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Recognized as an Effective School-to-Work Practice, June, 2000
Skills for Tomorrow High School
Teamsters Joint Council 32
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Overview of the Project
Established in 1994, Skills for Tomorrow High School (SFTHS) is one of Minnesota’s oldest charter schools and the first school-to-work charter school in the nation. SFTHS is a partnership between business (Minnesota Business Partnership and participating internship sites), education (University of Minnesota, College of Education and Human Development and Minneapolis, St. Paul, and surrounding suburban school districts), labor (Minnesota Teamsters Joint Council 32 and Minnesota Teamsters Service Bureau), postsecondary schools, and several community-based organizations and agencies. SFTHS now enrolls more than 120 students in grades 7-12. Joint Council 32 was one of the co-founders of the charter high school and continues to provide students internships, work experiences, and other career development activities. Overall, SFTHS is designed to offer cooperative learning experiences where students develop the skills and knowledge identified by business as essential for workforce participation.
The mission of the school is to assist secondary students in making the transition to postsecondary education and high skill workplaces by integrating academic instruction and work-based experiences in learning environments that respect cultural diversity. As a public charter school, SFTHS primarily teaches students from the surrounding metropolitan area, many of who are from low socioeconomic backgrounds. With its school-to-work programmatic focus, SFTHS provides core classes in math, English, social studies, science, as well as electives. Through experiential and cooperative learning experiences, students develop skills and knowledge identified by businesses as necessary for future workforce participation. After an initial training period (Phase I), students complete service learning projects (Phase II) and develop problem solving skills, teamwork, leadership and personal responsibility in a community-based social service agency. In high school’s employment, training and readiness program (Phase III), students complete a one year internship in a local business site. Students gain concrete experiences in self chosen careers through individual analysis of the skills necessary in that field. Finally students are expected to begin postsecondary educational options at local colleges or technical school and prepare a portfolio presentation for graduation that is viewed by a panel of business and education leaders (Phase IV).
Teamsters Joint Council 32 and the Minnesota Teamsters Service Bureau work closely with SFTHS staff and students in making available a wide range of work-based learning and other career development activities. Joint Council 32 represents all affiliated union locals in Minnesota in a wide range of occupations including airlines, public defenders, truck drivers, manufacturing, warehousing, bakery, dairy, law enforcement, and other public employees.
The Need
The primary need addressed by SFTHS is that of helping young people access high quality, exemplary school-to-work educational programs through labor, industry and education collaboration. Many young people currently leave school ill-equipped with the skills necessary to perform jobs in a modern, competitive world economy. Students suffer as a result by floundering in the labor market, wasting sometimes several years in intermittent, low paying jobs. Further, many young people fail to see the connection between what they are expected to learn in school and how such information and skills can be readily applied in everyday life in their communities. Failing to see this connection, far too many students drop out of school or simply set low expectations for learning. These problems continue well into adulthood and present these young adults with significant barriers to achieving success in the workplace. SFTHS was designed to provide a supportive and creative environment for learning that helps students to make the connection between what they learn in school and the world of work.
SFTHS is also based on the recognition that no one sector—organized labor, business, or public schools—can fully prepare youth for tomorrow’s workplaces alone. The three sectors, however, can form an ideal partnership in designing an educational program with a specific focus on the development of skills needed to be successful workers. The charter school model itself provides a unique opportunity to demonstrate the importance of this partnership. Many states currently have charter school legislation and there is a national movement to continue to expand these schools nationwide. Charter schools provide flexibility and an opportunity to break away from traditional educational program models. SFTHS was established to provide an educational learning opportunity for those students who would perform best in a hands-on, cooperative learning and school-to-work oriented model. This provided Teamsters Joint Council 32 and the Minnesota Teamsters Service Bureau an opportunity to become a major partner in the development as well as the day to day operations of the school.
Meeting the Need
This section will describe the basic strategies used in meeting the identified needs of students for an alternative school program focused on school-to-work. These strategies include: (1) the Teamsters Joint Council 32 and the Minnesota Teamsters Service Bureau role in the initial start-up of the charter school, and (2) a description of the four phase program that SFTHS had developed to meet the educational needs of students.
In the spring of 1993, the Minnesota Teamsters Service Bureau initiated a discussion concerning the possibility of starting a charter school with the University of Minnesota’s College of Education and Human Development and Minnesota Business Partnership. Over the years, the Teamsters had developed a relationship with the University of Minnesota and the Minnesota Business Partnership through other project involvements. In fact, for more than a decade, the Minnesota Teamsters Service Bureau had actively promoted labor, business, and education collaboration and partnerships as a major emphasis in the design of its employment and training programs for Minnesota workers. Several discussions and planning meetings were conducted during a period of 3-4 months to develop a start up plan for the charter high school. Minnesota, like many other states, requires charter schools to develop a formal start-up plan which is then approved by one or more state governance bodies (State Board of Education, State Education Agency, or other state government agencies). In Minnesota, charter schools are also required to seek a sponsorship of a local school district. The local school district typically plays an oversight role in reviewing annually the charter school’s overall progress and future plans. A formal presentation was also made to the Minnesota State Board of Education by the Minnesota Teamsters Service Bureau, Minnesota Business partnership and the University of Minnesota in November 1993.
Once these initial steps were completed, the next step was to raise start-up funds. Several applications were developed and submitted to local foundations and government agencies. Sufficient start-up funds were eventually raised and the school opened in March of 1994. The readers should note that many states have made start-up funds available through their state education agency. Since the start-up of the school, Teamsters Joint Council 32 and the Minnesota Teamsters Service Bureau have remained on SFTHS’s school board. What has made this charter high school successful, in large part, has been the strength of the labor, business and education partnership that was formed initially and has been sustained over the years. This high level of collaboration not only helped to get the school started, but has also helped to raise additional funds, create unique learning opportunities for students within labor and business settings, and developed a program that maintains high standards and expectations for all of its students.
Since March 1994, intensive efforts have been undertaken to develop an innovative and experientially based curriculum, establish student learning experiences in a wide range of community business and service agency settings, and promote "genuine" partnerships with parents. This began with an initial enrollment of 25 high school students in grades 10-12. By September 1998, the school expanded from grades 10-12 to add a junior high school component for grades 7-9. Goodwill/Easter Seals came on as an additional partner to support the junior high school program. The combined junior and senior high school enrollment now totals 120+ students.
SFTHS’s educational program entails four major phases. In Phase I, students enter an initial period of training where academic skill levels are assessed and students spend a concentrated period of time developing academic and related work study skills. In Phase II students complete service learning projects and develop problem solving, teamwork, leadership, and other skills in a community-based agency. Phase III is focused primarily on the school’s employment training and readiness program. Here, students complete a one year internship at a local business site. Joint Council 32 and the Minnesota Teamsters Service Bureau have played an active role in making available internships where students spend time developing positive work habits and job skills. In Phase III students gain concrete experiences in self chosen careers through individual analysis of skills necessary in that field. Finally, in Phase IV, students are expected to begin postsecondary education options at local colleges or technical schools and prepare a portfolio presentation for graduation that is reviewed by a panel of business and education leaders. SFTHS has maintained this curricular focus since its inception. Students are required to proceed through each of the four phases of the program. This four phase model was developed collaboratively by the Teamsters, Minnesota Business Partnership, University of Minnesota, and students and parents.
The Results
SFTHS is a results oriented school dedicated to teacher and student accountability. The charter school has developed several accountability measures that are used to gauge student achievement and progress through the curriculum. First, the school does not pass students from phase to phase without having achieved specific learning requirements. For example, to get from Phase I to Phase II, students must have completed their work at the 75% level in all classes (a "C" or better), must have attended at least 90% of their classes, and must have demonstrated the ability to work in a team and resolve conflict. In order to progress from Phase II to Phase III, students must have at least a "C" or better in all their classes, attended at least 90% of their classes, and must have completed 180 hours of service learning. To move from Phase III to Phase IV, students must have at least a "C" or better in all their classes, must have attended at least 90% of their classes, must have completed 400 hours at their internship site, and must be improving in their workplace competencies as observed by both the SFTHS internship coordinator and their work site supervisor. To graduate, students must have completed at least one postsecondary educational option and must have completed a final written portfolio of all their high school work and presented it to a panel of business and community leaders.
In addition, SFTHS has developed accountability standards beyond the specific requirements placed on students to graduate. The school strongly supports parental involvement and feedback. Monthly parent meetings are conducted where parents and staff discuss both successes and areas of concern. Quarterly parent- and faculty-led board of directors meetings are also conducted to review school policies, develop the school’s operating plan, and review the financial health and long term financial viability of the school.
The SFTHS has experienced many accomplishments and results over the past five years. Selected examples include:
- 30 graduates completed 400 hour internships, 180 hour service learning projects, and at least one postsecondary educational option.
- 30 graduates completed all academic courses with at least a grade of 75% or better (a "C" or better), along with at least 90% attendance.
- Portfolio presentations by at least 30 graduates were made to a panel of business and community leaders who determined that the students were ready to achieve a high school diploma and graduate.
- 75% of the school’s 30 graduates have successfully begun working toward a postsecondary education degree in their chosen career field.
- 20 current candidates are now enrolled in an internship program and postsecondary education enrollment option program.
- 25 current partnerships have been established with the support of the Teamsters Joint Council 32 and the Minnesota Teamsters Service Bureau, and local businesses providing 400 hour internships for students in their chosen career fields.
- Successful completion of 65 service learning projects providing 11,700 total hours of volunteer services have occurred in the Minneapolis and St. Paul area.
Learner Examples
Bob came to SFTHS after being expelled from his local school district. It appeared his hopes to attend architecture school at the University of Minnesota were in serious doubt. After successfully completing a year of academics in Phase I, Bob served in a year long internship with architects at Project for Pride and Living, a housing rehabilitation service. There Bob received firsthand experiences with drafting, reading blueprints and using CAD/CAM. While attending SFTHS he was enrolled in a postsecondary enrollment options course at Metropolitan State University in Minneapolis, Minnesota. He took advantage of tutoring at the high school and earned high marks in his college classes. He was accepted in the architecture program at the University of Minnesota in the fall of 1999. Bob comments that "I am struggling – I’ve got to cut back on work hours to handle the work, but I’ll make it." Bob’s postsecondary enrollment options experiences at the SFTHS helped him in understanding how to deal with college-level academic requirements.
Sue was a dropout in 1996 when she came to SFTHS. She was a bright young woman with virtually no high school credits. The traditional high school was not working for her, and her lifestyle was creating significant problems. She was not an instant success and had to re-enroll a couple of times before making progress at SFTHS. Always an artistically talented student, Sue started to come into her own when she became a program assistant at a local radio station. She also received an internship at a local community theatre where she became interested in the theatre arts. Sue continued to work at the local community theatre where she wrote and produced a performance video which was later showed at a women’s film festival in Minneapolis. She has since graduated from SFTHS, and is enrolled in college classes at the University of Minnesota.
George is a senior who plans to go away to school in Vermont. George came to SFTHS with good grades, but no clear idea how to pursue a career in recording technology. No one in his family had been to college, and he was not getting support or information from his high school counselors. George persisted at SFTHS, completing his service learning at a local non-profit community news and music station that serves an audience comprised largely of individuals of color. George also tested the waters in education, serving as a math assistant at a local school for Native American children. Then came his big break with an internship at a local sound production studio. George has been learning technical skills in sound recording, assisting with remote performances, studio engineering and broadcast production. He has been promised a chance at becoming an employee and receiving tuition for sound engineering. He is also taking a postsecondary enrollment class at a local community college.
Reflections
SFTHS offers a seven point plan for establishing and operating a charter high school focused on school-to-work. Collaboration between labor, business and education has, since the inception of this charter school, served as the foundation upon which all aspects of the program have been designed and implemented. The following steps are offered as suggestions for others interested in establishing a charter school or alternative school-to-work program:
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Strong sponsoring partners. In Minnesota this included a primary relationship between the Minnesota Teamsters Joint Council 32 and the Minnesota Teamsters Service Bureau, the Minnesota Business Partnership, and the University of Minnesota. Each of these partners played a substantial role in supporting the initial start-up of the school, including its initial plan, raising start-up funds, and marketing the program to local schools and communities. The Teamsters and local businesses have also remained involved over the years in making available a wide range service of learning and work-based learning opportunities for SFTHS students. It was also important to select and work with a local school district that was supportive of a charter school.
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Creative and committed staff. SFTHS relied on teachers and other school staff who were flexible, committed and able to think out-of-the-box. These are educators who were willing to work flexible hours and view the school year as a 12 month learning opportunity for students. Teachers must also be willing to be trained in site-based management and team development processes.
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Integrated academic and applied curriculum. The school’s curriculum was designed to assist students in gaining hands-on, experiential learning opportunities through service learning, work-based learning and academic preparation. The school also focuses on the development of academic skills in relation to a wide range of school and community learning experiences. Students’ academic development is integrated within these applied, hands-on learning experiences. This helps students to see and understand the relationship between the skills they are required to learn in school and how they are directly applied in every day life.
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Role of the development person. SFTHS staff strongly suggest that there needs to be one staff member whose time is devoted to supporting the school and its relationship with other community partners. This includes responsibilities for recruiting students, developing press releases and a marketing strategy, and maintaining primary relationships with union representatives and employers. This person should also have responsibility for identifying funding sources and developing grants to expand the charter school’s capacity to provide students with unique learning opportunities.
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Access to flexible transportation. In order to support students as they participate in community-based service learning and work-based learning settings, flexible transportation is needed. This includes access to public transportation and transportation provided by the school itself. School personnel highly recommend the purchase or lease of a van to transport students to and from community-based sites.
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Staff specialization. SFTHS staff also suggest that charter school staff develop specific areas of expertise (i.e., service learning, work-based learning, postsecondary education, academic development, others). Assigning responsibility based on these and other areas of expertise helps to ensure that there are adequate levels of leadership to support these key program components.
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A focus on evaluation and continuous improvement. A strong emphasis is placed on evaluation and continuous program improvement. That is, SFTHS program staff have established an evaluation system that allows them to gather information on student progress and results that is then systematically used to improve instructional programs. The charter school also gathers information from parents, employers and other community members to obtain additional feedback on its programs. This information is also used in the continuous improvement of school-community relationships.
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More Information
For additional information about Skills for Tomorrow High School, contact:
- Tess Tiernan, Director
- Skills for Tomorrow High School
- 547 Wheeler Street
- St. Paul, Minnesota 55104
- Phone: (651) 647-6000
- Fax: (651) 645-2388
Also, Story of 18-year old graduate of the Skills for Tomorrow High School available from our Teamsters and America's Youth page.
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