WORKING TOGETHER
Harnessing Community Resources
to Improve Middle Schools

• We tend to think that a company or organization can contribute only in a way that is related to its particular line of business--that a carpeting company can donate carpeting, for example, or a hospital send nurses to talk about health issues. As valuable as these contributions are, other types of support may be easier for a company to provide, and perhaps even more useful to children and educators.
  
  
• Invite teachers for "job-shadowing" or similar activities to build their awareness of how your company operates, and how highly skilled today's workers need to be. Those real life situations will find their way into teachers' daily lessons.
  
  
• Or to turn things around, send a manager to spend a morning shadowing a principal or classroom teacher. Your company can help overcome the isolation felt by the many talented people who make their careers in our schools.
  
  
• Sharing successful management techniques can also benefit schools. Sensitivity to the customer is an area where businesses have valuable experience. A business with a customer-relations training program can invite school secretaries to learn more about dealing with the public. A company with a good recycling program can share their strategies, or even provide bins and containers.
  
  
• Many middle school students are ready for mentoring or job-related experiences. A well-run, coordinated program can open doors to careers for young people, or simply ac--uaint them with habits and discipline necessary for being a good employee.
  
  
• Support your own employees in being involved parents. Provide time off or be flexible about work schedules for parents who want to accompany class trips, attend performances, or participate in educational workshops. A union can help work out the details of the plan.
  
  
• Employers can also help workers by providing opportunities--through company newsletters or brown bag lunches--to learn about such topics as choosing a school, helping with homework, or understanding adolescent development. A coalition can help identify speakers and materials.
  
  
• Schools and businesses can also come together around a public service goal: a neighborhood cleanup, for example, or raising money for a community project.