MY TURN INC.Ashley O’Donnell

Career Counseling

Dr. Coogan

May 1, 2013

What is MY TURN INC?

• Mission: To help youth develop goals, skills and confidence needed to transition successfully into post-secondary education or training and the world of work.

• Founded:1984 to provide education, work-based opportunities and jobs to youth through partnerships with educational institutions, community agencies, employers and families.

• Focus: On economically, socially and educationally disadvantaged teens that reside in poverty or impoverished communities.

Where do They Serve?

• 6 Communities • Brockton• Plymouth• Lynn• Fall River• New Bedford• Fitchburg

• 700 youth served each year, 20,000 since it began

Three Core Components of MY TURN INC

• School to Career• Helps high-school students gain career and occupational

skills needed to successfully enter the workforce

• College Preparatory Program• Structured for high school students as they prepare to be the

first in their families to attend college

• GED Plus• Assists high-school dropouts overcome their social and

economic barriers, obtain their GED’s, occupational skills, credentialing, and enroll in college courses

School to Career Program

• Clearly defined outcome measures and goals• Combines classroom learning with hands-on activities and real world

experience • The program involves individualized assessment, goal-setting, case

management, ongoing evaluation and follow-up• Works directly with school personnel and families to discuss progress

and impediments to goal attainment• Career Specialists within the program work alongside Guidance

Counselors to incorporate MY TURN into a student’s daily schedule.• Curriculum has been created through the basis of the Massachusetts

frameworks

College Preparation Program

• Significant emphasis placed on meeting the academic requirements for high school graduation

• The MY TURN Connecting to College Intervention: Following intake and assessment, each student works with their advisor to create an individualized plan for their participation, which allows students the opportunity to articulate their personal goals and aspirations which are then integrated into the overall program objective

• Once students have been accepted into the program, the core of the intervention is two years of coursework that is geared towards helping participants measure their assets, talents and interests as well as college exploration fieldwork

GED Plus Program

• The out-of-school youth program assists high school dropouts ages 16-21 get their education and employment goals back on track through a three part program that includes:• Case Management • Academic Remediation • Employment Preparation

• The GED Plus model includes a trial period for the program, a focus on career and educational preparation, industry training and credentialing, and then placements within agencies in the city.

Mapping of Program for High School Students

Relation to Career Counseling

• Career Diamond• Competent Decision

Making• Interests, Abilities, and

Values• Hoover, Marcia, and

Parris• Gysbers and Henderson

Importance of this Program to Class Concepts

• NCDG and High School• Personal and Social Development • Educational Achievement and Life Long Learning • Career Management

• Students will be able to..• Find, Evaluate, and Understand Career Information• Prepare themselves for Finding, acquiring, and maintaining

jobs, education, changing jobs, & training situations • Realistic understanding of how work, the economy, and

individual lifestyles are interconnected

Career Counselors Need to…

• Assess the Needs of their Student Population• Identify the Unique and Specific Barriers for each Group• Design Multiple Programs • Educate the Administration and Community on How to

Best Meet those Different Needs• Implement those Multiple Programs