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The CAMBRIDGE-ISANTI school district

is located 45 miles north of the St. Paul/Minneapolis, MN metropolitan area. The school district is rural, and includes the cities of Cambridge and Isanti. There are 20,000+ residents, 4,600+ students K-12, and 800+ full and part-time employees. Cambridge the county seat, and has a large medical center, expanding manufacturing base, vigorous retail community, high quality nursing care centers, and numerous other commercial enterprises typically found in a community 5,000 people. Isanti is a city of approximately 1500 people. It is also a retail center. Many residents of the school district commute to the Minneapolis/St. Paul area for employment. Yet, farming continues as an important economic factor of the area. The outlook is for continued population growth with stable school enrollment.

OAK LAND COOPERATIVE CENTER &endash;

In 1972 the Cambridge-Isanti school district joined with the neighboring school districts of St. Francis and Princeton to form the Oak Land Vocational Center. The Center is a unique cooperative arrangement in that Oak Land is not a place, but rather a partnership. The original purpose of the partnership was to expand the number of high school vocational opportunities for high school students from the three school districts. Presently, the purpose is to serve as a catalyst to its member schools as they strive to prepare their graduates to succeed in a technological world. The Oak Land Cooperative has been involved as a catalyst in the creation of most of the activities described herein.

THE COMMUNITY AS A CLASSROOM COMMITTEE &endash; The Community as a Classroom Committee is a local business-education partnership dedicated to building strong bonds between our local schools and local communities. The committee was founded on the deeply held belief that "by emphasizing relevancy through experiential learning in the community, high academic achievement will be the result." The committee is comprised of 25 members. One-half are from local business and industry and the other half are from the local school district and other social service agencies. The committee is involved in many of the activities described herein.

Career Center

The Career Center, located adjacent to the Guidance Offices at Cambridge-Isanti High School, is the focal point of all of the Career Investigation activities undertaken by students. Some Career Investigation activities are optional to students and some are required. The required Career Investigation activities are imbedded into the curriculum of some required classes. The Career Center staff works directly with the teachers of the required classes to help students accomplish the desired outcomes. They facilitate all student interaction with the community. The Career Center is staffed by a Career Specialist, three Career Advisors (two full- time and one three- quarter time), and a part time clerical assistant.

REQUIRED CAREER INVESTIGATION ACTIVITIES FOR HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT

9th Grade Team

American College Testing (ACT) Discover software with its high quality assessment tools, as well as the Performance Learning Systems Kaleidoscope Profile, is used to help 9th grade students understand how some of their personal attributes (interests, aptitudes, values, and life experiences) might fit into the world of work. Armed with this information, students place themselves into one of six career pathways using the ACT World of Work Map, research jobs within their preferred pathway, prepare and present written and oral reports, and create a tentative education plan for their remaining three years of high school. These learning activities are imbedded into the curriculum of the 9th grade team, which is an interdisciplinary English and Social Studies course.

Job Shadowing

All 10th grade students are required to shadow a person on-the-job at a worksite in the community. Students are assisted with the selection of an appropriate job shadow experience through a one-on-one conference with a Career Advisor using the students 9th grade Career Investigative work as a starting point. Job Shadows are scheduled for as little as one hour or up to a full day. Students have a menu of over 365 occupations from which to choose. At present, 347 people at 187 businesses in the local community participate. Job Shadowing is a required assignment in a required family & consumer science/health class called Teen Survival. Additional job shadowing is encouraged and available in the 11th and 12th grades.

Mock Interviewing

All 11th grade students are required to prepare for and execute an authentic professional job interview in the community. Students have a menu of over 140 entry level occupations from which to chose. The menu of job titles is organized by entry level occupations within career pathways. As preparation for the mock interview, students prepare an error free cover letter and resume, obtain references, and practice interviewing. They are instructed on how to dress, shake hands, and act during the interview itself, and write and send a follow-up letter to the interviewer. Over 60 community businesses provide interviewers who assess student performance and provide verbal and written feedback to the student and staff. Mock Interviewing is a required assignment in an 11th grade English/Communications class.

Senior Interview and Exit Plan Speech

This is the culminating activity of the structured Career Investigation activities at Cambridge-Isanti High School. All graduating seniors are provided a one-on-one personal interview with a Career Advisor. The interview focus is on the students' post high school work and education plans and readiness to implement their plans. If gaps are found in the students' readiness, mini action plans are formulated and pursued by the student. All parents are invited to participate in the interview, and approximately 50% of the parents attend and participate. A key component of the interview is to provide both students and parents information about financial aid, post secondary schools, employment opportunities and outlook, and more career investigation experiences. Students then present their individual high school exit plans to peers in a required 12th grade Social Studies class.

Career Mentoring/Extended Job Shadowing

At any given time during the regular school year up to 20 &endash; sophomores, juniors and seniors are paired with an adult in the community employed in a career the student wants to explore in-depth. Career mentoring is a formal relationship between the mentor and student, which may last from two to four months. Adults interested in serving, as a career mentor must apply, receive training, and must successfully complete a background check. Extended job shadowing is a less formal relationship. Students spend one or more full days at the elbow of their mentor at the mentors' worksite. The purpose of both is to provide in-depth career exploration.

Value Added Credentialing

-- Retail Sales Associate Class - In l998 a local survey of the part and full-time work histories of the class of '98 was completed. It was clear from the data collected that the most likely "first job for pay" of the students surveyed was in a retail setting. Six local retailers designed, developed, and taught an eight hour pre-retail class for students who are 15-l6 years old and planning to pursue their first job in retail. The classes are taught by the business professionals in two hour segments after school hours. Upon completion, of the eight-hour course, students receive a completion certificate from the firms, are guaranteed an interview (not a job) at one of the sponsoring retail firms, and if they are hired they receive a step up on the pay scale.

--Registered Youth Apprenticeship- 25 local firms representing manufacturing, child care, finance/banking, health care, cable TV, printing, environmental testing, retail grocery and hardware, meat cutting, and youth ministry sponsor registered youth apprentices. All apprentices are registered with the State of Minnesota. Upon completion of either an 800 or 2,000 hour work based learning experience, they receive certificates from the state. All youth apprenticeships focus on structured learning in the workplace at the elbow of a skilled mentor, as well as appropriate related instruction.

-- Tech Prep Advanced Standing Agreements &endash; 55 college courses from three community and technical college campuses have been aligned with high school career and technical education classes. Secondary and post secondary instructors have met and developed specific course content goals and performance based assessment tools to be used to determine student mastery of the agreed upon goals. Upon demonstration of mastery, certificates of advanced standing are awarded to students by the Oak Land Tech Prep Consortium. Instructors review the content goals and assessments on a course-by-course basis annually.

-- Automotive NATEF/ASE Certification&endash; The district has begun the process of restructuring its Vocational Auto Service Program to conform to NATEF (National Automotive Technicians Excellence Foundation) certification requirements. Once the program is certified, students may earn ASE (Auto Service Excellence) certification in the areas of brakes, electrical/electronic systems, engine performance, and suspension and steering. ASE certifications will be awarded by the National Institute for Auto Service Excellence.

--CISCO Networking Academy &endash; This two year program, designed by CISCO Systems Inc., offers students the opportunity to prepare for the CISCO Certified Network Associate exam. Those that pass the exam are positioned for immediate openings in the talent-hungry information technology industry and/or post secondary education. This program is appropriate for engineering and science focused students. The certification exam is taken at an outside testing center, and certification is provided by CISCO.

--Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) &endash; This 75 hour course provides a combination of classroom and clinical "hands-on" instruction designed to prepare students to take and pass the Certified Nursing Assistant examination given by the State of Minnesota.

-- MOUS Certification - This computer applications course is aligned with the Microsoft Word 97 by using MOUS (Microsoft Office User Specialist) approved instructional materials. The MOUS program is used in industry to validate a skills in using Microsoft Office software. Students are eligible to take both the Proficient and Expert level exam in Word '97 at an outside testing center. Certification is provided by Microsoft.

College Campus Tours

All 10th grade students are provided the opportunity to tour two college campuses as a large group field trip experience. The students who choose to participate are exposed to a four year college campus and a two year technical college campus. In every case, the large group is divided into small groups for the actual campus tours. The purpose is to expose students to the actual campus setting of both kinds of campuses. Approximately 200 students participate per year.

High School Vocational Classes

The Cambridge-Isanti School District has had a long-standing commitment to providing high quality high school vocational education opportunities to its students. At present, the following offerings are available:

Vocational Welding CISCO Networking

Bus. Ed. &endash; Administrative Support Health Occupations

Bus. Ed. &endash; Sales & Marketing Family & Consumer Science

Work Experience &endash; Disadvantaged Construction Trades

Work Experience &endash; Handicapped Graphic Arts

Shared Vocational Classes

Two vocational classes are available to students on a shared basis with two neighboring school districts through the Oak Land Cooperative. They are:

Truck and Tractor Mechanics

Vocational Electronics

Vocational Student Organizations

A full array of vocational student organization opportunities are available to students at Cambridge-Isanti High School. They are: Distributive Education Clubs of America (DECA), Health Occupations Students of America (HOSA), Vocational Industrial Clubs of America (VICA), Future Leaders of America (FLA), and Business Professionals of America (BPA). The VICA welders and BPA students rated high nationally this past year.

Pizza with Professionals

18 local business people provide all 6th graders with a career exploratory experience exposing each student to one job in each of the six following career pathways &endash; Social Services, Arts, Science, Technical, Business Contact, and Business Operations. Following the presentations the business professionals join the students for a pizza lunch. This opportunity is provided through the 6th grade Social Studies classes.

"Made In" Cambridge-Isanti

A "Made-In" the local community half day learning activity is planned for all 7th grade students. The activity will be provided through the 7th grade Social Studies classes and will entail significant involvement of all segments of local business and industry, government, and social services. The event will have a strong career focus.

OTHER COMMUNITY AS A CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES

Longitudinal Follow-up Studies

The class of 2000 was the first graduating class to complete all four years of structured career investigation activities. During June of 2001 (one year later) the entire class of '00 will be contacted to determine what employment and education activities they actually pursued following graduation from high school. The actual activities will be compared with their stated plans at various stages of their high school experiences. Subsequent follow-up contacts are contemplated at intervals to be determined.

Advisors for Registration

Every student at Cambridge-Isanti High School has a faculty member or administrator assigned to them. These Advisors formally assist students on an individual basis with class registration for the following school year. In addition to the customary registration information provided, all advisors and their advisees are provided the Career Investigation information generated by the students during the normal course of the Career Investigation processes. This information includes products from 9th grade team, job shadows, mock interviews, career mentoring, and other appropriate information.

Transcript Project

The survey mentioned above in the "Retail Initiative" section was originally completed to identify firms in the local area that employ large numbers of high school youth. The top employers of youth were then approached and encouraged to request and use student transcripts as a part of their hiring processes. To date, 45 firms have signed pledges to do so. Mock interview students are encouraged to take a copy of their school transcript to the mock interview, and as a result grades and attendance generally become a part of the interview process.

Dollars for Scholars

One of the long stated goals of the school district is to increase the number of graduates who continue their education following graduation from high school. In l990, the Dollars for Scholars scholarship initiative was launched as a strategy to mobilize the community to help provide financial assistance to every graduate who planned to pursue post secondary education and applied for scholarship assistance. In 1990, $2,200 was awarded. In 2000, $112,000 was awarded, and every 2000 graduating senior who applied for a scholarship received an award. This was a first for the Cambridge-Isanti High School. The endowment grew from zero in 1990 to $500,000+ at present. Many of the most active firms engaged in Community as a Classroom initiatives are also major contributors to Dollars for Scholars.

Community Partners

This is a pilot project of the district wide Curriculum Leadership Team and the Community as a Classroom Committee. Community Partners is a program designed to pair faculty and community members as an integral part of the curriculum writing and review process of the district. District wide English/Language Arts curriculum review and writing will occur during the summer of '01. This spring staff involved with the summer writing process will be paired with community partners, and their initial interaction will focus on developing long-term positive working relationships. Assuming that long-term positive relationships are established, the Community Partners will be invited into the review and writing process.

East Central Minnesota Workforce Partnership &endash; a 501c(3) corp.

This is a volunteer group of people from the private and public sectors who have organized themselves in an effort to address workforce development issues across East Central Minnesota. The partnership is privately funded by its members, has a part-time Executive Director, and meets formally on a monthly basis. The membership is comprised of manufacturing firms, large and small retailers, health care providers, several K-12 school districts, workforce centers, a community college, a technical college, the area welfare-to-work agency and others. Four major state and federal grants have been awarded in East Central Minnesota to address specific workforce development issues as a direct result of the work of the Partnership.