critically,

and demonstration of foundational academic skills. f. Provide documentation of

alignment of work experience to the standards contained in the

relevant industry-recognized certification (as defined by the KWIB)

or CTE End-of-Program Assessment.

Other Resources

❖ CTE Work Based Learning Manual

Other ResourcesNational Center for College and Career Transitions

www.nc3t.com

❖ Mapped out guides for recruiting employer

partners, setting up advisory boards, etc.

Recruiting Partners

❖ Some contacts may end up long term partners.

❖ Some may even host and train vocational skills at

their own site.

❖ Whether holistic and informal, or formal and

certified, it’s worth it.

Recruiting Partners

❖ They can validate what you’re already saying…

❖ And they can say a whole lot you can’t...

Recruiting Partners

❖ Career fairs, student work showcases, charity

events all require a village of passionate adult

supporters

❖ Some may start interest groups and clubs, or

become subs or volunteers for the school.

High School Student Showcase

November 2018

STUDENT NAMES

Strategies

❖ You don’t want your students to get in front of

community partners and fall flat.

❖ What are they supposed to bring to the table?

Strategies: Too Old For Show and Tell!❖ To share their vision with an audience of

community partners, students need to do more

than research a career path- they must reflect on

their thoughts and their learning process to

develop the STORY of their interest, their

concerns, their developments, their goals.

Strategies

❖ Don’t forget the power of verbal processing

❖ What are some other ways to help kids “dump”

their stories out of their heads?

Vision Day 2018

Strategies

❖ To show up strong and maximize the opportunity

of meeting potential community partners, what do

your students need to do and ask, how do they

need to act? What end goal could they have in

mind depending on who they want to meet? Let

me hear from you...

Parting Shot: Mentors

❖ You may have your students asking if they can

invite these folks to their graduation.

❖ Raise Your Hand If You’ve Had a Mentor

❖ It’s their turn, now!

If You’d Like To Connect With Me or Book Me For a

Workshop...Harding Ison-Bowmanhardingib@gmail.com

(606)615-2595

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