CVCC program sets up younger students for success
by Emily Canning-Dean
While Cuyahoga Valley Career Center’s Success Academy has been available to area high school students for more than 30 years, the program has continued to evolve to meet the needs of students in an ever-changing world.
“Beginning in 2015, the redirection of the program took place in response to the needs that we are seeing in home districts,” said Success Academy Instructor Dino DeGirolamo, who added the program originally began in 1995. “We have worked diligently to strengthen our associate district guidance counselors’ understanding of the program’s offerings and impact.”
DeGirolamo said the program is specifically geared toward ninth- and 10th-graders, with typically two sections for ninth grade and two for 10th grade. Each section generally has up to 15 students. While enrollment numbers vary from year to year, DeGirolamo said Brecksville-Broadview Heights High School has enrolled 95 students in the program over the last 20 years.
“Moving forward, we will continue to provide this great opportunity to all our associate districts,” DeGirolamo said. “The partnering high school guidance counselors work with us to recommend students who would benefit from attending our program. Success Academy is a counselor-recommended program only. Students who attend this program might be experiencing social, emotional, academic or economic challenges. In recent years, we have made a concerted effort to better inform our associate district guidance counselors about the benefits and opportunities that this program offers. When identifying a student for this program, counselors would consider past school attendance; academic performance; patterns of engagement; and social, emotional and behavioral needs.”
While Success Academy is the only ninth and 10th-grade program at CVCC, DeGirolamo said most students return to CVCC by junior year for one of the school’s half-day career-tech programs.
DeGirolamo said students in the program engage in a curriculum focused on improving high school academic outcomes and exploring career-technical options.
“The academy is contained within a single wing of the career center with five classrooms and a large group activity room,” he said. “The Success Academy instructional team includes five teachers. The students take an English, math, social studies and a career-based intervention class. Daily communication among the team allows teachers to respond to the needs of students as they arise, in collaboration with the team’s guidance counselor, internal transition coordinator and administrator.”
DeGirolamo said the smaller class sizes allow for more flexibility, a more personalized experience and extra help.
“Targeted interventions include academic support as part of the elective course, in addition to instructional strategies designed to engage students in all academic courses,” he said. “Students encounter a supportive environment, career exploration, CVCC lab visits and experiences and hand-on projects as well. Just like at any school, if the students work hard and take advantage of the opportunities afforded to them, then the students tend to find success.”
DeGirolamo said that throughout the years, numerous students who went through Success Academy have gone on into the career-tech programs by their junior year. “They have been very successful in learning program-specific skills, work-based learning experiences and obtaining program-specific certifications,” he said. “We have seen students make positive changes including better study habits, soft skills and understanding possible career options. Again, when students commit to the work and take advantage of the opportunities available to them at the career center, they position themselves for success.”