New England Colleges Prepare Report on Employability of Students; Draft Recommendations Outlined

December 22 is the deadline for those seeking to comment on the draft report and recommendations of the Commission on Higher Education & Employability, established earlier this year by the New England Board of Higher Education (NEBHE).  The Commission, which includes nine representatives of institutions and organizations in Connecticut, released its preliminary findings at a day-long Summit in Boston. “Despite the region’s strength in postsecondary institutions, employers remain concerned about a lack of qualified, skilled workers, particularly in technology-intensive and growth-oriented industries,” the draft report notes. “The Commission has proposed a draft action agenda, policy recommendations, strategies and next steps to align institutions, policymakers and industry behind increasing the career readiness of graduates of New England colleges and universities—and facilitate their transitions to work and sustained contributions to the well-being and competitiveness of the region.”

In addition to five strategic priorities,  the draft report includes specific recommendations are being considered in five areas:  Labor Market Data & Intelligence; Planning, Advising & Career Services; Higher Education-Industry Partnerships; Work-Integrated Learning; Digital Skills; and Emerging Credentials.

Among the recommendations being considered are a call for higher education institutions to incorporate employability into their strategic plans/priorities; determine their effectiveness in embedding and measuring employability across the institution; and develop a regional partnership for shared purchasing and contracting of labor market data, information and intelligence services.

The proposed recommendations also call on the New England states to “collaborate to launch multistate, industry-specific partnerships beginning with three of the top growth-oriented sectors, including: healthcare, life and biosciences and financial services.” It further urges the states to explore “implementing policies (public and institutional) that incentivize businesses (through tax credits or other means) to expand paid internships.”  The draft report also calls for the establishment of a New England Planning, Advising and Career Service Network.

The draft report calls on the states to “confront notable college-attainment gaps and the related personal and societal costs,” and “consider specific employability strategies to target and benefit students who are at risk of not completing postsecondary credentials, including underrepresented populations.”

Eastern Connecticut State University President Elsa Núñez led a session at the Summit about the Commission's “Equity Imperative.” Officials indicate that Commission's workforce vision serves all New Englanders ... “as a matter of social justice, but also as a matter of sound economics in the slow-growing region.”  Núñez highlighted her internship work with students who may not have cars or other resources to capitalize on off-campus work-integrated learning.

In addition to Núñez, the nine members of the Commission from Connecticut are:

• Andrea Comer, Vice President, Workforce Strategies, Connecticut Business & Industry Association Education and Workforce Partnership
• Freddy Cruz, Student, Eastern Connecticut State University
• Maura Dunn, Vice President of Human Resources & Administration, General Dynamics Electric Boat
• Mae Flexer, State Senator
• Tyler Mack, Student Government Association President, Eastern Connecticut State University
• Mark Ojakian, President, Connecticut State Colleges & Universities
• Jen Widness, President, Connecticut Conference of Independent Colleges
• Jeffrey Wihbey, Interim Superintendent, Connecticut Technical High School System

The commission also includes six members from Vermont, seven members from New Hampshire and Maine, 11 from Massachusetts, 12 from Rhode Island, as well as two regional members and six representatives of NEBHE. The Commission's Chair is Rhode Island Governor Gina Raimondo.  The proposed recommendations, developed during the past six months, have broad implications, according to officials, “critical to building a foundation for moving forward the Commission's efforts toward strengthening the employability of New England's graduates.”

At Eastern Connecticut State University—which is about 30% students of color—lower-income, minority and first-generation students often had no cars, so had difficulty traveling off campus to internships. White students got most of the internships, President Elsa Núñez told the NEHBE Journal earlier this year.

The Journal reported that Eastern’s Work Hub eliminates that need, allowing students to develop practical skills doing real-time work assignments without having to travel off campus, and providing the insurance company Cigna with a computer network and facility where its staff could provide on-site guidance and support to Eastern student interns.

The draft report’s strategic priority recommendations include:

• New England state higher education systems, governing and coordinating boards, together with New England’s employers, should make increased employability of graduates a strategic priority—linked to the strategic plans, key outcomes, performance indicators and accountability measures for the higher education institutions under their stewardship.
• New England higher education institutions should incorporate employability into their strategic plans/ priorities supported by efforts to define, prioritize and embed employability across the institution and in multiple dimensions of learning and the student experience—both curricular and extracurricular.
• New England should make strategic efforts and investments—at the state, system and institution level— to expand research, data gathering, assessment capacity and longitudinal data systems to enable more effective understanding and documentation of key employability-related measures and outcomes.
• New England higher education institutions should undertake formal employability audits to review the strategic, operational and assessment-oriented activities related to employability–and their effectiveness in embedding and measuring employability across the institution.
• To confront notable college-attainment gaps and the related personal and societal costs, states must consider specific employability strategies to target and benefit students who are at risk of not completing postsecondary credentials, including underrepresented populations.

The Boston-based New England Board of Higher Education promotes greater educational opportunities and services for the residents of New England. Comments on the recommendations are accepted on-line through Dec. 22.

Philanthropy 101? CCSU to Offer Course, Capstone Project Aimed at Boosting Philanthropy

Throughout Connecticut, philanthropic organizations distribute more than a billion dollars every year and individuals donate nearly $4 billion more. Responding to both the State’s philanthropic needs and need for skilled philanthropy professionals, Central Connecticut State University is offering an innovative course in the practice of philanthropy beginning next semester. The ambitious 16-week course is to include 25 presenters from local nonprofit and philanthropic organizations, many based in New Britain, as is the CCSU campus.   As part of the course, students will study local needs, create a case study, and write a proposal following the American Savings Foundation grant-making guidelines.  Officials say that at the conclusion of the course, up to two of these projects may each be funded with a $5,000 grant from the American Savings Foundation.

Connecticut ranked 47th among the 50 states in philanthropic giving as a percentage of income, with a “giving ratio” of 2.4 percent, 25 percent lower than the national average, according to an analysis earlier this year by the Chronicle of Philanthropy. The giving ratio is the total of a locality’s charitable contributions as a share of its total adjusted gross income.

“They will learn more than just philosophy,” points out Professor Carol Shaw Austad, who will co-teach with former CCSU President Richard Judd. “This class is hands-on. Students will work in teams to design a philanthropic strategy. They will meet with New Britain nonprofits and evaluate impact, just like any foundation. We expect them to make a strong case statement for an organization or project.”

“There is so much to like about this course,” notes Maria Falvo, president of the American Savings Foundation.  “For one, many of these young people may go on to work at or volunteer with nonprofits. They may be fortunate enough to become donors themselves. This essential training lays the groundwork for a future in philanthropy,” Falvo says.

The giving percentage varied across the state, according to the Chronicle study:  the Fairfield County giving ratio was 2.8%, New Haven County and Litchfield counties 2.1%, Hartford County 1.9%, New London County 1.8%, Middlesex and Tolland Counties 1.7%, and Windham County 1.6%.

Donations from households earning $200,000 or more now total 52 percent of all itemized contributions. In the early 2000s, that number was consistently in the 30s, the Chronicle reported.  The report raises questions about the traditional habit of charitable donations among middle and low income individuals lessening, perhaps as a lingering after-effect of the recession. The Chronicle’s conclusion: “The number of households making room in their budgets for charitable giving is shrinking.”

CCSU President Dr. Zulma R. Toro said “I am especially pleased that this course engages our hometown of New Britain. This is a perfect example of what we mean by “CCSUConnected.” We are connecting to our communities in a mutually beneficial way by engaging our students academically in the life of our community. Our students learn skills and experiences that can prepare them for rewarding careers, and our communities can benefit from our students’ work focused on New Britain’s needs.”

“These community leaders are such a diverse and thoughtful group,” said Dr. Toro.  “Pastor Thomas Mills of Grace Church shares a session with New Britain Mayor (and CCSU alumna) Erin Stewart.  Dr. Ali Antar of the Berlin Mosque is on the agenda as is Dr. Claudia Thesing, formerly director of development at the New Britain Museum of American Art.  The speakers represent a real cross-section of the community.”

The course will run from January 17 to May 9, and is open to undergraduate students at CCSU.

Health and Safety Among Top Concerns in Choosing Childcare, Survey Finds

When choosing a childcare or preschool, many parents try to gather information to make their decision. Yet only 54 percent of parents were very confident that they could tell if a childcare option would be safe and healthy for their child, according to a new national survey.  Beyond that challenge, 2 out of 3 parents said it’s hard to find childcare options with the characteristics they want. In selecting a childcare or preschool, parents consider a variety of health, safety, educational, or practical factors. Overall, 62 percent of parents agreed that it’s hard to find childcare options with the characteristics they want. The C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital National Poll on Children’s Health asked about these factors in a national sample of parents of children age 1-5 years who attend childcare or preschool.

Nearly half of parents reported their child currently attends preschool (48%), while the other half reported their child attends either a childcare center (25%) or in-home childcare (27%) for at least 5 hours per week.  Most parents (88%) felt that childcare centers and in-home childcare providers should have the same health and safety standards.  Parents selected up to 5 factors they would consider most important when choosing a childcare or preschool. The top 5 factors differed by the child’s current setting:

• Preschool: staff background checks (45%), active play every day (40%), doors locked (38%), staff have early childhood training (30%), and safe outdoor play area (30%)
• Childcare center: staff background checks (46%), staff have early childhood training (42%), doors locked (36%), cost (33%), and location/hours (32%)
• Home childcare: healthy foods served (28%), active play every day (28%), books/educational toys (27%), kitchen area cleaned (26%), and staff background checks (24%)

Connecticut’s Office of Early Childhood provides information on its website, including a “Child Care Checklist for Parents,” to assist in choosing a child daycare program. It suggests asking if the program is licensed, ensuring that unannounced visits are permitted, that there is adequate staff and that the program is safe.  The website also includes an “online lookup tool” to determine licensing status for family child care home providers, group child care homes, child care centers, family child care home staff-substitutes and assistants and youth camps.

A report published last month by Connecticut Voices for Children indicated that for more than a decade, Connecticut has made expanding early care and education programs and wrap-around supports a priority. The state has increased funding for early childhood programs for low-income families and communities,"making a real, sustained effort to build a strong infrastructure to support the early childhood system. Increased spending has increased both the availability and the quality of care."  Those efforts, the study found, "have begun to pay off in terms of both access and quality of care." 

The 39-page report indicated that: • Almost four in every five four-year-olds enroll in preschool. As of 2016, nearly 80% of four-year-olds were enrolled in preschool, an increase of six percentage points since 2005. • Disparities in preschool access have narrowed. The gap in preschool experience rates between the large urban districts and the wealthiest suburban districts has narrowed from 40 percent in 2003 to just 26 percent in 2016. • State programs are serving more infants and toddlers. Head Start and Child Day Care Centers have shifted to address more of the state’s need for infant and toddler care. Combined, they serve almost 80% more infants and toddlers in 2016 than in 2005.

The report stressed, however, that as of 2016, center-based infant/toddler care is affordable to only 25 percent of Connecticut families with a young child. Child care for two young children is affordable to only seven percent of such families.  The need for infant/toddler care "continues to vastly outstrip statewide capacity,"  and community wealth "continues to predict both preschool access and later test scores."

In the national poll, parents identified deal-breakers in selecting childcare – characteristics that would eliminate a preschool or childcare from their consideration. Over half said location in a sketchy area or a gun on the premises would be a deal-breaker; others were: non-staff adults on the premises, unvaccinated children allowed to attend, and having a staff person who smoked.

Some factors rated as most important by the Mott Poll parents may be reflected in the policies of the facility. These include whether staff undergo background checks prior to hiring, whether staff have early childhood certification or training, and whether child and staff members must be vaccinated. For many preschools and childcare centers, this type of information can be found on the facility’s website; it may be more difficult to find such information for in-home childcare providers, the poll analysis pointed out.

CT's Mattress Recycle Program Collecting 14,000 Per Month

Connecticut mattress recycling program collected more than 162,000 mattresses and diverted more than 2,300 tons of material from disposal during the 2016-17 fiscal year, according to a recently released report on the state's program. The mattress industry created the Mattress Recycling Council (MRC), a non-profit organization, in 2013 to develop and administer a recycling program, which was dubbed the Bye Bye Mattress Program.  It is  funded through a $9 fee collected from consumers on all mattress and box spring sales in the state.

The program officially began operating on May 1, 2015 in accordance with a new state law. It now averages recycling 14,000 mattresses a month. MRC collects mattresses from 125 communities and 169 public and private entities that dispose of large volumes of discarded mattresses.

On average, 70 percent of a mattress is recycled.  Officials are pushing to increase that percentage to 75 percent.  Program materials suggest that 80 percent of a mattress can be recycled.  In the program’s first two years, a total of 313,661 mattresses were collected for recycling.

Among the leading municipalities, according to the 54-page report:  Hartford - 336 tons, Bridgeport - 197 tons, Manchester - 138 tons, East Hartford - 84 tons, and Southington - 62 tons.

MRC’s education and outreach efforts are designed to inform consumers, mattress retailers, and other stakeholders about the Bye Bye Mattress Program, that the fee is mandated by state law, why the fee is needed, what the fee funds, how to recycle through the Program, and that some parties have obligations.

In addition to Connecticut, MRC operates programs in Rhode Island and California.

Among the many locations across making use of the program is the Naval Submarine Base in New London.  The Base used the program to assist with the recycling and transportation of 692 mattresses from barracks, submarines, and Navy hotel lodging facilities connected to the Base. MRC collected mattresses from the Base in New London three times during the fiscal year.

Despite the program’s achievements to date, one objective is not being met.  Based on MRC’s experience during the past two years, the report points out, it became clear that the healthcare facility goal was “impractical.”

Mattresses discarded by healthcare facilities are not recycled for two primary reasons: biological contamination and mattress residual value, according to the report. In addition, a strong secondary markets exist for specialty hospital mattresses discarded by healthcare facilities. As a result, discarded units are frequently resold domestically or exported, the report explained.

“Therefore, those units are not being landfilled or incinerated in Connecticut and are not available for recycling. Furthermore, healthcare mattresses with breached outer ticking or physical contamination may pose health risks, and are instead disposed of as solid or biological waste due to liability concerns,” the report points out.

https://youtu.be/L9QMPy4VT_Y

To Combat Teen Driving Deaths, Video Contest Theme is “Could This Be You?”

The problem is not surprising, but the solution remains elusive.  Young drivers account for a disproportionate number of motor vehicle crashes and these crashes are the leading cause of death for this age group. In fact, the risk of motor vehicle crashes is higher among 16-to 19-year-olds than among any other age group. Data indicate that per mile driven, teen drivers ages 16 to 19 are nearly three times more likely than drivers aged 20 and older to be in a fatal crash, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Fatal crashes involving teen drivers jumped 10 percent between 2014 and 2015, the most recent year-to-year data available, according to a report by the Governors Highway Safety Association.

In an ongoing effort to reduce those numbers in Connecticut and better alert teens and their parents of the dangers, the Connecticut Department of Motor Vehicles and Travelers are once again launching their annual Teen Safe Driving Video contest for high school students.

The theme this year is: “Teen Safe Driver: Could This Be You? Every Second Matters.” The stated goal is to create peer-to-peer education and influence about developing safe driving habits. A panel of judges comprised of safety advocates, health experts, and state officials will select the winners.  Entries are due by December 15, 2017.  Travelers will award up to $26,000 in cash prizes to the winning students and their high schools.

The theme of this year’s contest calls for video submissions showing positive examples of how to prevent tragedies, crashes, injuries and deaths. Studies have shown that positive influences can have the most effect on changing behavior.

“We fully support the Connecticut DMV’s program that educates teens about the importance of safe driving,” said Michael Klein, executive vice president, and president of Personal Insurance at Travelers. “Teenagers talking to other teenagers about good driving habits can carry more weight, and we hope the contest sparks conversation and encourages young drivers to take precautions behind the wheel.”

“This year’s theme calls attention to the great responsibilities teen drivers have, the challenges they face when getting behind the wheel and how to create a positive outcome that promotes safety,” said DMV Commissioner Michael Bzdyra. “Each year the contest generates amazing work by students across the state, and we want the new theme to inspire the creative juices of students to promote safe driving.”

The contest is open to all public, private, and home-schooled high school students in Connecticut. Submissions must be submitted electronically or postmarked no later than December 15, 2017.  Travelers will award up to $26,000 in cash prizes to the winning students and their high schools. In addition, a cash prize of $1,000 will go to the school with the video showing the best multicultural message, which has been underwritten by Yale-New Haven Children’s Hospital.

The requirements for submissions include:

• PSA must be no longer than forty-five (:45) seconds in length. • It must demonstrate the theme: “Teen Safe Driver: Could This Be You? Every Second Matters.” • PSA must show on it the hashtag  #CouldThisBeYou • It must also address two specific teen driving laws. • The PSA must have a multicultural or diversity component because driving involves teens from all backgrounds, including race, color, national origin, ancestry, age, sex, disability, sexual orientation, religious beliefs, culture, etc.  Bi-lingual/multi-cultural videos are welcomed and encouraged. • Teams of students are limited to a maximum of 5 members, including the student director. • The PSA must feature at least two teens, along with any other teens or adults considered necessary for the creative safety message.

Other promotional contest partners include the Connecticut Police Chiefs Association; the Connecticut Association of Schools (CAS); AAA; the Connecticut State Police; Mourning Parents Act (!MPACT); the Connecticut Children's Medical Center; Yale-New Haven Children's Hospital; Saint Francis Hospital and Medical Center; the Connecticut Emergency Nurses Association; the state Department of Public Health; the state Department of Insurance; the state Department of Transportation; the state Department of Education; and the state Division of Criminal Justice.

A group of 18 student advisors to the Connecticut DMV helped create the theme focused on the teen driver because that single person can control the fate of himself or herself, as well as others, in the vehicle. Often their fate rests on whether they follow the rules of the road with responsible decision making, safe driving and by obeying state laws, especially those aimed at 16- and 17-year-old drivers.

Student advisors who worked on the project are Kenny Bigos of Suffield High School; Taurean Brown and Salma Tapkirwala, both of the Sport and Medical Science Academy in Hartford; Michael Dellaripa, Roham Hussain and Connor Silbo, all of Xavier High School in Middletown; Jalen Fontanez of East Hartford High School; Samantha Getsie of Berlin High School; Madison Massaro-Cook of Newington High School; Alex Proscino and Daniela Violano of Hamden High School; Esha Shrivastav of Kingswood-Oxford in West Hartford; Tess Chang and Rachel Saal of Hall High School in West Hartford; Maggie Silbo of Mercy High School in Middletown; Cole Wolkner and Evan Wolkner of Farmington High School; and Emma Zaleski of Wethersfield High School.

The complete set of rules can be found at http://ct.gov/teendriving/contest.   Past contest winners can be found on YouTube at: http://www.youtube.com/teensafedriving12.  Since the annual contest began more than a decade ago, nearly 3,500 students across the state have participated, representing more than 100 high schools. More information about the contest can be found at http://ct.gov/teendriving/contest.

Connecticut Among Leaders in Addressing Cyberbullying, Bullying Among Youth

Connecticut's anti-bullying laws and relatively low number of reported cyberbullying incidents have earned it a spot as one of the top three safest states from cyberbullying, according to a new national survey.   Nationwide at least 34 percent of kids have been cyberbullied, but the precise percentages vary from state to state. A new survey developed by Frontier Communications, marking Child Safety & Prevention Month, assesses the relative safety across the nation.  Based on an analysis of six weighted factors (including school sanctions for cyberbullying, existing state bullying laws, school discipline for off-campus behavior, and the percentage of students in grades 9–12 that have reported being cyberbullied), ten states are said to be addressing the issue head on: Florida, Arkansas, Tennessee, Michigan, Pennsylvania, New York, Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Washington, DC.

In contrast, Washington, Oregon, Montana, Utah, Arizona, Colorado, Iowa, Wisconsin, and Ohio provide the fewest legal protections against cyberbullying. For example, most of these states don’t have a specific state statute that allows schools to discipline students for off-campus behavior, according to the survey analysis.

The U.S. Department of Health (DOH) defines bullying as repeated “unwanted, aggressive behavior among school children that involves a real or perceived imbalance.” Bullying can involve making threats, spreading rumors, physically attacking someone, or purposely excluding someone from an activity.

Bullying and cyberbullying are major problems - over 3 million students are bullied every year, which contributes to over 160,000 days of absences by students from school, according to Derek Peterson, CEO of Digital Fly, a technology company based on Long Island.

“This is bad for the student, schools, communities, states and our nation,” he said, emphasizing that states have the ability to lead, create policies for reporting, tracking, educating, preventing and punishing those involved in bullying and cyber bullying.

Connecticut’s “An Act Concerning the Strengthening of School Bullying Laws,” Senate Bill 1138 signed into law in 2011, defines "Cyberbullying" as any act of bullying through the use of the Internet, interactive and digital technologies, cellular mobile telephone or other mobile electronic devices or any electronic communications…” The law states that school policies must “include provisions addressing bullying outside of the school setting if such bullying (A) creates a hostile environment at school for the victim, (B) infringes on the rights of the victim at school, or (C) substantially disrupts the education process or the orderly operation of a school…”

Testifying in support of the Connecticut legislation, state Victim Advocate Michelle Cruz said “we now know the long lasting and devastating effects that bullying behavior can have on victims, bystanders and even bullies.”  She cited a study by the Family and Work Institute that reported one-third of children are bullied at least once a month, while six out of ten teens witnessed bullying at least once a day.

Attorney General George Jepsen noted that “Students no longer have the refuge of home.  Technology makes students easily accessible through cell phones, social networking sites, and online gaming systems long after school closes.”  In advocating for the legislation, he said efforts must aim to prevent school from being a “hostile environment for the student” that “impacts their ability to learn and thrive.”  And, he added, those efforts must continue when the student leaves the school building.

The DOH defines cyberbullying as “bullying that takes place over digital devices like cell phones, computers, and tablets” and can include any number of activities:

• Spreading rumors online or through texts
• Posting hurtful or threatening messages on social networking sites or web pages
• Posting a mean or hurtful video or picture
• Pretending to be someone else online to hurt another person
• Taking unflattering pictures of a person and sharing them online
• Sexting, or circulating sexually suggestive pictures or messages about a person

Recent statistics show that more than a third of children and teens have experienced cyberbullying, according to the Frontier analysis.  Data is available from the National Center for Education Statistics and the Cyberbullying Research Center.

Please Grow Up to Be An Entrepreneur, Parents Say; Teens Not So Sure

Nearly nine-in-ten parents (88%) would be extremely or very likely to support their teen's interest in becoming an entrepreneur as an adult, but less than one-in-three teens (30%) demonstrate that same level of enthusiasm for starting a business. That’s according to a new national survey conducted by ORC International on behalf of Junior Achievement (JA) and EY. For teens, the greatest concerns for starting a business include it being "too risky" (31%) and "not enough money in it" (22%). Only 16 percent of teens indicate they have no concerns about trying. Conversely, 53 percent of parents have no concerns about their teen starting a business as an adult. Those citing concerns focused on it being "too risky" (27%) and there being "not enough money in it" (9%).

The survey was released during November, which is National Entrepreneurship Month.

"These results speak to some of the challenges facing the nation when it comes to business creation," said Jack Kosakowski, President and CEO of Junior Achievement USA. "Since the Great Recession in 2008, the country has been experiencing a net decline in business start-ups. Today's young people grew up in the shadow of the Financial Crisis, which may explain their risk-aversion when it comes to taking the entrepreneurial leap. This is why we need to promote the benefits of entrepreneurship early and often."

The survey was conducted to coincide with EY's support of Junior Achievement's JA Launch Lesson, a program delivered by community entrepreneurs whereby high school students gain firsthand knowledge about starting a business and the entrepreneurial journey. JA Launch Lesson is a 50-minute educational experience that creates a point-of-entry for students, volunteers, and educators.

The new program will be delivered by entrepreneurs in classrooms, after-school facilities, and other student venues across the United States, beginning this month. Entrepreneurs are given the opportunity to connect with students, provide relevant information about their company and entrepreneurial journey, and share advice and next steps for students who are interested in starting their own business.

Teens were also asked what they would need in order to consider becoming an entrepreneur. About half said they would need "more information on what it takes to be successful" (51%), "investors" (50%) and "support from parents" (49%). About a third said they would need "a role model who is a business owner" (35%) and "friends with a similar interest" (32%).

Promoting entrepreneurship is not a new endeavor for JA Southwest New England, which last year reached 43,000 students, the second consecutive year reaching the most students in the history of the organization, and a 24% increase over two year period.

In Connecticut this year, JA worked with Pratt & Whitney to launch the JA Entrepreneurial Academy.  The after-school program taught students firsthand about manufacturing and entrepreneurship, to better prepare them to join the workforce and perhaps plan their own companies with this insider knowledge.

Jeremy Race, president and CEO of Junior Achievement of Southwest New England, said “Through this program, young people gain a deeper understanding of how businesses are founded and operate…to help free the entrepreneurial spirit and hopefully serve as a catalyst for future business growth in Connecticut.”

In addition to manufacturing- related entrepreneurship, the academy also introduced students to an array of other entrepreneurial skills including leadership and how to pitch a business concept. Volunteers from both Goodwin College and Pratt & Whitney worked with the students to show how lessons learned in the classroom are deployed in the real world, and how the value of experience added to education makes for unequaled talent.

Also this past spring, JA Southwest New England partnered with the Junior League of Hartford for the third consecutive year to implement the JA Career Connections for Young Women program.  It is an intensive after-school curriculum, bringing together a handful of high school students from the Greater Hartford area to undergo ten sessions that are aimed at providing young women with practical advice and wisdom about the world of work, from how to get hired to learning about their own personal brand.

Students hear first-hand from female professionals on how to develop valuable soft skills, gain confidence on the job, perfect their public speaking skills and the do’s and don’ts of a job interview.  They also identify a career cluster of interest and, in groups, visit a job site in that chosen field, getting an opportunity to imagine their future selves at work.

The new JA Launch Lesson in another initiative aimed to sharing the how-to of entrepreneurship and business with young students.

"Entrepreneurs are the driving force behind growth and positive change, and at EY we believe it is vital to help enable our future generation of innovators," said Randy Cain, Vice Chair and Southwest Region Managing Partner, Ernst & Young LLP, and JA USA board member. "Creative, hands-on programs such as JA Launch Lesson are critical to providing our youth with the tools, information and resources necessary to succeed when starting their own business."

This report presents the findings of surveys conducted among a sample of 1,007 parents of children ages 13-17 and a sample of 1,005 13-17-year-olds.  The surveys were live nationwide, October 3-8, 2017.

Junior Achievement is the world's largest organization dedicated to giving young people the knowledge and skills they need to own their economic success, plan for their future, and make smart academic and economic choices. JA reaches more than 4.8 million students per year in 109 markets across the United States, with an additional 5.6 million students served by operations in 100 other countries worldwide. JA Southwest New England, which includes much of Connecticut, is at www.jaconn.org

University of Saint Joseph School of Pharmacy Reaches to United Arab Emirates for New Academic Partnership

Earlier this decade, the University of Saint Joseph (USJ) took the bold steps of not only launching a Pharmacy doctoral program, but doing so in Downtown Hartford, developing a cutting-edge campus and curriculum above what was once the Hartford Civic Center mall. The program is thriving, driven in part by an innovative, modified-block curriculum that stresses experiential education throughout the three year program. Now, USJ is extending the Pharm.D.degree program connections beyond the United States.

The university has signed a letter of agreement to form a partnership with the College of Pharmacy at Gulf Medical University in the United Arab Emirates. The affiliation between the two schools includes inviting faculty and staff of the partner institution to participate in a variety of teaching, research, scholarship activities, and professional development. In addition, pharmacy students and postdoctoral students from both schools will participate in exchange programs for periods of study, research, and scholarship.

A signing ceremony, was held recently at USJ’s West Hartford campus, led by University of Saint Joseph President Rhona Free, Ph.D., and Dean of its School of Pharmacy Joseph Ofosu, Pharm.D., R.Ph., with Gulf Medical University Chancellor, Professor Hossam Hamdy.

“We are thrilled to create this partnership for the benefit of our respective students, faculty, and communities,” said President Free. “We look forward to a mutually beneficial experience for the Gulf Medical University’s College of Pharmacy and our School of Pharmacy located in downtown Hartford.”

The two institutions will carry out joint research and continuing education programs, and the schools will also organize symposia, conferences, short courses, and meetings on their research and scholarship issues.

Gulf Medical University’s planned Innovation and Research Centre will be the first of its kind in the region and will have devoted state-of-the-art innovation and incubation laboratories that are to include pharma product development, according to the university’s website. The Center aims to foster collaborations and partnerships with international institutions, universities, research labs, pharma companies and the healthcare industry.

Gulf Medical University (GMU), established in 1998, is a leading medical university in the Gulf region, located in Ajman, U.A.E. The campus is in the new Ajman metropolitan area, close to international airports in Dubai and Sharjah.

The USJ School of Pharmacy has an Open House scheduled for November 28, 6-8 p.m., at the school’s Hartford campus, 229 Trumbull Street.

https://youtu.be/p2W-ISsxqPM

Local Foundation Receives Major Grant to Expand Suicide-Prevention Program Nationally

The Hartford-based Jordan Porco Foundation has been selected as one of 13 non-profit organizations to receive a $100,000 grant from the Alkermes Inspiration Grants program. The grant will support Fresh Check Day, which is an uplifting mental health fair that builds a campus community around mental health and suicide prevention through engaging peer-to-peer education. Fresh Check Day, the foundation’s signature program, creates an approachable atmosphere where students are encouraged to engage in dialogues about mental health, and it helps to build a bridge between students and the mental health resources that exist on campus, in the community, and on a national level. Research supports that peer-to-peer education is one of the most effective ways to educate students, especially when the subject is suicide and mental health.

Since the first event in 2012, Fresh Check Day has grown exponentially, expanding throughout Connecticut, New England and nationwide.  There are now 26 colleges and universities in Connecticut that offer the program, and nearly 150 schools in 37 states.

“We are thankful to be awarded this grant in support of our signature program, Fresh Check Day. It helps in our national expansion and efforts to reach more young adults with our critical message of hope,” said Marisa Giarnella-Porco, President and CEO of the Jordan Porco Foundation.

The mission of the Jordan Porco Foundation, a 501(c) (3) public charity, is to prevent suicide, promote mental health, and create a message of hope for young adults. They accomplish this by providing engaging and uplifting peer-run programs. Their programs strive to start a conversation about mental health that reduces stigma while encouraging help-seeking and supportive behaviors.

“Addiction and mental illness affect millions of people and their families every day, and require an integrated approach to treatment that is scalable in communities across the country,” said Richard Pops, Chief Executive Officer of Alkermes. “Medicines play a role, but importantly, it is the innovative programs, like the Jordan Porco Foundation, designed to support people affected by these diseases and led by passionate leaders on the front lines that will ignite sustainable and meaningful change for patients.”

The primary goals of Fresh Check Day are to:

• Increase awareness of mental health resources and services available to students
• Challenge stigma and misconceptions around mental health and suicide that often deter individuals from seeking help
• Empower peers to be gatekeepers by understanding warning signs and knowing what to do if a friend is exhibiting signs of suicide or a mental health concern
• Increase willingness to ask for help if experiencing emotional distress

Now in its second year, Alkermes Inspiration Grants focuses on two key areas: improving or enhancing support or resources for people affected by mental health concerns or substance use disorder, and/or integrating the perspective of people affected by mental health concerns or addiction into drug development or care delivery. Alkermes is a global biopharmaceutical company with a “steadfast commitment” to developing innovative medicines for central nervous system (CNS) diseases.  The company has facilities in Ireland and the United States.

https://youtu.be/z_AQ5LJgVnQ

State’s Larger Public Universities Have Few Men's Hoop Student-Athletes from Connecticut

When the Central Connecticut State University Blue Devils took the court to open the 2017-18 men’s basketball season this past Friday night, playing the University of Hartford Hawks, not a single player on either team’s roster was a Connecticut native. The 14-man roster for CCSU’s Division l men’s basketball team includes student-athletes from Ohio, Illinois, Maryland, Missouri, Arizona, Virginia, New York, New Jersey, California, and Puerto Rico, as well as three from Pennsylvania and one from the island of St. Maarten.  The team, which plays in the Northeast Conference, is coached by former UConn and NBA star Donyell Marshall.

CCSU is one of four regional state universities, part of the Connecticut State College and University (CSCU) system.  The largest of four comprehensive universities within the system, CCSU serves nearly 11,800 students--9,800 undergraduates, and 2,000 graduate students.  Southern Connecticut has 7,526 undergraduates and 2,193 graduate students.  Eastern and Western each have an undergraduate student population of just over 5,000.

The University of Connecticut, which also plays Division 1 and has won multiple NCAA national championships, is governed separately.  The Huskies 16-man roster for the current academic year includes two student athletes from Connecticut.  UConn has more than 23,000 undergraduate students, including just over 19,000 at the main campus in Storrs.

On the Southern Connecticut State University Owls, a Division ll men’s basketball team, five Connecticut student- athletes have made their way onto the 13 player roster.  Those students hail from New Haven, North Haven, West Haven, Middlebury, and Stratford.  The team plays in the Eastern College Athletic Conference, led by head basketball coach - former UConn and NBA player - Scott Burrell, a Hamden native.

That’s a total of about one-sixth of the roster slots - seven Connecticut student-athletes on the men’s basketball teams out of 43 places on the three rosters.

The state’s two Division III universities reflect a very different story.

Fourteen of the 16 student athletes on the roster of the Western Connecticut State University Colonials are from Connecticut.  The only two attending the Danbury-based school who aren’t from Connecticut hail from Georgia and New York.

At Eastern Connecticut State University, which plays in the Little East Conference, the Warriors men’s basketball roster includes 13 students from Connecticut, two from neighboring Massachusetts, and one from New York City.