Welcome to September, Everyone!
I hope the summer was relatively restful and you are ready for the 2019-20 School Year. The Learning Summit, August 21-23, was a fantastic event! I so enjoyed catching up with so many of you from our California sites. The sessions were terrific and the planning suburb! (Thanks, Hanh!).
Special thanks to Greg Cohen for his service as the Staff Representative to the Board of Directors this past three years. Greg’s term is ending in October and we are hoping to replace his position with a new staff representative soon. A board committee has formed to recommend a replacement and the members will be screening applications very soon. Thanks to those of you who applied for this position.
In 2018-19 SIATech and SIATech Academy South celebrated at total of 396 graduates. These proud grads join our alumni ranks with over 10,000 SIATech Graduates since 1998! The important work our staff does positively impacts not only the graduates themselves, but their family, friends, community and the larger economy.
Trauma Informed Systems training for all SIATech staff and board is finally being systematically rolled out this year. Dr. Amy Lansing from UCSD is leading this very important training and professional development. We are making progress in becoming a Trauma Informed Organization through professional development.
Covey’s 5Choices for Extraordinary Productivity training will be offered October 2, 2019. This staff PD opportunity is a one- day course excellent for those new to the organization as well as those who have been here for a while and may have taken the course before. If you are interested, please talk with your supervisor and then contact Debra Anderson to register.
I am hoping that sites will continue to reach out to local WIOA service providers and local community based organizations and build robust, mutually beneficial partnerships at the local level. This continues to be a high priority and need for our students so that they can access the services they need to transition to life and the workforce.
I am excited that the awarding of the SWP and CTEIG grants have allowed us to hire additional Support Specialists to assist students in navigating the CTE Pathways available at SIATech leading to college and/or employment in high growth industries. We will also continue to build new CTE courses that are both relevant and recognized by the State of California.
Governor Newsom now has the State Assembly and Senate approved legislation on his desk for signature that changes language in both the Education Code and Penal code legally replacing references to “at risk” with “at promise”. This bill sponsored by State Assembly Member Jones-Sawyer is a departure from the deficit mindset of “at-risk” to the positive mindset of “at promise” for success. If you want to change the culture, you have to change the conversation. This is a powerful statement and we are hopeful that the Governor signs the bill into law.
Finally, I am looking forward to site visits this year that will allow time for me to speak with you about both your successes and challenges in serving this most vulnerable population of “At-Promise” students.