Projects

	Center for Career Learning
	Health Careers Toolkit
	Health Careers Web Portal
	I-WISE Facilitator Training
	Incumbent Worker Training
	Nurse Work Readiness
	Perfecting Patient CareSM
	Previous Accomplishments

Center for Career Learning

The Center for Career Learning (CCL) advances, among employers, schools and community organizations, strategic collaborations that build career awareness and enhance student preparation for work in the regional healthcare industry. CCL supports the development of diverse pathways to student career achievement through strategy, research, partnerships and learning reforms. CCL directly serves schools, employers, and community organizations focused on learning reform and career awareness.

Why now?

Many high school graduates do not have the basic skills needed to succeed in the workplace. More than one-third of students graduating from local high schools are not proficient in reading or math based on standardized testing. Furthermore, one survey of local employers suggests that as few as 10%-20% of job applicants for jobs that only require a high school degree actually have the basic skills - reading, writing, math, communications - needed for success in the workplace. This ever-increasing gap between the skills needed to be successful in the workplace and the skill level of high school graduates present a problem for healthcare employers. To succeed in the workplace, students must be aware of available careers, basic skills required to succeed in those careers, and regional opportunities to learn and practice these skills in a real-world work environment. Furthermore, schools and community organizations must work with employers to provide relevant educational and experiential learning opportunities for students.

What do we do?

The Center for Career Learning will:

• Build on national and regional strategy and models
• Engage and enhance research and policy
• Outreach to employers, schools and community organizations to
• Inform of career learning concepts and resources
• Build networks and facilitate collaboration and integration of current services to meet student need
• Provide resources and tools based on strategy and research
• Maintain repository for users to pull relevant resources
• Ensure participating regional services are consistent, feasible, accessible and measurable through continuum of student learning
• Promote and support new and current services effective at improving student outcomes

CCL products are based on center strategy, research and development, partnerships and learning reform initiatives. These include the following.

• Strategy - National models; best practices, standards and guidelines; regional vision; information dissemination; and policy improvement
• Research and Development - Research on career ambition, literacy and preparation; data collection, measurement; evaluation and client feedback tools; and regional inventory
• Partnerships - Outreach; pilot projects; market analysis; information and referral system; collaborations; and resources (career literacy technologies)
• Learning Reform - Academic and career preparation; regional transformation; development of new career education models for delivery; and advise on "infusing" healthcare subject matter into classroom learning

What will we achieve?

A successful CCL promotes and aid in the implementation of learning systems which: connect and integrate education, training and work experience "building blocks"; provide viable entry and exit at multiple points; ensure preparation of system "graduates" for progression into healthcare workplaces promoting life-long learning; and provide means for successful life-long learning and career education at multiple levels of educational attainment.

The Center for Career Learning was formed to address an unmet community need, will be maintained to ensure awareness and action occur, and will be spun-off when services are ubiquitous through proven effectiveness and can be maintained by the community.

This project is funded by the Pennsylvania Workforce Investment Board, Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation and the Jewish Healthcare Foundation. Community partners include the United Way of Allegheny County and the Allegheny Conference on Economic Development.

For more information on this project, please contact Holland O'Donnell at 412.594.2589 or e-mail at odonnell@jhf.org.