School Based Youth Services Hosts Family Night

Jeannie MacConchie, Director of the School Based Youth Services Program welcomed forty parents and students to the second annual SBYS Family Night held in Kearny High School October 21, 2003. The Family Night was orchestrated to speak about the Work Ready Program offered through the SBYS program.

The evening began with SBYS Counselor Frank Armenio trying to decide which kind of pizza he wanted. Parents, students, guests and SBYS instructors began the evening with pizza, juice and soda.

While enjoying pizza and soda, Jeannie MacConchie welcomed everyone to the program and spoke about SBYS and the Work Ready Program.

In her remarks, Ms. MacConchie said that the Work Ready Program is funded through grants and that there are three components to the program: a summer component, a monthly Saturday morning component and of course, the part-time employment component. She told the parents the role SBYS plays in preparing students for the world of work. Ms. Mary Scorpatti, a teacher in KHS,  is an instructor in the SBYS program and she spends countless hours teaching the young people how to write a resume, dress for a job interview and conducts simulated, role-playing interviews to prepare the young people for their pre-employment interview with local businesses.

Ms. Adele Higgins, the Employment Specialist for SBYS, establishes the initial contact with perspective employers in and around the Kearny community. She speaks with employers about their needs and how they can help the students in SBYS gain meaningful employment. In her remarks Ms. Higgins spoke about the importance of obtaining working papers upon receiving a promise of employment and prior to starting work and how a student goes about obtaining working papers, a necessity for employment.  Both Ms. MacConchie and Ms. Higgins stressed the importance of going to school; simply put, "if you do not go to school, you do not go to work."

The parents attending the program were informed of the child-labor laws and what they can do to help their children gain meaningful employment and stay employed. In their remarks, Ms. MacConchie and Ms. Higgins emphasized that student responsibility and maturity is most important while a student is employed. They reiterated how important it is for students to remember that they represent themselves, their families, their school, their employer and their community while employed.

Students in the program work for local attorneys, fast-food establishments, clothing and department stores, the Town Hall and Town Library.

Ms. Higgins also  encouraged the parents to go to the Kearny School District's web site and register for the  Coin³   program that provides an enormous amount of information concerning career readiness and the world of work.

Following the program in the cafeteria, the parents were invited to visit the SBYS Teen Center and see the recreation facilities in the after school program and to see a video on Bullying, Harassing and Teasing as part of National School Violence and Vandalism Prevention week in October.

Information about SBYS may be obtained by sending an e-mail to Ms. Jeannie MacConchie

jmacconchie@kearnyschools.com

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