Boston Reed College

Data System Survey Results Available

Wed, 11 Nov 2009 14:53:00 -0800

In this new day of "maximum flexibility" for California adult schools, what do adult school leaders percieve as the most important qualities of information systems? What posture are adult school leaders taking toward the initiation of change in their organizations? In September 2009 we asked you these questions. We'd like to share with you the results of our survey.

Go to http://www.bostonreed.com/partners/survey-results.cfm.

It is a season to reassess long-standing practices and make way for new. So say a majority of adult school leaders. Check it out.

Management System Survey Now Available

Wed, 16 Sep 2009 09:54:00 -0800

Greetings Adult Education Administrator/Staff,

Boston Reed College would like to request that you participate in a quick survey about program management systems for adult education.

Please follow this link to a short survey to help us understand how we can serve you, your staff and your students better!

http://www.zoomerang.com/Survey/?p=WEB229MSGSKJT2

We would like to have all results in by Wednesday, September 23, 2009.

Thank you for your participation!

Best regards,

A~
Alice Chegia

Boston Reed College

SVP, Partner Care

direct- 707-307-5062

mobile- 510-520-1068

Go Completely Paperless in Adult School Attendance Accounting!

Thu, 20 Aug 2009 16:50:00 -0800

On August 3, 2009, California State Superintendent of Schools Jack O'Connell announced that CDE will now accept electronic signatures in attendance accounting systems.

O'Connell's notice is available at http://www.cde.ca.gov/fg/sf/aa/electronicattenltr.asp,The notice outlines the requirements local education agencies must meet in order to take advantage of the new permission.

It appears that Boston Reed's adult education management system CDI would meet these requirements.

Imagine the savings in money, time, and trees your school might experience by eliminating the print-bubble-sign-scan routine. This is definitely worth exploring!

CTC Collecting Field Reactions to Credentialing Changes

Fri, 17 Apr 2009 12:08:00 -0800

Last fall and winter, the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing convened an advisory panel to review the requirements for Adult Education and Career/Technical Education teaching credentials. CTC now has a survey available to collect the panel's recommendations. The online survey is open until May 8, 2009.

To find the survey, go the the CTC Adult Education page, and then click the link, Stakeholder feedback--Changes to Adult Education Credential Requirements.

Issues related to getting new teachers into our adult schools and ROPs might be the last thing on many school leaders' minds in this season when most schools are working through staffing reducitons. Nevertheless, with an eye to a better day, I would encourage adult and career educators to participate in the survey.

New Program for Clearing the Administrative Credential

Wed, 28 Jan 2009 11:03:00 -0800

On January 15, 2009, the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing's Committee on Accreditation approved Boston Reed's Leadership Development Program. The program meets CTC's "Tier 2" Administrative Credential requirments through a two-year coaching relationship with an experienced and trained mentor.

The seed for Boston Reed's program was sown about a year and a half ago. In a conversation about professional development among adult school leaders, someone observed, "Every one of us sat through our administraive credentialing programs with a roomfull of elementary school educators," and the relevance for career adult educators was spotty.

We expect our Leadership Development Program, with effective adult educators as mentors implementing a genuine Individualized Development Plan process, will be responsive to the needs new adult school adminstrators face. ...Not just jumpiing through the hoops for the credential.

See the CTC press release naming Boston Reed's program.

Learn more about Boston Reed's Leadership Development Program.

NISOD Newsletter Spotlights Boston Reed Interests

Thu, 22 Jan 2009 14:42:00 -0800

The January 2009 issue of Hook 'Em Up, a newsletter of the National Institute for Staff and Organizational Development (NISOD), includes an informative article on the value of health career training and the value of education institutions partnering to deliver health career training. One brief excerpt:

Allied health careers also “travel well.” A pharmacy technician instructor at the Central Texas College District in Killeen, Texas, told her students with military spouses, “I have traveled with my husband all over the world and have been offered a job everywhere I go. This is one profession that every community needs and hires!”

Read the entire article here.

The Interview: Wow Them From The Word Go

Wed, 26 Nov 2008 11:05:00 -0800

You never get a second chance to make a good first impression, so it's vital your interview skills are first class. Here's how to wow them from the word go.

Preparing for the job interview is very much like preparing for opening night at the theatre. Lines and roles need to be practiced, wardrobes must be readied, and actors must know their cues - when to speak and when to listen. Interviewing with composure takes reasearch, planning, strategizing and preparation.

Research

Get as much information as possible about the organization. What type of clientele do they serve? What is the culture like? Who is its competition?

Strategize

Once you know about the company, indentify how your skills, strengths and experiences fit into the organization.

Plan

Prior to the interview, plan what you will wear, how you will accessorize, and think about your hairstyle. Know how you will get there - the mode of transportation and the time it takes. Add an extra ten minutes to be sure you get there early.

Prepare

During the interview, convey motivation by showing your enthusiasm and utilize active listening skills, including paying close attention to the interviewer's questions. Be sure to make a good impression to whomever you meet at the company- after all people talk to each other! Answer interview questions with concrete examples based on your past experiences or training.

After the Interview

Send a "thank you" note acknowledging the time the interviewer offered you, reinterate your enthusiasm in working for the company, reinforce responses you were proud of and emphasize the skills you bring to the company. End by indicating that you will follow up.

For more guidance on job interviews, check out Boston Reed's Career Garden.

New Reimbursement Report for CDI

Wed, 12 Nov 2008 08:49:00 -0800

Effective in the next statements (for October 2008), organizations using Boston Reed's data system, CDI, will receive a new version of the statement sent with reimbursement checks. The new report is intended to give clearer accounting of all tansactions, especially for schools and colleges using a wider range of CDI features.

If you really like the former report, don't despair. You still have direct access to the older report as well as the newer report. From the CDI Index page, click on Downloadable Transaction/Registration Reports in the FISCAL area. On the new page, the old report is available behind the link, BR Transaction Report, the newer one is through the link, Reimbursements.

If you are not using Boston Reed's data system now, on our website you can get an Introduction to CDI, our web application supporting online registration, catalog development, student attendance accounting, and more.

New Features of Registration System Support Your Marketing Efforts

Tue, 28 Oct 2008 09:16:00 -0800

"How did you leearn about us?"

When your students and customers answer this question, they give you valuable feedback to help you assess the impact of your various advertising efforts.

Schools and colleges using Boston Reed's data system CDI ("Comprehensive Data Infrastructure") now have a means for collectiing this key information. New features allow schools to ask enrollees this question on the registration page when students are doing online registration. The school can completely customize the list of answers that students may select from.

Once this "learned about" information is collected, we give you a tool for reporting it out for any date range you choose. We also include the 'Learned About' responses in the form of a filter in the Contact Tool for direct email marketing. So you can, for example, send a targeted email specifically to those students who learned about you from a radio ad campaign you ran and signed up for the first time between August 20 and September 15.

(And, if you haven't been to the Contact Tools window lately, you will find that it now has a built-in HTML editor to help you send out emails with eye-appeal!)

To see documentaqtion for using these "Learned About" features, go to the CDI Help Table of Contents. In the section, "Doing Business on the Web," see article number 9, The "Learned About" Report.

If you are not using Boston Reed's data system now, on our website you can get an Introduction to CDI.

Like almost everything in CDI, these ideas came from administrators like you who use the applicaton. We always listen to our customers to discover what features would make your life easier and make your programs more manageable.

Career Ladders Help Health Workers Move Up Faster

Tue, 14 Oct 2008 14:50:00 -0800

As the article indicates, there's no such thing as a dead-end job in healthcare!' This article on the 'Explore Health Careers' Site gives excellent examples of career ladders in healthcare.

Additionally, "Advancing in Health and Health Care Careers - Rung by Rung" is a good resource for employers looking for examples of how to initiate a work-based learning environment to allow incumbant workers to pursue career ladder programs.

Jobs to Careers is a national program of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation in collaboration with the Hitachi Foundation and the United States Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration and with technical assistance provided by Jobs for the Future.

Closing the Health Workforce Gap in California -The Education Imperative

Thu, 14 Aug 2008 14:25:00 -0800

While all industries are projected to show major shortages of college-educated workers in California by 2020; the shortage has already hit the health care sector. And it's not just nursing. "Allied health" practitioners make up 60% of the health workforce with technical occupations such as medical assistants, pharmacy technicians, respiratory therapists and the like.

The Golden State will soon be hit by the 'double whammy' of California's aging population and workforce, with a generation of highly skilled Baby Boomers retiring from the industry. Despite having a projected growth in population in the coming years, the study found that California lags behind the rest of the nation in providing an adequate health care workforce. The first study of it's kind in a decade, the Executive Summary of the report outlines the factors driving the demand of the allied healthcare workforce as well as illustrates the factors limiting the supply. The full report defines the allied healthcare workforce, the projected growth in California, limiting supply and demand factors and an analysis of nursing as it relates to the role with allied healthcare.

Stakeholders across the state overwhelmingly cited limited educational capacity in allied health education programs as the greatest factor restricting workforce supply. The study also offers policy recommendations both specific to health care training programs and to overall educational performance.

The research was funded by Kaiser Permanente and the California Wellness Foundation and conducted by Health Workforce Solutions, LLC. The study was sponsored by the Campaign for College Opportunity.

5 Web Tips for Landing Your First Job

Tue, 05 Aug 2008 10:37:00 -0800

You've taken your final exam, bid farewell to your instructors and partied with your classmates. Now the real work begins -- landing that first job.
If you still don't know what you'll be doing with your new certificate, don't be discouraged by all of the dismal pronouncements about the U.S. economy. In fact, a survey of employers conducted by CollegeGrad.com (www.CollegeGrad.com) , an online job-hunting resource, found that hiring for entry-level positions could be up as much as 12% this season. Drawing on your cyber savvy is a key to putting yourself in the running for those spots. Here are five ways to make the Web work for you:

1. Search Yourself
It's been said there's no such thing as bad publicity. That's not necessarily the case for job seekers hoping to nail that first impression. You've got to do some research on your cyber identity. And do it often, as many employers use search engines and social-networking sites to research job candidates. Does a simple search of your name on Google or MySpace turn up offensive writing, less than professional photos, or activities that could turn off a potential boss? If so, you need to clean up your image, fast.

2. Be Your Own Publicist
Use the Web to promote yourself as the best candidate for the job. First, take down anything on Facebook or MySpace or any other social networking sites and/or blog posts that could be construed as unprofessional. Adjust your privacy settings so that you control what the world reads about you. Heidi Hanisko, director of client services for CollegeGrad.com, says it's a good idea to reach out to friends who might have posted questionable photos, rants, etc. that could reflect poorly on you _*. If you run intotrouble cleaning up your image, you may want to consult with identity scrubbing companies, including Naymz.com, ReputationDefender.com and DefendMyName.com. It can be expensive, but potentially worth it if there is something truly defamatory getting in the way of your job hunt. Once your online identity is squeaky clean, showcase your portfolio or other samples of your work. Highlight your accomplishments and experience. Resist the temptation to embellish the truth.

3. Network It
Get yourself on LinkedIn.com or other professional networks. Robert Half International, a leading staffing services firm specializing in accounting and finance, advises job seekers to make the most of these sites by building contacts and asking mentors or former employers to recommend them. A recent survey by the Robert Half found that 62 percent of executives believe networks, including LinkedIn, will prove useful in the search for job candidates in the next three years. One in three respondentssaid they plan to tap Facebook or MySpace for recruiting -- yet another reason to take a second look at your profiles.

4. Strategize Before You Hit Send
The Internet makes it easy to send out resumes en masse. But CollegeGrad.com's Hanisko says you've got to consider quality over quantity. She advises job hopefuls to research each opportunity and to tailor resumes and cover letters to each employer and position. Adding key words to your resume that are industry-specific will show you are "in the know" and will also help employers find your resume more easily when they search for candidates on job sites.

5. Don't Forget To Say Thank You
Even when the Web helps you land the interview, remember to send an old-fashioned thank-you note as soon as possible. Handwritten notes make the best impression, according to both Robert Half International and CollegeGrad.com.

*The College Grad Job Hunter 6th ed Krueger

Benefit of Externship

Tue, 22 Jul 2008 10:23:00 -0800

FACT: Employers who participated in the the National Association of Colleges and Employers ( NACE) survey reported that they offered jobs to almost 70% of their externs in 2007.

Externships: A Valuable Experience in Career Education

Gone are the days of stuffing envelopes in a dark corner without a dime to show for it. According to NACE, externships are becoming a significant component of college programs-and no wonder, since this apprenticeship is a win-win situation for both student and employer.

How can you benefit from externships?

Substantially increase your chances of being hired for a permanent full-time job after you finish your college program
Earn high pay ( average wage in 2007 was $16 /hour)
Gain valuable work experience, which makes you more qualified for a good full-time position-even with employers not related to the externship.

Employers Appreciate and Hire Externs

Employees have found that externships are an excellent source of talented employees. Successful externs, like trained apprentices, are on-the-spot candidates for permanent positions, having learned the necessary skills on the job while also earning their completion certificate.

Employers also appreciate the job dedication that externships seem to encourage-it turns out those externs who accept full-time positions with their externship employer stay with the job longer than those not hired through the externship program. This probably because an externship gives the student and the employer time to build a relationship that works for both.

Why Students Need to Learn CPR!

Tue, 15 Jul 2008 07:14:00 -0800

At the orientations that I present at, I get asked 'why do we need to take CPR for the Healthcare Provider.' Well, here's as good an example as any as to why it's so important. This is a testament to true life application of skills learned in class. Kudo's to Boston Reed College Instructor Beverly Boehm for her stellar instruction to Carolyn and the other students at South San Francisco Adult School's Clinical Medical Assistant class.

The story ran in the San Mateo Daily Journal.

Shifting Attitudes Toward Web Applications

Wed, 02 Jul 2008 11:38:00 -0800

About a year ago I heard a presentation by educational technology leader John Fleischman of the Sacramento County Office of Education. John was giving us a "retrospective view" - where had California adult education come in the last 20 years in its use of technology. At one pointin the presentation, John played a clip from a film his office made in the early 90s showing the technology future educators could look forward to.The room erupted in laughter on hearing the beeping and honking of a modem dialing in to a plain old telephone line!

Times have changed.

I've been demonstrating Boston Reed's web appication for managing education programs since 2002. It was not uncommon several years ago for a school or college tosay somethiing like this: "This looks like a really great system. But what happens when the Internet is down?"

A couple weeks ago, doing a demo over the phone to staff of Louisiana Technical College in Alexandria, they seemed to experience some kind of network trouble for a minute or so. Their Internet connection went down, apparently. Fortunately it didn't stay down.

It appears that we have come to trust our network infrastructure enough that the question, "What happens when the Internet goes down" doesn't come up any more. The question didn't come up for my friends in Louisiana yesterday. And that it didn't come up for them reminded me that I have not heard that objection reaised in perhaps three years.

Times have changed.