ORANGE COUNTY CHILDREN'S THERAPEUTIC ARTS CENTER 14 - 2009

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WIA Grant 2009-2010 OCCTAC Narrative 1. Outreach/Recruitment/Eligibility: As stated previously, OCCTAC has entered into a strong partnership with the Santa Ana Unified School District, Transition Partnership Project (TPP) to serve youth with disabilities exiting high school. (See letter of support). In collaboration with the SAUSD Transition Partnership Project, we will ensure that our enrollment goals will be met, approximately by the second quarter of the contract, and that our participants will successfully working to reach their goals. OCCTAC staff and SAUSD TPP staff will meet on a regular basis to discuss potential candidates and service needs. SAUSD staff will refer mild-moderate students with special needs to our program after they have exited high school, but lack the necessary skills to successfully transition in the labor force and need further education and training. Most of the participants referred will be high functioning special needs youth, including specific learning disabilities, autism, health impairments and others. During the past 8 years, OCCTAC has conducted community outreach and programs recruitment through the following activities: Communitv Outreach Events & Fairs - OCCTAC participates in many community events throughout the year (at least one event per month), This provides an excellent opportunity to recruit program participants throughout the year. These events are staffed by the WIA-team. Sometimes the WIA youth participate in these events as a way to gain: leadership skills, work experience and public speaking. Referrals from Communitv Partners - As stated previously, OCCTAC has established strong partnerships with key agencies in Santa Ana, such as the County of Orange, Regional Center, Santa Ana College, and Providence Community Services Community Services. New OCCTAC families -Every year OCCTAC serves new families that learned about our services from other OCCTAC parents. Last year we served close to 1,000 students. Five hundred of these students were served in the Santa Ana Unified School District sites through our Learning Academy Program, and approximately 500 students were served at our Main facility/Arts Center on Broadway. Every year we enroll new families through "word of mouth"! 2. Intake/Assessment: When appropriate, the OCCTAC Case manager will work closely with the SAUSD Transition Partnership team to identify and determine the individual educational (IEP) and career goals of participants referred to our program. The WIA participants will be assessed and/or surveyed in the following areas: a) Basic Skills/Academic levels, b) Employability/Job skills, and c) Career Training Skills. Assessments and surveys will takes place prior to the educational training and work experience at OCCTAC. The first assessment to be conducted is the TABE assessment. If the assessment reveals basic skills deficiency, then the student is provided with two other short literacy tests to measure his/her literacy levels. These tests are the STAR Reading and HOST Learner link assessments that are also used in the After-School Learning Academy program. These assessment tools will be conducted as pre and post tests to measure growth across time. The literacy assessment will help also determine the placement for those participants interested in being "mentors/tutors", and help guide each WIA participant in their educational/academic goals. Case Management: OCCTAC's philosophy of the program is based on an interdisciplinary/holistic model that calls for a high interaction between the key staff of the program and WIA participants. Each student of the program will be linked with an adult staff mentor (Arts/Technology Instructor), a case manager, a career counselor and a Literacy and Math Instructor. The Case manager will coordinate and support the WIA participants' activities with the other staff members. The Case Manager will meet bi-monthly with