Sullivan County students’ work-based learning video draws statewide interest

The Sullivan County School Board recognized students and staff Thursday for a student-produced video promoting the district—s work-based learning program, a presentation district officials said has garnered interest from state career and technical education leaders.

The video, shown at the meeting, illustrated students earning high school credit through placements that the district said generated more than $100,000 in student earnings last year. A district speaker said the Director of Career and Technical Education for the State Department and the state work-based learning director asked to use the video at regional meetings.

That recognition matters because district staff said participation has increased sharply in recent years and the video showcases local employer partnerships and hands-on experiences that can lead directly to college or career pathways. "You all have got so much to be proud of," a district official told the students after the video.

An unidentified student who worked on the video said, "it was an amazing experience to work with work based learning, especially in the audio visual field. It really solidified the want to do something film related in the future, and it's what I'm going to college for now. And it was just amazing being able to have that experience." Student Zeke, who also participated in filming and production, said, "Being able to use this craft I've always wanted to do when I was younger ... being able to make a video that actively helps out the community and make a contribution to what people wanna do and help other people get to have at least a similar experience that I have with work based learning."

Miss Glover, one of the district's two work-based learning coordinators, said the program is run collaboratively across schools. "We don't really think of it as, oh, these are my Westridge students. They're all of our students," she said, stressing coordination of placements across campuses.

District figures presented to the board showed that this fall one school had 43 students and Sullivan East had 46 students enrolled in work-based learning, the largest fall participation the coordinators said they had recorded. District staff said the program now uses more than 100 business and industry partners for placements, some paid and some unpaid, and both schools were on track to roughly double participation in the spring to about 80 students across the two sites.

Board members and staff praised the students and coordinators for professionalism and the quality of the video. The district suggested the video will be shared by state career and technical education staff at regional meetings, expanding visibility for Sullivan County's program.

The board did not take any formal action on the program during the meeting; the item was presented as a recognition and informational update.