Executive Summary

The Alliance Of Education And The Private Sector

Barbara E. Jacobson
CTC & President of Travel Headquarters, Inc. &
President of Upper Midwest Chapter of ASTA (American Society of Travel Agents)

August 1995

Top Team: an acronym for Together Owatonna Prospers tells in a nutshell the relationship between local schools and business. As a work-based education option for youth apprentices, Top Team originally focused on manufacturing, but it has now moved into the office and health services fields.

Top Team prepares learners for careers in the 21st Century. It will also enhance the possibility that quality Owatonna students will return to their home town for employment after graduation from vocational school or college. Top Team is one of sixteen pilot sites in Minnesota’s strategy for upgrading student skills and improving their transition into the workforce.

Born in England, I moved to North America in the 1960s. I received all of my formal education in Europe and was exposed to career preparation choices during my school days. I formed my career goals early. A geography nut, I decided at age 12 that I wanted to visit Capetown, San Francisco, Hong Kong, Sydney and Rio de Janeiro. Starting in the airline business and later owning my travel business enabled me to achieve my goals.

Unfortunately, many of today’s generation are not blessed with my early focus on choosing a career. Nor does American education provide the opportunities that I was given to dream up my ideal career.

Too much emphasis on competitiveness (ignoring students who are not top performers) and extracurricular activities clouds the vision of many American student.

For 10 years, I have had Owatonna High School business interns in my travel agency. The program has benefited both my company and the students. Many of them have returned to work summers during college vacations, and some, who elected not to go to college, have joined our staff right out of high school. These students are bright, often have better computer skills than older workers, and bring a fresh approach to the industry and business.

However, as I attend Top Team meetings, I am dismayed by the assumption of many educators that they set the parameters for the program, and I am further dismayed that many participating businesses do not challenge this strategy.

Educators typically stay in the same career for life, but in business, we know people are experiencing more frequent forced or elective career changes. In the 90s, nothing is forever. Technology is shrinking our world, eliminating jobs and creating new worksite opportunities daily. Can our students prepare for this rapidly changing world when many of their teachers are not involved in change themselves and have little direct experience with business?

As a small business owner, I face traumatic changes in the travel industry as airline ticket commission caps result in reduced income with the same labor costs. Many other businesses are experiencing major changes and must adjust rapidly to survive. The next generation of employees must be prepared whilst still in school to handle change and grasp the need for flexibility in job performance and career selection.

Participating in programs like Top Team will release students from the vacuum of the school environment and expose them to what really goes on in the world. It will enhance much needed interpersonal and communication skills and facilitate career decision-making.

To make Top Team and other programs successful, education and business must eliminate turf battles and work as a cohesive team to give students skills to be productive members of a 21st Century workforce. This means remove previous parameters in the schools and the workplace. It means forthright, open dialogue with each party challenging the other to produce a program benefiting students.

Passive acceptance by either party of the other’s ground rules will not produce the desired result. Planning committees must consist of flexible thinking educators and visionary employers.

Thanks to startup funds from the Southeast Initiative Fund and funds from the state Education and Employment Transitions Council, Owatonna has made a great start! Now it is time for other towns and business communities to provide youth with opportunities for early career decisions which, in turn, will produce a dynamic workforce.

Center for Ethical Business Cultures

1000 LaSalle Avenue, TMH 331 ▪ Minneapolis, MN 55403-2005 ▪ USA

Phone: 651 962 4120 or 800 328 6819 Ext. 2-4120 ▪ Facsimile: 651 962 4042

Email: mail@cebcglobal.org

© 1978-2008 Center for Ethical Business Cultures. All Rights Reserved.

Business Partnering with the University of St. Thomas - Minnesota