Pictured: Back row: Mr.
Moore, Coordinator of Special Needs; Mrs. Smith, Instructor; from Mid East
Buffalo Campus; Becky Brunner, Speaker Host. Front row: Jeremy Kostelnik and
Sabrina Hackley, Mid East Buffalo Campus students and members of BEST.
Mrs. Smith, Instructor,
and Mr. Moore, Coordinator of Special Needs from Med-East Buffalo Campus, visited
the Byesville Rotary meeting. They were accompanied by two student representatives
of BEST—Jeremy Kostelnik and Sabrina Hackley.
Smith explained that BEST
(Business Employability Skills Training) program prepares students for entry
level employment and independent living. Mid East Buffalo Campus has offered for
20 years. Currently 13 students between 16 and 21 years old are enrolled in the
program.
A key component to the program
is Mid East’s partnership with local businesses to provide students with real
world work-based learning experiences. Current local partners include South
East Med, the YMCA, Goodwill, and the Guernsey County Senior Center. BEST
students spend 1 day a week working at a job assignment at one of these sites.
Examples of the skills
they learn on the job include the importance of being on time and showing initiative.
Brown indicated that as a result of being held responsible for a job, the
students’ behaviors change. They exhibit more maturity and begin showing more personal
initiative. Sabrina explained that she has learned to focus on the details of a
job so that her efforts are judged “good” by her supervisor.
Another element of the
program is learning interviewing skills and how to fill out forms necessary to
apply for a job. Students hone their skills by participating in mock interviews.
Members of the local business community volunteer to be the interviewers. Jeremy
who is a senior in his second year in the BEST program participated in the
interviewing process last year. When asked for his tips on interviewing well,
he said, “Be yourself.”
On campus, students take
classes in subjects such as MSOffice, filing, and record keeping. They also
learn life skills such as how to budget, shop for a car, and find a place to
live.
Moore pointed out that students
often begin the program with no job goals. The experiences they have on the job
help them define specific job goals. The success rate of the BEST program is
impressive. Most students graduating from the program enter the work force.
Some continue their education by earning certification in specific areas such as
Administrative Assistant. Others choose to earn an advanced degree in areas
such as computer programming.
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