by NATHANIEL NELSON
Several times a week, 17 students meet in a classroom on the second floor of Winona Senior High School (WSHS). Donning blue polos, the students form the core members of a new health care focused program at the school. But instead of just learning algebra equations and writing book reports, these students get a chance to learn directly from professionals.
This is the focus of WSHS’ REACH program, a broad partnership with the Winona Area Chamber of Commerce and more than a dozen local businesses and organizations. The Minnesota Chamber of Commerce pilot program began last year with a manufacturing path, and this year, health and human services (HHS) introduced its first class of students.
According to Nicole Schossow, business education network and REACH program manager for the chamber, the goal for the program is to introduce students to local businesses to learn about job opportunities in the community.
“It’s based around fulfilling our own potential. Many of the students who apply are those who are not interested in a full four-year degree, and instead might look for a two-year degree or a direct school-to-work program,” Schossow explained.
Through the course of the HHS program, students take a series of classes that the REACH program recommends, including nutrition, human anatomy and medical terminology. In addition to the traditional curriculum, Schossow added, students work to develop life skills for the workplace.
“We teach how to interview, how to write a resume and cover letter, how to build communication skills. Those connections weren’t there [in the high school curriculum],” Schossow explained.
Each year, sophomores at WSHS are invited to apply for the program in either the HHS or manufacturing paths. The students are then interviewed individually by a teacher, a business person and a chamber member. If accepted, the student starts the program at the beginning of their junior year.
During the fall, students in the HHS program meet every day for their assigned courses, and then every other week for REACH-specific talks and presentations, often led by Winona-area business leaders. Here, the group learns about the soft skills and talents needed for the working world, Schossow stated.
From there, in the spring, students work directly with local HHS organizations for on-site immersion experiences. Currently, REACH partners with Winona Health, Sugar Loaf Senior Living, Saint Anne of Winona, Home and Community Options, Winona ORC and more for on-site experiences. “We have almost every partner we could possibly have. And they’re not just working to grow the program, but also offering internships and interested in making it work with the students,” Schossow said.
In HHS, many entry level positions remain unfilled. According to WSHS Principal Mark Anderson, jobs in food services, human resources, accounting and other avenues are rarely taught about in school, so the program gives students the chance to explore careers in HHS organizations beyond the easily-recognizable roles of nurse and doctor.
“We want those opportunities for our kids. We’ve had health academy at the high school for the past 10 years, but now students can go out and learn, and see what other careers are out there,” Anderson said. “The health care [industry] is large, and there are many opportunities.”
Schossow explained that the immersion experiences give students the ability to test out those careers. In addition to providing a gateway to possible internships or even direct hiring after graduation, the chamber makes sure that each experience is as close to the real deal as possible.
“We work specifically with businesses to make sure it’s hands-on. Having a conversation with a person in the program, walking around with a dietary agent to deliver meals … whatever they would be doing on a daily basis in that position, they walk with them so they know what that experience is like,” Schossow said.
The chamber, Schossow explained, is the core of the program. While the school itself is heavily involved, chamber members help pull the businesses in, work with trainers, plan the immersion programs and summer internships, bring in speakers and plan out the program’s schedule. Initially, Chamber President Della Schmidt ran the program herself, but after the growth in the first year, Schossow was brought on to help lead the students along. In just those first 12 months, the program grew from one class to three, and people are already taking note.
“We’ve been contacted by other organizations, chambers, and communities who want to repeat this in their community and replicate what we are doing here. It has been much more successful than we ever imagined,” Schossow added.
Eventually, organizers hope to expand the REACH program into building and trades, including construction, electrical and plumbing, Schossow said. Most schools don’t provide classes in those subjects so outside trade schools, students rarely have the opportunity to learn about those fields despite their necessity in society.
“That’s the next step,” Schossow said. “But that’s not for a couple years down the road, since we grew very, very quickly in just a single year.”
Anderson explained that another thing to examine is technology services, in which he has seen plenty of students show interest. But beyond that, he hopes that the program will continue to improve as it has. “We just want to keep rolling, and hopefully get more kids in the program,” he said.
Article source: http://www.winonapost.com/Article/ArticleID/61366/REACH-introduces-health-care-track