Region 9: Lwr Hudson/Long Island

Region 8 & 9 Regional Conference 2011

**INFORMATION - Click HERE** 

**Conference Schedule**

Nassau, Orange, Rockland, Suffolk, Westchester

Regional Representative
Robert Dembia
Administrative Coordinator Incarcerated Education Programs
Eastern Suffolk BOCES
 

Phone: 631-451-4220
Fax:
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NYSAIEP Annual Report 2011

Region 9

Barbara  Egloff, Div. Admin Career, Tech & Adult Ed

Robert F. Dembia, Admin Coordinato, Regional Rep.

Margo DelliCarpini, Teacher Coordinator

Eastern Suffolk BOCES & Suffolk County Correctional Facilities

Program highlights:

Career Month (February). Focused on career skills inventory, investigating careers, issues relating to workers’ rights, withholding tax, interview skills, resume and cover letter writing. Culminated in a Career Day where local business people (Commercial Baker, Carpenter, Asphalt Paving Company Owner, Plumber, and a Musician) came into the Riverhead Correctional Facility and presented their career, took questions, and engages in mock job interviews with the students.

The Perkins Grant for Incarcerated Youth Builds Career and Technical Education skills in four areas: Basic Business Education (Riverhead & Yaphank Correctional Facilities), Carpentry (Yaphank Correctional Facility), Drafting/ Computer Assisted Design (CAD) Occupations (Riverhead & Yaphank Correctional Facilities), and Small Business/Entrepreneurship (Riverhead & Yaphank CF). The underlying skills are developed in a traditional classroom setting through the development of curricula that aligns the New York State Content Learning Standards in the subject areas with the Career Development and Occupational Studies (CDOS) standards. Students also have the opportunity to engage in applied practice in the correctional facilities so that they are able to apply the knowledge under the supervision of a highly qualified teacher/master trades person. Teachers engage in joint planning and curriculum development as well as weekly collegial circles so that current research is tied to practice and the students’ learning experiences are relevant, integrated, in alignment with NYS Content Learning Standards and the CDOS Standards.  

Herstory is a writers’ workshop program that we have provided for female students in the Suffolk County Correctional facilities for the past six years. Herstory is a program that provides opportunities for guided memoir writing and is a way to empower women to turn their stories of incarceration into works of art. Herstory combines writing instruction which not only results in the creation of personal memoirs, but in a way for these women to begin the healing and reflective process necessary for rehabilitation.

The Carpentry Program is a result of the Perkins CTE grant for incarcerated youth. The carpentry program provides students with an opportunity to learn about the home building industry. Participants master a variety of carpentry skills. In addition, through community based and industry organization partnerships, we have been able to provide participants with an opportunity to apply their knowledge & skills by participating in a student built wood shop on the grounds of the Suffolk County Farm in Yaphank. Students graduate with an Eastern Suffolk BOCES certificate of Participation.

The Plumbing Program has been offered in the Riverhead CF for the past seven years. Under the supervision of a master plumber, students master basic skills that would enable them to move on to an apprenticeship program upon release from the correctional facility. Male and female students have had the opportunity to participate over the years, and students graduate with an Eastern Suffolk BOCES certificate of participation.

Nassau County

Scott Woerner                                                Dir. Of Incarcerated Youth Programs

Wayne Ament                                                 Site Coordinator of Incarcerated Youth Programs

East Meadow Union Free School District

Program highlights:

40 GED Graduates. Five high school graduates; 22 students took the Nassau placement test. Finally we had two students take the SATs and received scores of 1520 and 1610.

Rockland County

Dr. Howard Mandel                                       Chairperson, Psychological Services, Clarkstown Central School District

Program highlights:

Expanded Transition Staff: Full-Time Transition Counselor and one day Social Work Intern

Transition Program Model:

Community re-entry process begins 60-90 days prior to release

Needs Assessment-living arrangements, employment, educational

Employability skills – mock interviews, job applications

Handbook for IYP Standard Operating Procedures (work in progress)

Students entering Rockland Jail are provided with a guidance counselor from the Clarkstown Central School District, in addition to working with the jail education staff to facilities parallel instruction and transcript management.

GED success rate – 92%. Expanded technological resources through educational software.

Orange-Ulster BOCES

Chris D’Ambrese                                         Coordinator of Incarcerated Services

Program highlights:

The Orange-Ulster Incarcerated Program is in the process of developing courses/programming. Our Transition Program continues to develop the students’ necessary employment skills. We continue to have success facilitating the students back into their home school, GED Programs, and/or employment upon release. The students are now in the process of preparing to take the on-line National Work Readiness Credential (NWRC) exam in May.

Another important aspect of this program is the communication between the teachers and the parents/guardians/relatives of their students. An entire week of each month is designated for TABE Testing, conference between teachers and students (complete with written progress reports) and telephone conversations between the teachers and the family members of the students on their caseloads.

Orange-Ulster BOCES, Orange County Jail, and SUNY Orange are collaborating to develop college courses to be offered at the jail. These courses will prepare students who have earned a GED or high school diploma with the necessary math and writing skills to possibility transition into SUNY Orange. The students will receive a well-rounded education, not only in regards to skills and concepts learned, but also in regards to the life of a college student (tuition, financial aide, courses offered, campus life, buying textbooks, socialization, scheduling of classes, etc.)

Westchester County

 Donnie Simmons           Supervisor of Incarcerated Education

Program highlights:

We are happy to report the conclusion of yet another provocative and creative film initiative with Jacob Burns Film Center. Our kids concluded a probing look at the underbelly of discrimination and how it can pollute and dilute relationships. We also concluded another banner year in student outcomes. For fiscal year 2009-2010, we managed to produce an 87% passing rate on the GED, and during Regents week this past January, we managed to produce a 1005 pass rate on State Assessment. Finally we were privileged to be included in a feature story about incarcerated education programs nationwide in the December 2010 edition of the Harvard Newsletter. All in all, a great year!