Businesses and teachers can work together to create ROP
partnerships
A one-year grant for the Regional Occupational Program South
County
– which includes the Morgan Hill, Gilroy and San Benito programs
– will focus on connecting students seeking real-world experience
with businesses willing and able to train young, aspiring
professionals.
Businesses and teachers can work together to create ROP partnerships
A one-year grant for the Regional Occupational Program South County – which includes the Morgan Hill, Gilroy and San Benito programs – will focus on connecting students seeking real-world experience with businesses willing and able to train young, aspiring professionals.
The grant funds a new part-time role whose job is to expand the number of connections among high school students in the Regional Occupational Program and local businesses, as detailed in last week’s edition of The Weekend Pinnacle.
ROP is driven by the strength of those ties and how much both sides, the students and professionals, put into it.
Through the one-time grant funds, San Benito County has an otherwise unlikely potential to boost those connections and largely benefit both the school and business communities. In that one year, ideally the new staff member can not only increase participation in year one, but also set a foundation of partnerships that lasts for the long term.
The Santa Clara County Office of Education staff hired Gregory Cabrera as a business partnership coordinator. The grant, called the “Stepping Stones Collaborative Grant,” is from the California Department of Education.
It supports what is referred to as career-technical education pathways, programs for high school and post-secondary students that often require a multi-year course while integrating academics with technical and occupational knowledge.
The local ROP, like any other program in the education realm, has struggled immensely with the state’s economic crisis. But if there is an effort worth an extra injection, this one fits the bill. In this case, it comes without a significant cost to local taxpayers.
If expanded, the ROP at SBHS stands to increase the efficiency of education in the district and enhance the number of student opportunities to get real-world experience outside the classroom – programs that oftentimes carry more value than written tests and English papers.
Students taking part also have the chance to learn one of two important lessons before they enter college or the working world: They can find out whether they still want to further pursue a career in a specific field, or they can discover that another direction might make more sense. Either way, it gives them a leg up on other students without the same experience.
The next step is taking action, of course, and we encourage school officials to give Cabrera the resources he needs to get the job done, and in the short time frame allowed under the grant.
We also encourage businesses to listen to Cabrera’s message and seriously consider potential benefits of ROP partnerships.
