Wyoming County
Business Education Council
Mission:
To encourage the partnerships,
between business, education, and
the Wyoming County Community
that will prepare our young people
to be productive members of the
workforce.
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Business Education
Board of Directors & Staff
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Executive Director, Linda Leblond
President, Norbert Fuest, AppleTree Consultants
Vice President, Julie Donlon, Genesee Valley Educational Partnership
Past President, Sandra Duckworth, Community Investor
Treasurer, Bryce Thompson, Attica CSD
Secretary, Connie Almeter, WCCH
Jeff Fitch, Sign Language
Andrea Aldinger, Wyoming County Youth Bureau/OFA
Mark Balling, Lend-Lease Construction
Julia Reed, Superintendent, Letchworth CSD
Dr. Sharon Huff, Superintendent, Pioneer CSD
Joseph Englebert, Superintendent, Warsaw CSD
Rachael Becht, Koike Aronson, Inc.
Sonia Dumbleton, Five Star Bank
Brianna Stone, The Bank of Castile
Roxanne Dueppengiesser, Cornell Cooperative Extension
Donald O’Geen, Wyoming County DA
Steve Tarbell, Town of Castile Supervisor
Vanessa McCormick, Town Java Supervisor
Jessica Hibbard, Genesee Community College
Daryl McLaughlin, Superintendent, Perry CSD
Thank you for your support!
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What is the Business
Education Council (BEC)?
 Established in 1981, the BEC is a 501 (c) 3 not for profit service
organization that brings together the business community and
educators by actively building and sustaining quality local
partnerships. Incorporating the School –to- Work Opportunities Act
initiative into BEC workforce readiness programs.
 The BEC and partners in Wyoming County are collaborating to offer
direct services helping educators find new ways to integrate work
readiness skills (CDOS) into the classroom.
 A locally developed, locally controlled initiative that builds and
strengthens collaborations among educators, colleges, businesses, and
the community to help all students attain the knowledge and
experience necessary for making informed career decisions.
Combining a strong foundation of academics with greater career
exploration and experience in today's workplace brings a new
relevance to learning and teaches skills that students can apply to any
choice of career.
 Educators may access the Business Education Council through our
web-site www.wycobec.org.
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Education to Career Transition
Bridging Pathways
America’s youth and the quality of our
educational systems are the backbone of
America’s future.
Developing a strong connection between young
people, our local businesses, educators, and the
world of work is important to the future
economic success of our local communities. We
want to help young people find good jobs in high
wage, high growth industries. We know where
these jobs are and it is our responsibility to
show them the way.
How can we do this?
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Is There a Learning Standard for
Workforce Readiness?
Career Development & Occupational Studies (CDOS)
Description:
 Classroom instruction is supplemented by a
variety of career development activities that
serve as a bridge connecting school and work,
including career awareness, exploration,
planning, employer presentations, job
shadowing, internships, and workplace visits.
 Integrating learning serves as a context for
organizing and teaching core subject matter
and real work applications allowing students to
use academic knowledge to perform tasks and
solve problems in a technical or occupational
context.
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Career Development & Occupational
Studies (CDOS)
 Universal Foundation Skills make up a
comprehensive set of skills and
competencies which must be mastered for
an individual to be successful in the
workplace and in a high performance
global economy.
 Career majors allow students to acquire
the occupationally related technical
knowledge, skills, and competencies by
participating in classroom instruction,
projects, and work-based learning
opportunities.
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Career Development & Occupational
Studies (CDOS)
Standard 1: Career Development
 Students will be knowledgeable about the world of work,
explore career options, and relate personal skills, aptitudes,
and abilities to future career decisions.
Standard 2: Integrated Learning
 Students will demonstrate how academic knowledge and
skills are applied in the workplace and other settings.
Standard 3a. Universal Foundation Skills
 Students will demonstrate mastery of the foundation skills
and competencies essential for success in the workplace.
Standard 3b: Career Majors
 Students who choose a career major will acquire the career-
specific technical knowledge/skills necessary to progress
toward gainful employment, career advancement, and
success in postsecondary programs.
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What am I learning?
Why am I learning it?
How can I use it?
Employer Expectations are Increasing!
2014
1993
1995
•Problem Solving
•Process Improvement
1990
1985
Come to
Work
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•Problem Solving
•Process Improvement
•Team Involvement
•Problem Solving
•Process Improvement
•Team Involvement
•Safety Ownership
•Customer Surveys
•Team Involvement
•Safety Ownership
•Customer Surveys
•Process Improvement
•Multiple Skills
•Peer Training
•Peer Interviewing
Linking Business and Education
Team Approach:
Problem Solving
Process Improvement
Safety Ownership
Increased Literacy
and Communication
Skills
Customer Interface
Multi-tasking Skills
Peer Interviews,
Training & Reviews
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How Does an Educator Make an
Impact on Workforce Readiness?
 The classroom teacher needs to incorporate
two well documented instructional
techniques: Real world applications and
assessment of mastery of knowledge.
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Real world applications. Begin each daily
lesson with a link to the skill(s) the student will
be learning and the application(s) to a career
or the employment world. For example,
“Today we are reading and discussing supply
and demand and how it affects the global
economy. We will be using your critical
thinking skills to develop applications for the
business world as an economist would do.”
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How Does an Educator Make an
Impact on Workforce Readiness?
 2. Assessment of mastery knowledge. Starting
today leave no student behind if they have not
mastered the subject matter with a 90%+
accuracy. Allow the student to perform
numerous remedial exercises with the
opportunity to re-take the assessment exercise
until mastery has been achieved.
 Convince your students that this is the goal to
achieve to insure career success. A goal less than
that is not acceptable in this highly competitive
world. The students around the globe work
diligently to achieve this level.
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TOP TEN SKILLS from the New York State
Association of Employment and Training
Professionals Survey: Just Show Up!!
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Can be trusted, ethical
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Works cooperatively with others
Personal appearance and hygiene
Listening skills -receives, interprets & responds appropriately
Demonstrates understanding & adaptability in group settings
Displays effort and perseverance
Believes in own self-worth & maintains a positive attitude
Written skills - complete and accurate
Communication skills
Exhibits appropriate behavior in workplace
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Are Your Students Workforce
Ready?
21st Century Skills Needed for:
College and Career Readiness
 Communication
 Leadership
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Social Responsibility
Creativity
Life Management
Teamwork
Critical Thinking
Research/Project Development
Technical/Scientific
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Introducing the world of work
to our youth:
Classrooms,Vocations, Careers, and Jobs
 Strong Academic Skills
 21st Century Skills
 Planned Youth Employment Programs
 Well Developed Vocational Training
Programs
 First Class Pre-employment Skills
 Volunteer Jobs and Community
Involvement
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About School- to-Work
Major Components of “School-to-Work”
At the core of the School-to-Work Opportunities Act, 1994-2001 there
were three basic components: A school-to-work system incorporates
all three components in its operation to provide young people with
an integrated array of learning experiences that form bridges
between formal schooling and employment
School-based Learning — career awareness and career exploration,
high academic standards, a program of instruction that integrates
academic and vocational learning, assessment of academic and
workplace knowledge and skills, and ease of entry or transfer
between K-12 and post-secondary education and between education
and training programs.
Work-based Learning — work experience opportunities and job training
experiences coordinated with school-based learning, workplace mentoring
and instruction and activities on workplace competencies and all aspects of
an industry.
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About School- to-Work
 Connecting Activities — matching students with work-
based experiences, liaisons between school, employers
and community partners, technical assistance to
employers, labor and other partners, assistance to
schools to integrates school and work-based learning,
linking youth development activities with other
community, state and federal initiatives.
 The implementation of these components will vary from
partnership to partnership; however, the overall goal is
to connect schools and workplaces and to provide all
students with relevant learning experiences, marketable
skills and valued credentials throughout their schooling.
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Benefits of a School –to- Work
Community
For STUDENTS:
Enhance career exploration with relevant
workplace learning opportunities
Gain knowledge and experience necessary
to make informed academic and career
decisions
Interact with many positive adult role
models
Build relationships with potential employers
Develop good work habits and problem
solving/critical thinking skills
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Benefits of a School-to-Work
Community
EMPLOYERS:
 Gain access to an expanded pool of
qualified local applicants
 Influence curriculum development to
meet the changing needs in the workplace
 Evaluate potential employees on-site
prior to hiring
 Improve productivity and reduce the cost
of training entry-level employees
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Benefits of a School-to-Work
Community
EDUCATORS:
 Decrease drop out rate
 Increase Postsecondary enrollment and
employment of graduates
 Increase professional development
opportunities
 Motivate students to learn -- fewer
discipline problems in classroom
 Integrate academic instruction with work
and career and technical experiences
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Partnerships
What is the School-Business Partnership?
Established in 1980, the Business Education Council (BEC)
works to continue the initiative of the School-to-Work
Opportunities Act (STW). Local partnerships are composed of 6
school districts (Attica, Letchworth, Perry, Pioneer, Warsaw, and
Wyoming) a cross-section of local organizations from profit (
Business Members) and nonprofit sectors. these partnerships
provide new opportunities for young people by linking
classroom knowledge with career experiences.
Activities include:
Junior Achievement, Leadership Programs, Career Days, Health
Expos, Job Shadowing, Field trips/tours, Career Speakers in the
Classroom, Community Service, Mentoring, and Work-based
Learning Programs.
Pioneer Credit Recovery
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A Service Provider For:
Wyoming County
Wyoming County
Government
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Why Should You Use the
Business Education Council?
 BEC Career Awareness programs are designed
to compliment basic skills curriculum while
introducing students to a variety work related
skills to meet the CDOS standards.
 Provide educators with classroom
opportunities to assist students in the transition
from school to the workplace and life-long
learning.
 A proven fact that people learn best and most
effectively when they can apply what they learn
to real life and real work situations.
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Exploration Opens Doors
Career Days
Job Shadows
Mock Interviews
Classroom Presentations
Health Expos
Junior Achievement
And More…………
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What This Means for you?
 Each School District in Wyoming County
can benefit from unlimited service
coordination with just a phone call or
e-mail.
 Trained staff at the BEC is prepared to
assist educators in integrating work
readiness programs with academic
learning in your classroom.
 Working together, we can prepare our
youth for tomorrow!
 Contact us today:
(585) 237-3010, www.wycobec.org ,
lleblond@rochester.rr.com
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Next Steps ……
 Establish a District Wide Career
Development Committee at Each School
 BEC Presentations Informing Educators
about the BEC Program Services
 Promote the BEC web-site to all Districts
 Connect CDOS Standards to all
Curricula
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