Academy for Educational Development

Workforce Development Program Goes International

A successful public-private partnership that introduces U.S. high school students to career opportunities in health care has recently announced plans to expand the initiative to Ireland.

In 1992, Johnson & Johnson established the Bridge to Employment program (BTE) in an effort to reform education by communicating to students that learning can be meaningful, engaging, and relevant.

The BTE program helps young people build solid futures by introducing them to a broad array of careers in health care, and providing them with real world experiences. In the summer of 2003, the AED National Institute for Work and Learning (NIWL) was selected by J&J to become a partner in the management and evolution of the BTE initiative.

One student who participated in the BTE wrote in a survey: “This program has made me see that I can do anything I put my mind to.”

Common Principles

“BTE sites are located in some of the most economically disadvantaged communities in the United States,” said Keith MacAllum, project director for BTE. “While each site is unique, all BTE programs use a common core of school-to-career principles.”

These principles include:

·         Promoting high standards of academic learning for all students;

·         Providing opportunities for contextual learning;

·         Connecting students with adults in the workplace.

Those same principles will be used in the city of Cork, Ireland, as AED helps three Johnson & Johnson family companies bring added focus and strategic direction to their existing partnerships with local schools.

On a recent trip to Cork, representatives from AED met with officials from those companies to start planning how the project will be implemented. AED staff also met with educators from three local schools situated in working-class neighborhoods on the north side of town. The schools are grappling with high drop out rates and low college enrollment rates, problems that will be addressed through BTE.

Essential Community Outreach

The proposed plans for BTE in Cork calls for significant outreach to parents and the wider community. “It is essential to involve these key stakeholders,” said MacAllum. “Change is not possible without their buy-in and support.”

An essential third partner will be the two local post-secondary school institutions, Cork Institute of Technology and the University of County Cork, which have agreed to create opportunities for local secondary students to experience college life through week-long experiences they call "taster programmes."

“Our goal in Ireland—as in the U.S.—is to connect the enthusiasm and expertise of the private sector with revitalized educational practices within the schools,” said MacAllum. “Johnson & Johnson remains very excited about AED's capacity to help them export the BTE model.”

Current BTE sites in U.S. include: Bound Brook, N.J.; Kennett Square, Penn.;  Los Angeles, Calif.; Milpitas, Calif.; New Brunswick, N.J.; Puerto Rico; Roanoke, Va., and San Jose, Calif. Read more about AED’s work in Education.

For more information about BTE, visit their Web site:  http://www.bridge2employment.org/