• Conducted research on strategies and activities of intermediary organizations;
• Provided technical assistance to 25 intermediaries to strengthen, and accelerate improvement in, their convening and connecting activities;
• Conducted and disseminated research through the project Web site, public presentations, project intersite meetings, and other venues; and
• Launched and staffed an Intermediary Network that supports peer learning opportunities and provides a voice for these organizations in national, state, and local policy arenas.

• Building momentum by expanding the Intermediary Network of organizations that take advantage of its tools, research, peer learning opportunities, and other resources;
• Strengthening leadership by helping the original 25 network members become a strong core for expanding that network;
• Gathering evidence by collecting, analyzing, and disseminating data on the intermediary activities, priorities, and growth of network members;
• Guiding practice by creating and marketing tools, materials, and activities that can inform the field about "best practices" across the nation and encourage quality intermediary efforts;
• Promoting effective policy by documenting and promoting public policies that can sustain and advance intermediary activities and organizations; and
• Reaching key audiences by disseminating project products through print and electronic means.

About the STWIP

1. Why a School-to-Work Intermediary Project 2. The School-to-Work Intermediary Project Today 3. A Collective Profile of the Project Sites 4. Summary of Project Accomplishments 5. The Project Partners 6. Project Sites/Intermediary Network Members

1. Why a School-to-Work Intermediary Project
In many communities, new partnerships have emerged to promote young people’s self-confidence about their abilities, increase their connections to adults and opportunities outside the classroom, and foster the academic and work-related competencies that are needed to succeed. However, education-community relationships do not develop automatically; nor can they be sustained without significant commitments of time and resources. To do so requires organizations prepared to play an intermediary role—committed, structured, and staffed to creating and supporting effective, efficient collaborations.

The School-to-Work Intermediary Project seeks to strengthen and raise the profile of local organizations that connect schools, workplaces, and other community resources to improve pathways for youth into postsecondary learning and careers. In its first phase, from the fall 1998 through the spring of 2000, the project:

• Conducted research on strategies and activities of intermediary organizations;
• Provided technical assistance to 25 intermediaries to strengthen, and accelerate improvement in, their convening and connecting activities;
• Conducted and disseminated research through the project Web site, public presentations, project intersite meetings, and other venues; and
• Launched and staffed an Intermediary Network that supports peer learning opportunities and provides a voice for these organizations in national, state, and local policy arenas.

2. The School-to-Work Intermediary Project Today
The project’s second phase, begun in mid-2000, focuses on:

• Building momentum by expanding the Intermediary Network of organizations that take advantage of its tools, research, peer learning opportunities, and other resources;
• Strengthening leadership by helping the original 25 members of the Intermediary Network become a strong core for expanding that network;
• Gathering evidence by collecting, analyzing, and disseminating data on the intermediary activities, priorities, and growth of network members;
• Guiding practice by creating and marketing tools, materials, and activities that can inform the field about "best practices" across the nation and encourage quality intermediary efforts;
• Promoting effective policy by documenting and promoting public policies that can sustain and advance intermediary activities and organizations; and
• Reaching key audiences by disseminating project products through print and electronic means.

4. Summary of Project Accomplishments
In September 2000, the project asked Intermediary Network members questions about their community’s efforts to link schools, employers, and other resources.

Has your participation led directly to the implementation of new program elements or activities?

• Boston (Massachusetts) Private Industry Council: The Intermediary Project and its network partners have informed the Boston PIC’s efforts to develop a new employer organizing department. This new staff unit will support current employer partners who seek to meet current workforce needs through the work-based learning initiatives offered by the PIC. It will also conduct the strategic marketing of PIC services and initiatives to new employers.
• Business and Education Partnership of Somerset/Hunterdon Counties: Developed greater focus on workplace readiness for all students; developed Working Knowledge Workshops, a new professional development training series for teachers specifically focused on workplace readiness skills. As a result of our exposure to STWIP, we have revised our business plan and vision; it now reads: in the next five years, every teacher will come to thoroughly understand the connection between his/her work and the workplace, and every child will graduate from high school with the skills and attitudes necessary for success in the workplace.
• Business/Education Expectations, Kansas City, Missouri: Increased policy activities at the state level; involvement in the Quality Work-Based Learning Initiative with New Ways to Work; changes in the regional governance structure based on work with STWIP.
• Skillpoint Alliance, Austin, Texas: New focus on all students, not just career and technology; secure buy-in of school superintendents, led to systemic change and support; new focus on college and careers, led to scholarship partners with Star of Texas Fair and Rodeo, $50,000 in scholarships awarded to STC students; adopted Boston model of work-based learning and summer jobs/internship; implemented regional summer internship and job initiative "200 students in year 2000" in collaboration with City of Austin, Travis County, local WIB, 11 school districts, over 200 employers, secured 2,600 jobs and internships for area youth; $1.5 million regional Accelerated Careers in Electronics Ed/WFD/STC initiative with area semiconductor firms; regional automotive technology effort w/CTACC; regional health care alliance with hospitals with 80% of local market, UT school of nursing, high schools, Austin Community College.
• Charleston (South Carolina) Metro Chamber of Commerce: Largest school district served established full-time STC Director at district level with general operating funds, not grant funds.
• Fox Cities Alliance for Education, Appleton, Wisconsin: We see a clear need for additional teacher externship programs and for some basic why-education-is-important programming and will propose those pieces at an upcoming summit meeting. We have learned about different models at Intermediary Project meetings and events and in conversations. We have had substantive conversation with STWIP members to help us as we investigate the creation of a regional technical school.
• Greater El Paso (Texas) Chamber of Commerce: Conducted employer forum to get prioritization from employers of STW issues employer recommendation to develop and operate after school career camps; recommendation from employers to launch summer youth employment project, for all youth, not those meeting special population guidelines; recommendation that jobs developed in newly created Employer One Stop System be accessible to secondary and postsecondary teachers/students, with the caveat that students who accept employment must agree to graduate from high school or complete that semester of college; benchmark school, connecting, and work-based activities at elementary, middle school, and high school levels (principal of campus is respondent); convened Education Summit to develop community consensus major goals surrounding education; development of youth apprenticeship in mold-making and tool and die.
• Greater Louisville, Inc./Louisville Chamber of Commerce, Louisville, Kentucky: E-mentoring was new and sponsored by our organization; additional support for all our internship programs—including end-of-year celebration; worked to connect college students with summer internship opportunities; connection with Workforce Investment Board; Supply Chain Management Career Pathway, connecting business partners, middle and high school, postsecondary; additional focus on marketing; Intern-of-the-Year. This project has been very helpful with working with our Workforce Investment Board. It has helped shape the work of the Youth Council.
• New Bedford (Massachusetts) Public Schools: Enhanced business partnership. Local business came to the table with an active rather than passive attitude, making available resources, internship sites, and personnel to our efforts.
• New York Citywide STW Alliance: Participation in the STW Intermediary Project strengthened our ability to envision a different role for our organization as a service to businesses interested in partnering with schools to provide school to work activities.
• Philadelphia (Pennsylvania) Youth Network: Comment from last year’s survey still applies: This is difficult to answer definitively as yes or no. Overall, the project has informed our thinking about program elements and policies, especially around rebuilding employer services unit and the functions of an intermediary, but it hasn’t led to the implementation of new elements or policies, per se.
• Sonoma County (California) STC Partnership: Able to clearly articulate our niche and write a dynamic business plan that is a key tool for our employer engagement and sustainability strategies.

What new policies has your organization advocated as a result of your participation in this project?

• Business/Education Expectations, Kansas City, Missouri: Work on garnering state-level support for STW.
• Capital Area Training Foundation, Austin, Texas: Changed staffing structure and focus; better use of database.
• Charleston (South Carolina) Metro Chamber of Commerce: Career Pathways will be the mechanism that the Education Foundation uses to work with large high schools. Board of Directors is focused on whole school restructuring versus individual programs.
• Fox Cities Alliance for Education, Appleton, Wisconsin: We expect to advocate more activity in one-year youth apprenticeship programs (as opposed to placing all focus on two-year programs). We expect to expand our teacher training course offerings beyond math, science and technology.
• Greater El Paso (Texas) Chamber of Commerce: Merge Tech Prep/STW partnership with Youth Advisory Council of LWDB integrating STW foundations in RFP and recommendations to local Workforce Development Board; development of policies (in progress) around student, parent, school accountability; emphasis of math career pathways; default graduation plan is Texas recommended plan, not minimum plan (contains rigorous academics and option for career and technology ed. courses).
• Sonoma County (California) STC Partnership: Key legislative staff participated in Kansas City STWIP Institute resulting in writing and passage of STC sustainability legislation for the state of California.
• Southwest Idaho STW Partnership/Boise Metro Chamber: Increased emphasis on intermediary role; coordinating efforts between organizations offering services for youth, compiling extensive clearinghouse of local agencies, etc.; staff member serving as board members on WIB and Youth Council; we are working to convince school districts to place work-based learning coordinators in their district rather than relying on STW office staff to handle all connecting activities; STW staff are attempting to relinquish their role as direct service providers.
• Tulare County (California) Office of Education/Tulare County Workforce Investment Board: New collaborative efforts for student transition to workplace from high school-joint planning; new connection and energy because of Youth Council development
  

Have you brought new partners into your community’s efforts in the past year?

Employers

• Capital Area Training Foundation, Austin, Texas: 100
• Greater El Paso (Texas) Chamber of Commerce:1,000 employers who previously did not participate in STW activities have signed an agreement to participate at varying levels.
• Greater Louisville, Inc./Louisville Chamber of Commerce, Louisville, Kentucky: Approximately 50
• Middle Rio Grande Business and Education Collaborative, Albuquerque, New Mexico: 25
• New Bedford (Massachusetts) Public Schools: 25
• New York City STW Alliance: 5-10
• Sonoma County (California) STC Partnership: 200

Schools/ School Districts

• Capital Area Training Foundation, Austin, Texas: 4 new schools
• Greater Louisville, Inc./Louisville Chamber of Commerce, Louisville, Kentucky: At least 5 new schools
• Middle Rio Grande Business and Education Collaborative, Albuquerque, Texas: 1 college, 1 new district
• Sonoma County (California) STC Partnership: 1 new district

Labor Unions

• Greater Louisville, Middle Rio Grande Business and Education Collaborative, and Tulare County Office of Education/Workforce Investment Board: 2 labor unions
• Sonoma County STC Partnership and New Bedford Public Schools: 1 union

Organizations Serving Special Populations

• Business/Education Expectations: Key community-based organizations involved in the Quality Work-Based Learning Initiative.
• Capital Area Training Foundation: Texas Schools for the Deaf and Blind, American YouthWorks.
• Fox Cities Alliance for Education: We will work directly with TANF eligible students for the first time this year, toward providing them with employability skills and youth apprenticeship training. We are doing this with the local Workforce Development Board and the Cooperative Educational Service Agency.
• Greater Louisville, Inc: Organizations serving youth with disabilities, out-of-school youth
• Middle Rio Grande Business and Education Collaborative: MRGBEC became the Youth Council under WIA
• New Bedford Public Schools: Youth Build
• Sonoma County STC Partnership: WIB/ Youth Council
• Southwest Idaho STW Partnership/Boise Metro Chamber: Boys and Girls Clubs of Canyon County
• Tulare County Office of Education/Workforce Investment Board: Workability Network

Has participation in this project improved the quality of your organization’s activities, specifically around the following outcomes? (1= very much, 5= not at all)

Articulation of a clear message: MODE = 1
Setting priorities for high-leverage activities: MODE = 1
Pursuing state and local policy agenda : MODE = 1
Marketing to employers, schools: MODE = 2
Provision of learning-rich work opportunities: MODE = 2
Quality of convening of local partners: MODE = 2
Data collection/measurement of outcomes & impacts: MODE = 3
Information management systems: MODE = 3

5. The Project Partners
The project has two lead partners: Jobs for the Future and New Ways to Work.
The partners are augmented by the Project Advisory Group, which is composed of leaders of national organizations with key local constituencies: community colleges, youth employment organizations, public education authorities, teachers unions, and trade associations.

6. Intermediary Network Members
Local organizations are members of the Intermediary Network and receive direct technical assistance through the School-to-Work Intermediary Project for their efforts to improve young people's academic and career options. The organizations include local school-to-work partnerships, nonprofit organizations, Chambers of Commerce, Workforce Boards, labor organizations, and others. These groups receive intensive, focused support designed to enhance their capacity as organizations that make strong connections between classrooms and workplaces. The organizations benefit from project tools and resources, and they participate in local and national conferences, institutes, and site visits designed to strengthen their intermediary activities.