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Operational Plans: Implementing the Strategic Vision over the <br />Next Five Years <br />Serving youth, especially youth who have become disconnected from the educational <br />community, is a complex task. It is what would be called in business an "irrational market," <br />because there is not a single complex of institutional resources able to reach its key <br />elements. The existence of a single WORK center has been and will continue to be a target <br />for outreach to this group. <br />Throughout the next five years, Santa Ana will add new emphasis on youth separated from <br />school, in terms of re- engaging them and especially determining productive career ladders. <br />The WIB has strengthened emphasis on specific industry, rather than generalized skill -based <br />programming. The Youth focus will on the same priority growth areas as the Adult focus - <br />healthcare, hospitality, food processing, and bio- related fields, plus the standard traditional <br />skill -based offerings it now has. <br />Perhaps the most serious of the problems faced is the drop -out rate. In many ways it either <br />drives the other issues youth face or becomes emblematic of them. Santa Ana's strategy <br />for addressing the drop -out rate is: <br />• Year 1: Research. Gather information and statistics from SAUSD and the <br />surrounding communities on comparative API scores and high school graduation <br />rates; identify and list ACCESS, alternate, charter, and continuation high schools; <br />clubs, programs, and academies within high schools that relate to career pathway; <br />and determine number of youth on probation or in juvenile hall or in Youth <br />Guidance Center; and discover the number and names of personnel in each school <br />dedicated to Career Center and related activities. <br />Year 2: Analysis and Experiment. Analyze what information and resources are most <br />important to improving the drop -out rate and distribute information to relevant <br />Santa Ana educational decision- makers; court local educational entities willing to <br />collaborate; create a timeline for implementing pilot programs to address; expand <br />MOUs with educational and social service entities to provide a better flow of <br />information and services; find space available for programs; and revise and issue <br />new youth services RFPs to reflect new knowledge and programs. <br />Year 3, Pilot Program Launch. Conduct trainings for educators, administrators, <br />principals, and others with responsibility for curbing drop -outs, based on the <br />information gained and pilot programs planned; establish relationships with them to <br />make the programs work and insure continuity; launch pilot programs at targeted <br />schools; measure outcomes tightly to assess effectiveness and efficiency; and work <br />with classes that have been identified as at -risk in order to connect them with <br />workforce education and encourage high school graduation and education beyond <br />it. <br />50 <br />19F -58 <br />