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Friends of YCCS Profile of the Month Mr. Everett Rand

Everett G. Rand is the owner of Midway Wholesalers, Inc., 60 year old beverage and distribution center in the state of IL.  Everett has been involved in business and philanthropic organizations since a young age.  He is a graduate from St. Columbus and The University of Chicago Lab School. Everett received a B.S. degree in sociology from Southern Illinois University. While attending school he worked in the family business, a retail beverage store. Upon receiving his undergraduate degree, he continued in the family business, working his way up to vice president of Sales and Marketing Inventory.  He later served as vice president of the industry’s trade association, the Illinois Liquor Stores Association which was the precedent of his becoming chairman of the Illinois Beverage Association in 2010.

His commitment to education is unprecedented.   As a member of the City Colleges of Chicago  Board of Trustees and a board member the Chicago State University Foundation,  Mr. Rand is keenly aware of the value of a good education.  He is one of the founding members of the Chicago Football Classic and he advocates to our youth and community the importance of pursuing educational excellence.   As a mentor and community supporter, Rand is dedicated in helping  our youth to realize that their contribution is important to society.  “The Chicago Football Classic is important to our community as it brings awareness to Historically Black Colleges and Universities, exposes Chicago students to various aspects of the college experience, and focuses on an uplifting theme to unite the community.”

YCCS is very important to our community as it is committed to giving our youth the tools to not only see their potential but to reach it. Everett’s philosophy is, “No one can succeed by being talented alone. God gives talent. Hard work transforms that talent into genius and success. The only time success comes before work is in the dictionary.”

Each year Youth Connection Charter School (YCCS) hosts a competition for its campuses that invites students and teachers to investigate a problem or issue that is both current and local and requires the use of Essential Skills Framework™ obtained in core courses to research that problem or issue and present viable solutions and meaningful determinations.  Through the Annual Academic Challenge, YCCS is striving to provide students additional opportunities to engage in in-depth research and reflective learning experiences which empower them to better understand and, ultimately, improve their own communities.

The competition also serves as a platform for YCCS to promote and model its best practices for alternative education as described in their Redesign Initiative™.  YCCS has identified each of the following research-based educational practices as key contributors to student learning and has incorporated them into the design of the competition:

• Literacy Strategies
• Problem-Based or Inquiry-Based Learning
• Cooperative Learning
• Thematic or Inter-Disciplinary Units/Planning
• Writing Across The Curriculum
• Research Methods
• Real World Applications
• Standards-Based Learning and Assessment
• Constructivist Pedagogy

Application

The application form may be found here.

Timeline

* YCCS School Improvement Representatives will visit and meet with campus teams

during YCCS Reviews in order to assess progress and provide guidance and assistance.

Resources

The following internet sites will provide additional information for you and your students as you get started exploring topics and preparing your research.  Additional information and resources will be sent to you via e-mail throughout the competition.

• www.facingthefuture.org
• http://fieldmuseum.org/explore/biodiversity-and-conservation-web-life
• http://earthday.net/footprint2/index.html
• http://dsc.discovery.com/search/results.html?focus=site&query=planet+earth&ewrd=1
• http://www.earthday.org/about-ecological-footprint-calculator
• http://www.urbanhabitatchicago.org
• http://www.sustainable-chicago.com
• http://fieldmuseum.org/explore/toolkit-climate-action-approach-bronzeville
• http://www.cnt.org/

Possible Topics

The following topics are intended to provide you and your students with ideas to begin your planning and your exploration into green solutions for a sustainable Chicago.  Please remember that your team may identify and choose another topic as long it addresses the goal of the Challenge and is approved on your campus application.  It is important that your students utilize critical thinking skills in-line with Bloom’s Taxonomy when reviewing possible topics and thoroughly analyze environmental problems, evaluate several factors contributing to the problems, and ultimately create and present a viable green solution.

1. Have your students compare and contrast energy use and CO2 emissions locally, by sector in the United States, and in other countries.  Research and discuss energy impacts and sustainable energy solutions.

a)    Renewable Energy

b)   Fossil Fuels & Climate Change

c)    Renewable & Sustainable Energy Technologies

d)   Solar Panel Installation

e)    Wind-powered Devices

2. Have your students research which kinds of fish are harvested locally in a sustainable manner.  Measure the effectiveness of these practices and compare them to unsustainable harvesting practices.  Determine whether or not similar sustainable harvesting practices could be implemented with other fish and the impact this solution would have on the environment.

a)    Biology of Food & Water Resources

b)   Sources of Water & Food

c)    Water Treatment & Distribution

d)   Global & Food Sustainability

e)    Crops & Global Food Economies

3. Have your students create representational maps of their school and the surrounding community to conceptualize and understand the relationships between resources, the environment, community, and sustainability.  The students can then brainstorm specific ways to make their school community more sustainable through improvements to the physical environment.

a)    Green Building & Sustainability

b)   Community Recycling Project Greenhouse & Rooftop Gardens

c)    Urban Design

d)   Climate & Atmospheric Change

e)    Ecological Footprint

Thirty YCCS students have been selected to join the TJ Maxx stores sales team as part of a six-week internship created by YCCS and the nationwide retail chain. Students from Aspira, YCLA, Charles, Houston, Innovations High School, Jane Addams, Olive Harvey, Community Youth Development Institute and Truman College campuses were interviewed, selected and placed at six TJ Maxx stores located at State and Madison, Fullerton, Irving Park, Broadway, 47th and 118th streets.

“Students who had good attendance and grades, and the right attitude and skills to perform the retail job duties were pre-selected and recommended to the store managers to be interviewed,” said Earlene Giles, YCCS Student and School Support Director, who developed and secured funding for the internship program. “And most of the students who were interviewed were then hired,” Giles added.

At the end of the six-week internship, the students will have the opportunity to be hired as part time or full time employees. Students are assigned in-store mentors and specific areas that they are responsible for maintaining during their afternoon shifts.

This fall, Youth Connection Leadership Academy (YCLA) teams up with Best Buy to bring state-of- the art technology expertise into its instructional technologies curriculum. “Geek Squad” professionals will assist classroom instructors in teaching about the latest technologies.
“The students are excited because they will be working with mobile devices, tablets, and wireless home networks,” said Vernon Thomas, YCLA Instructor.
The YCLA Information Technology Pathway encourages students to be proficient and innovative in a rapidly evolving field. Students learn information systems and techniques as they achieve computer and software certification. With these skills, YCLA students are prepared to pursue higher education and careers in technology.
According to Best Buy Community Relationship Program Manager Jack Stonebraker, the collaboration is beneficial to Best Buy as well.
“At Best Buy, one of our objectives is to strengthen our communities and to fuel innovation in education and how we use technology where we live, work, play and learn,” Stonebraker said. “The overall objective is to give the students insight and hands-on knowledge from an IT professional that is working in the IT field and to motivate them to complete their education and career certifications necessary for them to fulfill their personal goals,” he added.

]]> http://www.yccs.us/2011/11/best-buy-meets-ycla/feed 0 http://www.yccs.us/2011/11/yccs-on-wttw11 http://www.yccs.us/2011/11/yccs-on-wttw11#comments Wed, 09 Nov 2011 16:53:56 +0000 lfrazier http://www.yccs.us/?p=3476

YCCS Executive Director Sheila Venson and Truman Middle College were featured in a Chicago Tonight segment on Monday, November 7th at 7 p.m. on public television station WTTW/Channel 11. Investigative Reporter Elizabeth Brackett and crew interviewed and filmed Venson, Truman Middle College High School Principal MaryAnn Soley, faculty and students on October 28 as part of WTTW’s The American Graduate Initiative, a series of programming and online media activities addressing the high school dropout crisis.

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Friends of YCCS Profile of the Month Anthony B. Ferguson

Anthony B. Ferguson is Co-Director of Friends of YCCS and a partner in the law firm of Miller & Ferguson. Anthony is a firm believer that improving the education system in America should be the nation’s number one priority. His prior community involvement includes Chicago Football Classic and Chicago Choir Academy Charter School. What attracted him to YCCS was the commitment of the faculty and the results they are producing.  The program is confronting the drop-out crisis in America head-on by reaching into the community to reclaim these students.  The unique program combines social service and innovative curriculums delivered in a nurturing environment.  This approach is producing a greater than 70% high school graduation rate. Anthony says “Think about it; the national average of all students is 50% drop-out. YCCS takes students that some might characterize as a lost cause and is effectively extracting their full potential.  Their graduates come out on a path to success. ” His goal with the Friends is to drive awareness and support of YCCS so they can continue to reach as many students as possible.

Anthony is a graduate of Lake Forest College (1980) with a BA in Math and Economics. Anthony received his JD from Temple University (1983). He is admitted to practice law in Illinois and New York. His practice primarily focuses on transactional matters and real estate.

Where to begin?
1. Review placement criteria to determine on which campus the student is eligible to attend.
2. Complete an online waitlist application.
3. Check the status of the student’s lottery application online.
4. When the student’s application is randomly selected by the lottery system, the campus will contact the student to begin the enrollment process.