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CAEP Annual Plan: 2020-21 59 Sierra Joint Consortium

Status: Consortium Approved

California Adult Education Program : Annual Plan : 2020-21 Produced: Aug 13, 2020, 03:35 PM UTC Anna Mostafavi

59 Sierra Joint Consortium

Plans & Goals - Consortium Approved

Executive Summary
As noted in the Sierra Joint Consortium's Three Year Plan, our vision over the next 12 months will continue to be maintaining existing successful programs, expanding offerings and access to more of the region and fostering student success in their career and educational goals whether that be the completion of a three-hour resume workshop, a high school diploma, industry certification or to transfer to post-secondary. Special emphasis and attention must be given to providing program delivery and student support in our new reality of COVID 19, tightening budgets, and social and racial unrest.COVID19 has created new challenges for delivering instruction to adult learners across our Sierra Joint Consortium region, however, our partner schools have been able to pivot and innovate to continue to meet students’ needs in our new remote learning environment. Districts are using synchronous distance learning opportunities for both instruction and office hour support. Classes are being provided via a variety of accessible technologies, including Zoom, Remind, Padlet, Gradpoint, Canvas, Google Classroom, and more. Consortium members have invested in needed tech equipment to broadcast synchronous online instruction, provided Chromebooks for students to check out, maintained open, on-ground labs for testing (where allowed) and worked with their local internet providers to obtain wifi infrastructure/hotspots for students in need and even added bilingual tech support. It should be noted that, while the consortium is working together to leverage resources and share best practices, individual districts have implemented different requirements and varied interpretations of required protocols. This had led to inconsistencies with some districts allowing activity such as in-person testing, labs, and orientations - some are allowed to conduct, others not.Sierra Joint Consortium members are planning to survey staff and teachers on their training needs. We anticipate their needs will include the tools and techniques required for effective distance learning. We have already identified training to include document cameras, video creation, video meeting management, tablets, cameras, laptops, hotspots, and integrating best practices within distance learning technology. Sierra Joint Consortium Members are providing an array of supports for students during the pandemic. All of the consortium LEAs are offering meals to members of the public through their food services departments. Referrals to community support programs are provided to assist with filing unemployment, job placement services, and support for undocumented students. Technology resources, such as cellular hotspots and laptop/chromebook loans, have been made available to assist students to access online courses. We will continue to adjust our student supports as conditions change.Sierra Joint Consortium Members are each budgeting proactively in preparation for during and post COVID-19, including strategic leveraging of other Adult Education and non-Adult Education resources and partners. Although CAEP funds were reinstated we are budgeting conservatively in anticipation of potential mid-year reductions and reductions in future years.The strategies and supports SJC plans to use to ensure equitable student progress and success start with seeking direction from each LEA so as to address the issue in a systemic regional manner. Each member plans on attending CAEP/regional trainings and conferences that address racial and equality issues. Each district is addressing Equity and Structural racism district-wide. Schools in our consortium have initiated the following: contract with the National Equity Project, and NEP residential program and serve on the district’s Equity Leadership Team, explore training on implicit bias, continue to offer Undocu-Ally training to Adult Education partners and staff, disaggregating data on specific needs within the community to be able to target populations to provide programs that support them, recruiting teachers that are more representative of the community, continue to host annual Consulados de Mexico to support undocumented members of the community, continue to offer CTE support for cohorts of students not qualifying as “Prepared’ on the CCI.
Regional Planning Overview
The Sierra Joint Consortium will maintain a strong focus on the four major goals of the consortium's three-year plan and has developed strategies utilizing the logic models to achieve these goals:Goal 1: Expand program and course offerings in remote and/or underserved locations within Consortium boundaries to fill gaps and meet customer needs.Goal 2: Continue to expand workforce training in high demand sectors throughout the region.Goal 3: Improve transitions from adult schools to post-secondary education.Goal 4: Identify and address barriers to student success and completion.

Meeting Regional Needs

Regional Need #1

Gaps in Service / Regional Needs
The Sierra Joint Consortium covers over 2500 square miles across Placer and Nevada Counties with a combined population of approximately 500,000 residents. This wide geographical spread creates a number of unique factors for each consortium member to consider. However, some commonalities can be found. The region has a relatively low percentage of adults who have not completed a high school diploma (combined average of 5.6%) compared to the state overall (17.1%). Still, this represents close to 28,000 adults within the two counties who would benefit from a high school completion or GED program and indicates a need to continue to offer this to our communities. A larger portion of the population, about 20%, has completed only a high school diploma which puts them at risk for unemployment and poverty, particularly during the current economic downturn. This is evidenced by the recent change in the unemployment rates of the two counties since the COVID -19 pandemic and subsequent lockdown (Placer County from 2.7% in December 2019 to 11.2% current, Nevada County from 2.9% in December 2019 to 13% current). In light of this data, we believe developing high-quality CTE training, industry certifications and viable pathways to post-secondary education continue to be a vital priority for our communities. Additionally, with the need to provide online instruction, all agencies within the consortium are experiencing gaps in service caused by the lack of internet access due to either remote rural location or lack of family resources/economic challenges.
How do you know? What resources did you use to identify these gaps?
Discussion with our regional partners (AJCC, Business Advantage Network, DOR, Nevada and Placer County Employment Health and Human Services, Contractors Association of Truckee Tahoe, Tahoe Forest Hospital District) as well as viewing quantitative data from sources such US Quick Facts, Federal Reserve Economic Data, Placer/South Placer/ Nevada County Employment Profiles, Launchboard.
How will you measure effectiveness / progress towards meeting this need?
With the current lockdown situation in California due to COVID-19, the past metrics for measuring effectiveness are no longer applicable. Therefore, SJC is working to develop a new baseline to measure effectiveness to build out offerings (online, hybrid, and in-person when allowed) that will reach outlying areas and increase enrollment, course completion, job readiness, and articulation between the adult schools and post-secondary education.

Gaps In Service

New Strategies

Strategy #1
Expand distance learning technology throughout the consortium.
Strategy #2
Continue to expand ESL/Literacy/Career education to regions in the consortia that do not have adult education programs, for example, Lincoln, Rocklin, and San Juan Ridge.
Strategy #3
Rebuild inmate education in Placer County following COVID-19 shut down in spring 2020.
Strategy #4
Develop partnership and collaboration (i.e. PLCs and OneStops) with workforce funded programs in our region in order to improve transitions to postsecondary education and workforce in high-need, higher-wage, or high-skill occupations in our region as identified by the CalAdultEd Labor Market Outlook, the COE, or the CDE.
Strategy #5
Gather and analyze student data and industry data to identify barriers to student success.

Seamless Transitions

New Strategies

Strategy #1
Continue to foster post-secondary faculty/counselor collaboration with adult school instructors/counselors on articulations (formal or informal) and transitions to the college where relevant/applicable e.g., construction, auto, IT, advanced manufacturing, and welding, etc.Utilize newly formed transitions counselor role at adult school and dedicated enrollment specialist at Sierra College to foster transitions.Sierra College administrative regulation 5011 implemented in January 2020 was amended to include adult education students (HSD/HSE) for academic enrichment status. This change allows adult learners to begin their post-secondary transition without impacting future financial aid awards.
Strategy #2
Identify and explore best practices across the state to better serve students online via distance learning.
Strategy #3
Sierra faculty collaboration with adult school instructors to develop curriculum to assist in a successful transition to post-secondary (for example, dual enrollment, auto, welding program).

Student Acceleration

New Strategies

Strategy #1
Continue Sierra faculty collaboration with adult school instructors on articulations (formal or informal) and transitions to the college where relevant/applicable e.g., construction, auto, IT, advanced manufacturing and welding, etc.
Strategy #2
Make data-driven decisions in order to improve student success across all programs. For example, adult school ESL instructors will be utilizing the PLC model to identify successful instructional practices that can be replicated to increase completion rates in a more timely manner.
Strategy #3
Explore alternative assessment options in addition to CASAS to address current challenges with COVID restrictions in some districts.
Strategy #4
ELA and/or mathematics gaps will be identified in Adult CTE programs in order to integrate CTE with supporting ESL and/or ABE instruction. For example, during student onboarding into AE CTE programs, students will be tested to determine academic gaps that will then be addressed through the infusion of workplace-relevant math, reading, and writing skills within those classes or through related workplace academic courses included in the CTE program course sequencing.
Strategy #5
Continue to foster collaboration with ABE, ASE, and ESL instructors and CTE instructors to offer integrated learning opportunities. Students in each program will be supported in identifying academic and employment needs and encouraged to participate in programs that help support those needs.
Strategy #6
Learning gains may be measured by:A grade level increase in HSD as documented by credits earned.Passing of one of the four subjects areas in GED exam.Mastery of GED educational software platform informal exams, in three of the four subjects areas with a minimum score of 80%.Pass and completion of informal educational software learning mastery exercises, written assignments, virtual class assessment and oral interview.Workforce preparation Measurable Skills Gains, as well as Literacy Gains, shall be measured when the student completes a short term program e.g. (Microsoft Word/job search strategies) with supporting documentation such as an informal certificate at the end of the program.El Civics Literacy Gains completion of a COAAP.El Civics student moves to co-enrollment class or into next level of learning e.g. El Civics student moves into ASE.All Consortium member's programs excluding Workforce Preparation programs. The completion of CASAS Pre and Post-test with measurable literacy gains.Distance Learning Contact Hours.Clock Time - Assigns contact hours based on the elapsed time that a participant is connected to, or engaged in, an online or stand-alone software program that tracks time. Teacher Verification - Assigns a fixed number of hours for each assignment based on teacher determination of the extent to which a participant engaged in the assignment.Learner Mastery - Assigns a fixed number of hours of credit based on the participant completing content of each lesson.

Professional Development

New Strategies

Strategy #1
Due to COVID - 19 impacts and required transitions to distance learning, on-going training for instructors on tools and techniques for teaching online effectively. Examples include Google Meet, Google Classroom, Canvas, APEX, Plato/Edmentum, Remind, Screencastify, Zoom, etc.
Strategy #2
Relative to the strategies articulated in the annual plan, all consortium members will be given the opportunity to select and participate in professional development that will be of benefit. Examples of professional development include but are not limited to; CAEP virtual Summit, OTAN offerings, Digital Leadership Academy, etc.
Strategy #3
Develop and maintain Professional Learning Communities in program areas and allow for a "mixed group" PLC consisting of a member from each program area to share ideas and identify opportunities to integrate multiple content areas into courses and pathways.
Strategy #4
Continue regular in-service training for staff, administration and faculty through teacher academies, PLCs, regular staff meetings, etc.

Leveraging Resources

New Strategies

Strategy #1
Expand offerings to regions within the consortium and new locations via distance learning technologies, satellite campuses and partnering districts.
Strategy #2
Continue to share curriculum between consortium members and from other consortia across the state (for example, auto curriculum, Folsom Cordova instructional aide curriculum, Sierra College welding curriculum).
Strategy #3
Partner with local businesses and schools to offer programs that are accessible to underserved and underrepresented populations.
Strategy #4
Develop partnership and collaboration with workforce funded programs in our region in order to improve transitions to postsecondary education and workforce in high-need, higher-wage, or high-skill occupations in our region as identified by the CalAdultEd Labor Market Outlook, the COE, or the CDE.
Strategy #5
Collaboration between community college instructors and adult school instructors on articulations (formal or informal) and transitions to the college where relevant/applicable (e.g., construction, computers/IT, advanced manufacturing and welding, etc.).
Strategy #6
Work with regional resource partners to identify the most common barriers preventing our students from completing their educational goals.

Fiscal Management

A narrative justifying how the planned allocations are consistent with the annual adult education plan which is based on your CAEP 3-year plan.
Planned allocations were voted on by the members of the Sierra Joint Consortium Steering Committee. Allocations are directed to the following areas, based on our 3-year plan: Expanding program and course offerings in remote and/or underserved locations within Consortium boundaries to fill gaps and meet customer needs; Continue to expand workforce training in high demand sectors throughout the region; Improve transitions from adult schools to post-secondary education; Identify and address barriers to student success and completion.
An approach to incorporating remaining carry-over funds from prior year(s) into strategies planned for 2020-21.
If any member has carryover funds, they will be required to use those funds in compliance with the three-year plan, Constoria by-laws, and state standards. If carryover funds are to be redistributed across the consortium, it will require a unanimous vote of the membership.

Certification

Nevada Joint Union High - Member Representative

Approved by 5304771225 Michael Hughes

08/12/2020 11:22 AM PDT

Placer Union High - Member Representative

Approved by Eric Vereyken

08/12/2020 10:25 AM PDT

Roseville Joint Union High - Member Representative

Approved by Lisa Voss

08/12/2020 10:49 AM PDT

Sierra Joint CCD - Member Representative

Approved by Anna Mostafavi

08/13/2020 08:34 AM PDT

Tahoe-Truckee Unified - Member Representative

  • Todd Wold
  • Manager of College and Careers: Career Technical and Adult Education
  • twold@ttusd.org
  • (530) 582-2591
Approved by Dr. Todd Wold

08/12/2020 12:33 PM PDT