What is the New Look Grant?

The New Look Project is a Perkin's funded grant project available through the Illinois Center for Specialized Professional Support (ICSPS).

Here is the purpose of the New Look Project according to ICSPS:

The purpose of the New Look Project is to assist secondary and postsecondary career and technical educators in identifying, developing, and strengthening aspects of programming for special populations' learners.

Formerly the NTO (Nontraditional Occupations) Look, the New Look Project has an expanded goal to assist CTE educators in strengthening programming for all special populations learners, though an emphasis on nontraditional for gender occupations is still a driving force in this Project. This award-winning program improvement model supports career and technical education programs at several different levels of investment through monetary awards, technical assistance, and professional development.

FY '10 New Look Grant Project - "Your Future is Calling"

What we did:

In collaboration with Capital Area Career Center (CACC), we expanded and improved on our project from FY 09. We held another career and education fair for students studying career and technical education at CACC with an emphasis on promoting non-traditional students. This year we had more employers (20) and more student, faculty, and staff involvement from LLCC (15 departments represented).  The event was also lengthened from one very long day to three full learning days. On day 1, students attended interactive employability workshops focusing on preparing for an interview, dressing for an interview, and creating a great resume. The 2nd day students worked with their instructors in class on a variety of career/job search activities. The final day of the project allowed students to use their new skills by interacting with employers and LLCC department representatives.

How it worked:

Having changed the layout into three full days allowed both students and faculty to learn more and remember more information. Students were able to listen and learn the first day, actively work with it on the second day in a classroom setting, then actually apply the information in real life on the third day. Evaluations in the form of surveys were very positive from both students and employers.

What we learned:

True collaboration between secondary and postsecondary is attainable and truly essential if projects helping students transition into college are to be successful.

 For specific questions and concerns, please email jamie.mccoy@llcc.edu, thanks.  

FY '09 New Look Grant Project - "Grab that Job"

What we did:

We hosted the first ever career and education fair for the students at Capital Area Career Center (CACC). We used one whole school day and devoted it to learning about and discovering potential career paths with a special emphasis on nontraditional occupations. Students attended a variety of employability workshops including resumes, dress for success, and interviewing tips.  Students were then able to meet one on one with a few LLCC departments (5 represented departments) and employers (10) using a traditional career fair layout with employers stationed at tables waiting to talk with students about their future career goals.

How it worked:

As this was the first time doing such a large project there were several areas that could be improved. The organizational patterns of the day were a bit unruly and students were having a hard time walking in the hallways and moving among the various activities. Students and faculty were disappointed in the number of employers in attendance and would like to have a more career areas represented.

What we learned:

START SMALL, THEN GROW!  This project blossomed very fast and we didn't entirely know how to handle all the various dimensions we were trying to offer the students. Essentially, we bit off more than we could chew in one project year without ever having done this project before. We wanted the students to learn about careers and career choices at the same time they were learning about marketing themselves and how to go about entering the career of their choosing. We have also learned that greater collaboration between LLCC and CACC will be necessary in the future for this project to be completely successful.

For specific questions and concerns, please email jamie.mccoy@llcc.edu, thanks.