Curriculum

PROGRAM ORIENTATION

Students, parents, mentors and agency supervisors meet to review details of the Academy with program leadership. Program director and partner organizations review the roles and expectations for participation and highlight additional resources available to support students.

FOUNDATION WORKSHOP

Infinite Possibilties: Your Strengths Journey Starts Here

Content is designed to help students understand how beliefs impact our ability to manage everyday activities. This interactive course will help demolish ‘limiting beliefs’ and harness the power of emotions. Students will also complete the Clifton StrengthsFinder Assessment, which reveals the student’s top five themes of talent. The resulting report offers action items each student can take to direct these talents—at school, in a career and in their personal relationships—to achieve better results and greater personal fulfillment.

MANAGING SELF: STRENGTHS-BASED APPROACH
FOR GROWTH & DEVELOPMENT

A Strengths-Based Approach to Better Performance

Students review their personal Clifton StrengthsFinder results and participate in a facilitated coaching session designed to help each student better understand their top talents (Strengths) and how to apply those talents within work settings. These sessions encourage development of personal connections to improve performance and strengthen relationships.

5 Happy Hacks for Technology Boundary Setting

Students will learn how to set good personal boundaries and develop the strategies/mindset to improve focus.

Career Exploration & Setting SMART Goals

Students will explore how personal interests intersect with career options, then review careers and academic areas that support those fields. Students will also learn the art of SMART goal setting with reinforcement of how the student can leverage their personal talents (Strengths) and behaviors to help them reach goals.

Financial Literacy

Becoming financially literate is a lifelong process that begins with something as simple as putting a few pennies in a piggy bank and evolves to more advanced subjects such as budgeting and risk. Students will gain knowledge and skills to make effective and informed money management decisions in life and work.

COMMUNICATION SKILLS

How to Find and Land Your Ideal Job

Powerful Job Search Essentials
Resume & Cover Letter Writing
Professional Interview Prep

On the Job Communication

Active Listening
Negotiation
Judgment & Decision Making

CUSTOMER SERVICE

Customer Service Best Practices:

How Exceptional Service Drives Customer Loyalty

In this two-part series, students learn best practices in

customer service
receive tools to assess and improve their internal and external customer service skills
and develop a strong understanding of the important role customer service plays in attracting and retaining the ideal customer.

Team Dynamics & Quality Control

Within the Customer Service modules, students will also learn ways to recognize, report and correct flaws/errors to ensure your organization meets the customer’s expectations.

RESEARCH SHOWS THAT IN 2014:

44% of US customers switched from one business to another due to poor customer service
In one year, 89% of consumers switched businesses due to negative customer service
34% of consumers posted their negative service experiences online for other consumers

TECHNOLOGY & SKILL DEVELOPMENT

Core Employer Expectations for Workplace Conduct

Attendance/Punctuality
Attire
Telephone Usage
Performance
Boundaries/Accountability

Lab Courses on Varied Topics

MS Office
Business Acumen (i.e., email protocol; project management; task management)
Universal Class Topics – free courses offered through the library’s website