October CTAE Newsletter

WELCOME letter

The first Friday in October is Manufacturing Day, celebrated nationally as an initiative to highlight the manufacturing sector of the U.S. economy. Florida celebrates Manufacturing Month throughout October. Thousands of companies and educational institutions around the nation open their doors to students, parents, teachers, and community leaders to promote manufacturing careers.

There are over 23,000 manufacturers in Florida, employing 4.4% of the workforce. As of August 2022, there were 417,500 manufacturing employees in Florida with an average annual wage of $69,997. Manufacturing has the fifth highest average annual wage among industries in Florida. (Data from floridajobs.org.)

FloridaMakes is the leading organization that supports the manufacturing ecosystem in Florida through a network of organizations, including the Florida Advanced Technological Education Center (FLATE) and Regional Manufacturers Associations (RMAs). A list of RMAs, that are strategically located throughout the state, can be found here. RMAs are an excellent resource for plant tours and other educational events.

FLATE is Florida’s leading resource for education and training in the high-performance production and manufacturing workforce. FLATE provides industry partnerships, workforce opportunities, and educational synergy throughout Florida by connecting industry/workforce partners to educators at middle schools, high schools, technical colleges, and community and state colleges across Florida.

FLATE works closely with the Florida Department of Education (FLDOE) and the Chancellors to ensure we are fully engaged with the Governor’s goal of making Florida the number one state in the nation for workforce education by 2030. FLATE’s goal is to change the perception of careers in manufacturing, sharing the many opportunities in the country’s most advanced, high-tech industry and ensuring manufacturers have a steady pipeline of qualified and diversified manufacturing talent to support local economies for decades to come.

FLATE works with companies and educators across Florida to host educational events all year round for educators, parents, and students. MFG 2022: Making Manufacturing Careers is this year’s Manufacturing Month celebration with events being planned throughout the state, engaging teachers and students in middle schools, high schools and technical colleges. To plan your student event, reach out to your regional RMA or FLATE today.

Visit MadeInFlorida.org and MFG 2022 to find resources for educators and students. FLATE has built this web portal for students in middle and high schools so they can learn about the exciting, profitable opportunities in considering manufacturing as a career choice. Every day, we enjoy things many people don’t realize are made in Florida. Behind every product and technology, there is a manufacturing world. Happy Manufacturing Month!

Friend, Executive Director of Florida Advanced Technological Education Center (FLATE)

Ernie Friend Executive Director Florida Advanced Technological Education Center (FLATE)

STUDENt sensation

There is no limit by Atlantic Technical College

Each year, Atlantic Technical College’s (ATC) Graduation Committee searches for an alumni guest speaker with an amazing story that began their educational journey at ATC. Cawens Fleurilus was chosen this year, and he did not disappoint. His devotion to self-improvement demonstrates how hard work, dedication, and commitment can transform an individual life into one that led him to helping others find their own way to success.

In 2010, a devastating 7.0 earthquake rocked Haiti. Homes and businesses were destroyed and Cawens knew that to achieve a better life and future, he had to leave the country that he loved; he needed to immigrate to the United States. He arrived in the U.S. not understanding any English and devised a plan to remedy this dilemma. He knew his first step was to register for the English Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) program at ATC, and registered for ESOL coursework. He enmeshed himself into the language and culture, learning to read, write, and speak English fluently. The next part of his plan was to earn a high school diploma because he knew that without that diploma his career options would be limited, and he did not want any limitations. With the assistance of his ATC Adult Education instructors, Cawens studied hard and took and passed all exams needed to earn his Florida High School Diploma.

So now with language fluency and a high school diploma, he was ready to choose his life’s work. He met with the ATC guidance counselor over the automotive programs and registered into the Advanced Automotive Service Technology

(T-TEN) program. The program was intense, but he never gave up and never stopped working. With the support of his counselor and his dedicated instructors, he successfully completed the program, earning his Certificate of Completion and several Automotive Service Excellence (ASE) exams.

Cawens’ internship placement at Toyota of Deerfield Beach was extended to full employment, once he completed his program and he continued to work there for eight years. During this time, he earned all the certifications required to become a Toyota Master Technician. After achieving this high point in his career, it was time for him to go to the next level.

He began to work on obtaining his Associate Degree at Broward College, earning a degree in Automotive Supervision & Management, while working fulltime. He currently works at Coconut Creek High School as an automotive instructor, where he relays the information he has learned to the next generation of automotive technicians.

Cawens has come full circle: from immigrant, to student, to Master Technician, to teacher. His story should inspire anyone no matter what their accomplishments are.

Walking across the stage at his graduation was a culmination of his intense desire to improve his life for himself and his family.

“The skills I started learning at ATC prepared me for each step in my educational journey and in my career.”

– Cawens Fleurilus

TEACHER HIGHLIGHT

Teacher helps promote integrated education and training

By DCAE Staff

Colleen Avelli began the first fully Integrated Education & Training (IET) program at Lake Technical College and currently leads by example as new IET programs are offered. Under an IET model, participants receive simultaneous instruction in basic skills such as math, reading, or spoken English, as well as training for workforce preparation, a specific occupation or industry and employability skills. Integrated education and training approaches are effective in part because they recognize that busy working adults need opportunities to acquire basic skills in a meaningful context that has an immediate application, enables credential attainment and can directly increase their earning power. At Lake Tech, Colleen has served a variety of at-risk and special needs youth/ adults of varying disabilities.

Prior to her years at Lake Tech, Colleen taught 10 years in middle and high school, wherein many of her students were inclusion/speech and language or Exceptional Student Education (ESE) learners. As an adult education instructor, she has encouraged and created lesson plans for integrating ESOL students with Adult Basic Education (ABE) and GED® learners. She also has encouraged visits from campus support staff (counselors or special needs population coordinators) to facilitate enrollment and transition of special needs students. Colleen has created a

small group classroom for students to learn basic phonics, handwriting, reading, and mathematics and has offered small group classroom learning at the beginning of each day for students with severe oppositional disorders. Colleen has created partnerships between Lake Tech and local community resources for food, medical needs, and safe housing for disabled and disadvantaged students. Colleen works in collaboration with the admissions team to ensure the best environment for each student is provided to allow for dignity and respect for their needs, and she takes a personal interest in each student to ensure the success of every student. Colleen aims to make each lesson interactive and engaging to help students connect to content.

Colleen Avelli Lake Technical College

CAREER READINESS

What Is Career Readiness? It Isn’t College Readiness!

By Lee Chipps-Walton

Before I say anything else, let me underscore what ‘career readiness’ is not – it is not, nor has it ever been, synonymous with ‘college readiness.’ For far too long these two completely different concepts – college readiness and career readiness – have been conflated and treated as if they were interchangeable. They’re not. At all. And, we do students a disservice when they get treated like they are. We at the Division of Career and Adult Education are in a process of revisiting and having important conversations around what career readiness should look like. We solicit your input on this process and would like to present a few ideas below that we know to be fundamental.

At least some of the confusion around “college and career readiness” stems from the fact that the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) and its legislative predecessors treat these two concepts – college readiness and career readiness – as a single concept for data reporting purposes. While college completion has numerous advantages, such as higher average salary and higher likelihood of employment, certainly there are a great many paths up the summit of career success that do not traverse through the corridors of a university. A myriad of studies have shown that academic performance does not always equate to career success.

Join us in re-imagining and re-defining what career readiness looks like. We view this as an

ongoing and evolving concept that is fundamental to what all education should entail. We do not pretend to have all the answers, but feel confident that robust career readiness at least involves exploration, experiences, expertise, and expanded social capital. Stay in touch with us to continue to improve our career readiness model.

Exploration Career readiness must include informed decision making on the part of the student based on data (e.g., labor market data, educational outcomes data), information (e.g., the skills and tasks of a job, postsecondary training opportunities, institutional profiles, etc.), and access to qualified personnel that can provide customized guidance and counseling related to career and training options.

Experiences

Can we really say that a student is ‘career ready’ if they have never had a job, volunteered, or completed some type of work-based learning opportunity? Would a good coach send a player into a game that has never practiced?! Every single solitary student should experience some form of work-based learning before graduating high school and college. As you hopefully know, the benefits are significant and include increased high school graduation rates, boosted GPAs, increased employment rates, increased average starting salaries, increased postsecondary matriculation rates, and even lower youth crime rates.

Work-based learning is diverse and comes in many forms – internship, clinical experience, practicum, apprenticeship, pre-apprenticeship, schoolbased enterprise, volunteer or community service opportunity, or an industry project completed on campus with the help of industry professionals

or through a Career and Technical Student Organization.

What is more, should we really be graduating students that have never drafted a resume, written a cover letter, navigated a job posting site, or filled out a job application? These are essential experiences that contribute to career readiness!

Expertise

Employers want skills. That certainly includes academic skills (e.g., ability to process and express complex written ideas, ability to make calculations, and the ability to apply scientific principles contextually), but it also includes employability skills (communication skills, critical thinking skills, professionalism, etc.) and the technical skills of specific occupations. These well-rounded skill sets should inform what and how courses are implemented locally and at the state level.

Hiring is risky to employers. Each hire is a gamble and minimizing that risk, like through providing verified proof of expertise, has value. Traditionally, a college degree has served as a primary means of signaling intellectual ability and individual stick-to-it-ness. Both employers and those seeking employment have increasingly embraced other means of showing evidence of ability, such as industry certification, certificate of completion of an apprenticeship, licensure, letters of recommendation, skill endorsements, and work portfolios.

Expanded Social Capital

Consider all the jobs you have had. How many of them were because you knew someone or had some important social connection related to the job? It isn’t just what you know – it is who you know that matters. Social capital has been shown to be correlated with economic mobility and occupational attainment. Relationships matter. Helping students meet and build relationships with industry professionals should be treated as an essential part of education. This can happen

through work-based learning, mentoring, job shadowing, externships, informational interviews, guest speakers, and professional organizations. And ideally, the relationships would be deep (mentoring), broad (through diverse networking), lasting (through facilitating students staying in touch with industry professionals), and result in documentation (a letter of recommendation or an endorsement on an online professional network).

There are numerous examples of educational institutions giving career readiness its deserved place in education. Sarasota County School District recently went through a process of defining what career readiness looks like for them. This includes students completing three or more of the following: two or more CTE courses, attaining an industry certification, earning the Florida Ready to Work credential, completing a work-based learning opportunity, participating in a Career and Technical Student Organization, earning two or more JROTC credits, and earning a passing score on the ASVAB.

For our students to be career ready, we must ensure education provides opportunities to explore career options, engagement with experiences of authentic work, means of developing and showcasing student expertise, and opportunities to expand student career-connected social capital. Career readiness should not be an educational afterthought – it should be a vital part of every student’s educational experience, a powerful strategy to uplift individuals from poverty, and a path towards Florida becoming one of the top ten economies in the world.

Please stay in touch with Lee Chipps-Walton, Manager of CTE Strategic Initiatives, about career readiness at Lee.Chipps-Walton@fldoe.org.

PROGRAM HIGHLIGHT

Turn your abilities in construction, machinery and mechanical repairs, and logistics into a rewarding career.

by DCAE Staff

At Florida State College at Jacksonville, you can gain the education, skills and training necessary to oversee building processes, implement

manufacturing systems, repair vehicles and machinery, and oversee complex logistics processes.

Under the supervision of expert instructors, you’ll learn by doing and may even have the opportunity to network and intern with potential employers while you’re still in school. Upon completion, graduates are equipped with the high-level skills employers need to build their workforce and get the job done.

With flexible course scheduling options and affordable tuition, students are set up to succeed with degree or certificate from FSCJ.

Learn more at fscj.edu.

florida college system

On June 6, 2022, Miami Dade College (MDC) and employer partner, Warren Henry Auto Group launched the first cohort of the Automotive Service Technician Registered Apprenticeship Program.

Miami Dade College career and technical education Programs

Continue to Strengthen Workforce

by Miami Dade College

The push to expand workforce programs has led Miami Dade College (MDC) to many special milestones. On June 6, 2022, MDC Apprenticeship Program partnered with Warren Henry Auto Group to commence their first cohort for the Automotive Service Technician Registered Apprenticeship Program. Eligible apprentices receive free tuition, health insurance, and their needed course books and toolkits. The support of CareerSource South Florida, Miami-Dade County Beacon Council Miami Community Ventures was an essential in supporting this apprenticeship. This is just one of the many joyous celebrations to come and showcase why our Career and Technical Education (CTE) career pathways and programs are strengthening the College, MDC students, the community, local employers and brings us closer to the initiative of Florida becoming the number one state for workforce education by 2030.

MDC CTE Department has continued to prioritize the needs of the community and industry to address workforce needs. The submission of the 2022-23 Perkins V and Comprehensive Local Needs Assessment (CLNA) in May 2022 was an internal and external collaboration to identify high priority needs and to evaluate and implement strategies to achieve our desired goals collegewide. Educational supplies, equipment, and personnel were presented to the Florida Department of Education as an opportunity for MDC CTE programs and Career Pathways to expand opportunities for our students to earn credentials for in-demand occupations. Program development and modification for CTE programs have been emphasized collectively through college leadership, employers, and regional partners.

Another way the CTE Department has continued to broaden Florida’s workforce is through our Registered Apprenticeship Programs. With eight (8) registered apprenticeships, Teacher Assistant being the newest apprenticeship program approved by the State, we have six (6) additional programs pending approval: Electrical, Plumbing, Carpentry, H-VAC, Financial Specialist and Hotel Associate. Various occupations, including Banking and Nursing Assistant, have several interested employers and are currently in development. The excitement behind “earn while you learn” is gaining great momentum.

Student:

• Identify the career clusters

student finds most interesting and spend time looking at several careers within that cluster together.

• Take classes and participate in extracurricular activities to explore these fields.

• Encourage your student to have career-related conversations with other respected adults who know them well.

• Be sure your student knows that career and technical education is an alternative to a traditional fouryear college education that might be a better fit for some.

PLAN

• Visit a technical high school or postsecondary school in your area.

• Attend career fairs and meet employers in your industry.

• Set short-term goals (think days or weeks) and long-term goals (months, semesters, or years), such as graduate, enroll and apply for financial aid.

LEARN ABOUT CAREERS AND TRAINING NEAR YOU.

new ADULT EDUCATION BRANDING

When it comes to education, not everyone takes the traditional path. Students withdraw from high school before obtaining their diploma. Adults who arrive in America often held prosperous careers in their countries and now aspire to use English like any other American. These students’ ages, skills and circumstances vary, but they have a common home where they can pursue lifelong, life-changing learning: Florida’s Adult Education programs.

Florida’s adult educators strive to help students elevate their earning potential. They customize classroom settings, create community and instill confidence — anything to help students overcome barriers. And these educators bring equal parts passion, compassion and hope with every message of opportunity:

It is never too late. We believe in you. Do you? When there’s a will, there’s a way. Your Way.

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