Organizing Cooperative Education

1. Organizing Cooperative Education Part Two

2. Public Relations Cooperative Education

3. General Goal of Public Relations • Influence people through word and deed to understand and accept CE • Involves determining what people know and believe presently • Then developing a plan of activities to increase understanding and change beliefs when appropriate

4. Public Relations • Effective public relations revolves around the teacher-coordinator. • Effective communications requires a plan of action which utilizes a variety of methods, media, and strategies. • Public relations is essentially a task of communicative interpretation.

5. Public Relations • Public relations involves activities that are moving, growing, and constantly require changes. • Many different types of communication can be used to inform the school and the community about cooperative education.

6. Public Relations • Must be positive in nature • Must be continuous • Must be honest in intent and execution • Should be comprehensive • Must be simple in meaning and conception • Should be sensitive to attitudes and level of understanding of public

7. Public Relations Guidelines • Know your job and do it professionally • Make certain CE is considered integral part of school’s program • Know and follow administrative policies • Keep administrators informed of plans • Become active citizen in community • Represent school positively in dealings with all people

8. Public Relations Guidelines • Avoid sidelines that may detract from professional role • Inform and involve parents with CE activities • Actively involve counselors and teachers • Make student growth and development the focal point of all you do • Work cooperatively with other teacher-coordinators to improve image of CE

9. Public Relations Who are the people coordinators should be trying to reach???

10. Public Relations • Internal Audiences • General student body • Prospective students • Faculty members • Counselors • School administration • District administration

11. Internal Public Relations • Students • Unaware of opportunity • Do not understand its purpose • Appeal to interests and goals • Faculty • Influence student attitudes and interests • Share outcomes and how students benefited

12. Internal Public Relations • Administrators • Interested in outcomes • Submit statistical and narrative reports • Invite them to observe • Share problems CE faces • Counselors • Be actively involved in operation – involvement leads to commitment • Ensure opportunity is beneficial

13. Public Relations • External Audiences • Families of students • Parent-teacher orgs • Personnel directors • Civic organizations • Labor organizations • Business owners/ managers • Professional orgs • Government officials

14. External Public Relations • Parents • Have influence on students’ courses • Misconception about meeting college entrance requirements • Must perceive it is educationally sound and socially acceptable

15. External Public Relations • Employees • Become involved through contacts at training stations • Essential they understand and support training effort • Organized labor groups will be concerned about effects on members • Enlist cooperation in early planning stages and by giving recognition for contributions

16. External Public Relations • Employers • Well informed to understand responsibilities • Emphasize benefits of working with school to develop good employees • Participation in advisory committees, evaluation, and public relation activities keeps them informed and involved

17. External Public Relations • Community Groups • Influential in establishing new curricula or in getting total community support • Keep them informed and include them • Participate in their organizations and projects • Have coordinator and students speak at one of their meetings

18. Public Relations Goals What are they???

19. Public Relations Goals • Good-will and a favorable climate • Increased prestige for program • Improved communication and cooperation between school and community • Broader understanding of program • Attract satisfactory students • Increase interest of employers

20. Basic Functions of Planning • Research • Determine what is known and believed • Conclude • Draw conclusions from data • Develop Objectives • Determine what needs to be achieved • Determine Activities and Timeline • Decide what needs to be done and when

21. Research • Determine what people presently know and believe • ***Teacher-coordinators’ interactions*** • Questionnaires/Surveys • I understand the purpose of CE. • I believe CE provides a valuable learning experience. • I understand how CE operates. • Others???

22. Conclude • Interpret available information • Include several people to avoid distortion by preconceived beliefs • Extremely important process because objectives, activities, and timeline are based on conclusions

23. Develop Objectives • Indicate what needs to be accomplished • Identify areas of deficiency • Identify areas of strength • Determine how to rectify weaknesses and maintain strengths

24. Sample Objectives • Increase involvement of counselors and faculty members with operation of CE. • Maintain student information activities at the same level as last year. • Increase knowledge of perspective employers about CE.

25. Determine Activities and Timeline • Select what will be done to develop or maintain desirable public relations • Develop calendar – determine when each activity will be most beneficial

26. Your Turn – Meeting Your PR Goals What would you do to meet your goals?

27. Talk, Talk, Talk, and Talk • Talk at faculty meetings • Speak to community groups • Train students to speak to groups • Conduct open houses • Speak to parents • Speak to business groups

28. Write, Write, Write, and Write • Use the newspapers • City newspapers • Regional newspapers • School newspapers • Company newspapers and magazines • Organization newsletters • Whatever is available

29. News Release • Answer who?, what?, when?, where?, and why? • Appropriate times – education weeks • Have only one person contact media • Establish personal contact with person • Meet deadlines promptly • Check dates, names, and places • Invite members of press as guests to special functions

30. Radio and Television • Special interviews • Family programs • Announcements of meetings • Live demonstrations • Spot announcements • Sporting events • Sponsored programs

31. Other PR Tools • Brochures • Business cards • Bulletin boards • Newsletter • Window displays • Posters • Billboards • Tent cards • Sandwich boards Support Cooperative Education

32. Publicity • Any non-personal presentation of ideas that is not paid for by the school or the program • Much of what is done to promote cooperative education can fall into the publicity category

33. Characteristics of Publicity • Can be good or bad • Has credibility • Can reach mass audience • Intended to inform, not sell • Does not have a sponsor • Cannot be controlled by recipient

34. Disadvantages of Publicity • May not be accurate • May not be timely • May not be used at all • Can be costly in terms of image • Is not usually repeated

35. Informal Approach • Don’t forget your daily encounters • Grocery shopping – store manager • Getting teeth cleaned – dentist and assistant • Filling car with gas – station manager • Socializing – parents and businesspersons who may be your friends

36. Employer Appreciation Activities • Held near end of school year to recognize contributions made during year • Banquet is most popular form • Can produce tremendous public relations results • Certificates hanging on business walls identify them as appreciated members of CE team – fosters positive attitude

37. Employer Appreciation Activities • Benefits • Employers receive formal recognition • Students develop leadership skills in planning and conducting event • Greater prestige for CE is created • New role undertaken by graduating seniors may be ceremonialized • Positive public relations

38. Employer Appreciation Activities • Planning with students • Select date of activity early (Sept./Oct.) • Decide where activity will be • Collect prices and menus from acceptable sites • Establish planning committee • Establish theme

39. Employer Appreciation Activities • Establish timeline to complete: • Design and print invitations and response requests • Secure funds to support activity (if fundraising is required should be planned well in advance) • Prepare and print certificates • Secure plaques (when appropriate) • Collect funds needed

40. Employer Appreciation Activities • Plan order of banquet program • Determine who receives what type of award • Employers • Students • School personnel • Advisory council members • Parents • Others?

41. Employer Appreciation Activities • Plan program and assign responsibility for each part • Decide who will be at the banquet and list all who will attend • Provide periodic reports on progress of plan

42. Time to Change Gears

43. Legal Aspects

44. Legal Violations • Be prepared to report violations • Immediately pull student from job • Anything less: • Opens teacher-coordinator, employer, and school to claims of negligence and law suits • Risks student’s health, safety, or welfare • Damages image of program • Leaves coordinator open to criticism

45. Federal Regulations • Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 • “No person in the United States shall, on the ground of race, color, or national origin, be excluded from, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving federal financial assistance.”

46. Federal Regulations • Title IX of Education Amendments of 1972 • “No person . . . shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving federal financial assistance.”

47. Federal Regulations • Rehabilitation Act of 1973 • Section 504 • “No otherwise qualified handicapped individual . . . shall, solely by reason of his/her handicap, be excluded from the participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving federal financial assistance.”

48. Federal Regulations • Targeted Jobs Tax Credit • Incentive to employers to hire certain persons from targeted groups that have particularly high unemployment rate or other special employment needs • One group – youth participating in CE who are members of economically disadvantaged families • Contact IL Dept. of Employment Security

49. Federal Regulations • American with Disabilities Act of 1990 • Prohibits discrimination based on disability in employment among others • Purposes: • End discrimination against individuals with disabilities • Provide acceptable standards of performance in addressing discrimination • Ensure enforcement of standards

50. Child Labor Laws • Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 as amended • Contains Child Labor Regulations • Establishes minimum wage and overtime • Requires equal pay for equal work • Exemptions are found in various locations of the interpretations of the law. • http://www.youthrules.dol.gov/hours.htm