School administrators today must learn on the job and develop new skills while providing instructional leadership every day. Leaders must accept and adapt new theories and allow themselves to grow. Ultimately, it is the school leaders' responsibility to match skills to the needs of every student. (MLF)

This article describes how to develop a "job club" for students with disabilities, to assist them with the transition from school to work. The ability of job clubs to teach goal setting, self-determination skills, and interpersonal competence is discussed. Step-by-step instructions are included as well as a sample meeting agenda. (CR)

This paper describes an initiative launched in New South Wales, Australia, in 1989 to help students with disabilities move from school to community settings. The program established partnerships among schools, communities, service providers, and government agencies, resulting in smoother transitions and improved postschool options and quality of…

Thanks to "HIRE Education," a project of Delaware's Business, Industry, and Education Alliance, employers may legally obtain high school attendance and performance information when evaluating job applicants. This may help motivate noncollege-bound students to work harder in class, improve their attendance, get along with peers, and…

Studies the relationship between education level and probability of re-employment, using Labor Ministry data on 2,077 Finnish unemployed persons. Models of search theory predict that those with less than nine years of education and those with master's, licentiate, or doctor's degrees have the lowest re-employment probabilities. Unemployed persons…

Reviews several recent academic autobiographies in an effort to correct conservative criticism of academia as elitist, ideologically rigid, and didactic. Works by Richard Rodriguez, Mike Rose, Alice Kaplan, and Julius Getman reveal a broad range of experiences and viewpoints. Discusses the rewards and drawbacks of academic teaching. (MJP)

Includes "The Family: Ultimate Arbiter of Workforce Education Reform" (Gray); "Reaction to Way and Rossman's Family Contributions to Adolescent Readiness for School-to-Work Transition" (Stewart); "Using Structural Equation Modeling and Path Analysis for Advancing Conceptual and Theoretical Positions" (Rojewski); and "Response to Stewart, Gray and…

Data from the longitudinal Oregon Youth Study for 202 at-risk young men discerned 4 career pathways: long-term unemployment, short-term unemployment, full employment, college education. Long-term unemployment was associated with lowest education attainment and personal adjustment during childhood/adolescence. Most important predictors of pathways…

Building strong ties between Appalachian schools and communities was the topic of the Appalachian Regional Commission's October 2002 annual conference (Maryville, Tennessee). Main speakers focused on maintaining a long-term perspective on investments in education, creating rural "places of opportunity" that can retain educated people,…

Discusses an initiative by the Brazilian Metalworkers Union that integrates vocational training with the construction of a new citizenship. Claims this initiative transcends traditional Latin American adult education models of human resource training and popular education. Stresses the program is an example of integrated education and training for…

This article examines how the related concepts of risk factors, protective factors, and resilience relate to postschool outcomes for youth with disabilities, especially the adult transitions of youth with high-incidence disabilities. Issues related to research and practice are identified, including building resilience through support at the…

Evaluates educational and occupational variables in a target population of youth in four Latin American countries. Argues that poor youth miss the formal education necessary for entry into the labor market. Questions whether training systems compensate for this limitation and whether these training courses connect with the labor market. (CAJ)

Discusses the role of community colleges' in workplace mentoring, highlighting such programs as cooperative education, apprenticeships, and internships. Describes effective mentoring programs at six companies. Lists components of effective mentoring programs, including effective design, well-defined mentors' and mentees' responsibilities, and…

Defines youth and adult apprenticeships as key elements in school-to-work transition. Describes key characteristics of apprenticeship programs and the nature of exemplary programs, including a table of characteristics of 12 model programs. Discusses current changes in such programs to meet employer and student needs. Offers suggestions for…

Claims that, to prepare students for the future workplace, some notions are best forgotten. Educators must design seamless learning approaches, and institutional policies and practices must engage students in a variety of learning activities. Schools should cultivate an institutional ethos that promotes involvement in educationally purposeful…