iForward ACP Plan 2018-2019

Labor Market Needs

  • iForward students come from all over the state, so it’s necessary to consider Wisconsin’s future labor market needs statewide.  Wisconsin’s highest employment growth prospects in the next ten years will be in health care, engineering, information technology and electronics manufacturing, finance, freight and warehousing, energy distribution, chemical and biological product manufacturing, and medical device manufacturing.  In the vast majority of these areas a post high school education will be necessary for our students to succeed.  It’s imperative as a result that iForward students leave high school with clear educational and employment goals and a strategy to reach those goals.  Our ACP program helps our students achieve those goals through a logical and sequential process as they progress through their high school career.

 

ACP Process

  • 8th (February), 9th(October), and 12th (November) grade career planning conferences.
  •  Life Skills course for all 9th graders with their respective school counselor/Initial four year plan creation.
    • 9th graders also complete Career Matchmaker, Ability Profiler, and Learning Styles Inventory to be stored in Career Cruising
  • Continual review of plans in grades 10-12 in students’ respective homerooms
    • 11th and 12th graders additionally receive instructions on using the Financial Aid Selector in Career Cruising
  • Financial aid night facilitated by school counselors
  • A school counseling program manual details each year’s plan to deliver school counseling services
  • Twice monthly meetings with seniors to disseminate career planning information
  • Career nights six times yearly where students learn and discuss careers with Wisconsin professionals
  • Counselors and students discuss their schedule in relation to their goals and post secondary plans multiple times yearly
  • All seniors reflect on their high school experience in Senior iForward and learn many ACP components
  • Student advisors and teachers continually use student post high school goals and student four year plans as a reference point in relating present academic relevancy to future plans.

 

Parent Engagement

  • Parents invited to career planning conferences with counselor
  • Parents are invited to attend Career Night 6 times per year.
  • Parent/teacher conferences twice per year
  • Career planning guide published for families each year
  • Education for Employment information available on school website
  • Parent Advisory Meetings with Principal

 

Professional Development

  • School counselors attend outside trainings on best practices in delivering a careers course
  • Ongoing “in house” training at faculty meetings regarding integrating student four year plans with subject area academics

 

Business and Post-Secondary Engagement

  • Twice monthly career exploration webinars for all students facilitated by professionals statewide

 

CTE Opportunities

  • Youth Options
  • Teachers certified to teach post-secondary dual credit courses