Transitional Employment and Training Program
Mission Statement
The Transitional Employment and Training Program (TET) prepares students for effective, productive, adult living. Through instruction and practice, students become competent in the independent and interdependent life skills necessary for successful participation in their communities.
Introduction
The TET program is designed to evaluate and elevate the social and vocational skills of students aged 14-20. The primary focus of the program is to work with motivated students nearing the end of their school involvement and to assist them as they move from school to the community and workforce. This process includes pre-employment training, placement in a work environment, ongoing support while working and weekly review in the classroom. The program also serves identified special education students through the development, implementation and coordination of an Individual Transition Plan as mandated by law.
Getting Started
The TET staff reviews each student’s school and work history, as well as their social skills to determine which of three classroom components will best serve the student. Staff also uses feedback from the student’s teachers and family to begin to tailor a program that will help the student become more proficient in five critical skills areas. These areas are:
- active listening
- contributing effectively
- accepting responsibility for behavior
- controlling behavior
- accepting critical feedback
Choices 1:
Younger students, 14-16, who struggle with consistently applying the five critical skills, attend the Choices Class 4 days per week. In class, they participate in discussions and activities related to relationships, attitudes and values. Social and life skills are taught and practiced each week through menu planning, budgeting, shopping for, preparing and eating a meal together. Portions of each class may also be used for academic review to support each student’s academic progress. Students who demonstrate consistent mastery of the five critical skills are promoted to the work experience portion of the program.
Choices 2:
Students who demonstrate novice levels of choices 1 competencies, but lack consistency or mastery of those five critical skills can refine those skills with an added focus toward job readiness and career exploration.
Transitional Employment Training (TET) Class
Students who can apply most of the five critical skills, most of the time, may begin the work experience component of the program, starting with two weeks of classroom instruction. Topics covered include job applications, job seeking, labor laws, wages and deductions, workplace expectations and interviews. Staff assists students with obtaining or replacing missing documents required by employers. Students who successfully complete the classroom component begin part-time jobs, working at least 12 hours per week.
Students without a work history begin in a supported work experience, 3 hours per day, 4 days per week, arranged and paid for by the TET program. This allows the student to earn a training wage while practicing the work attitudes and behaviors necessary for successful employment.
Students who have prior work history or who have successfully completed TET supported work experiences, obtain regular jobs in the competitive labor market.
Moving On
Students nearing the end of their secondary education may be referred to NH Vocational Rehabilitation as part of their Individual Transition Plan. Graduating students complete an assisted career search, and members of TET staff link them with appropriate community resources for post-secondary education, job training or job placement. All TET students leave the program with a binder of their completed work, including reference materials used in locating, obtaining, and sustaining meaningful employment.
General Information
The program is staffed by a vocational counselor. Enrollment is limited to 12 students. The program is approved by the New Hampshire Labor Department as a Work Experience and Career Exploration Program.
Potential referrals should be directed to our offices at 450 North State Street, Concord, 225-3318. Students should be referred well in advance of the beginning of each quarter to allow for interviews, teamings, and district approvals.
For more information or to schedule a visit, please contact us:
Contact
This above form will be received by Jackie Wareing, Transition Facilitator.
Phone: (603) 225-3318
Address: 450 North State Street, Concord NH 03301
Joe has displayed a level of professionalism that is unusual in someone his age.
I think I’m learning a lot in math, science, English. But TET is the best of them all, it’s a good program.
TET FAQs
If I participate in the TET program can I pick my own job?
During the introductory classroom component, students identify areas of vocational interest. Whenever possible, a TET counselor matches the student’s interests to available jobs. Students may choose a subsidized work experience, where the student works during school hours and is paid by the program, or they may choose to obtain a competitive job in the community, where the employer determines the work schedule and compensates the student directly.
I’m only 14; Can I still be in the TET program?
The TET program is open to students enrolled at Second Start’s Alternative High School. Students that are interested need to be recommended by their sending school as the sending district is responsible for the TET location. Any student who can sustain their school performance and control their own behavior is eligible for the work components of the TET program. Job sites for younger students are more limited because of child labor laws that regulate the types of work younger students are permitted to do. Most 14-year-old students begin in the Choices class, the pre-vocational portion of the TET program. In the Choices class, students focus on both social and vocational skills that prepare them for a successful first work experience.
If I already have a job, why would I need TET?
In addition to gaining work experience, TET students earn credit towards graduation in two ways. In weekly classroom sessions, students are given instruction in personal finance management, economics, government and citizenship. Students also learn additional job skills related to gaining promotions, employer/employee relations and job-related, problem-solving skills. Students earn academic credit for both the classroom component and the on-the-job, work experience, as long as they work more than 12 hours per week.
Does TET have any specific vocational training classes like plumbing or carpentry?
The TET program does not offer training in specific industries. The program focus is on interpersonal skills and productive work behaviors that are necessary in any field of labor. TET staff does provide linking services for students who wish to pursue training after high school. TET staff regularly works with the vocational programs in the student’s sending school district. They develop transition plans for students who wish to participate in those vocational programs. TET staff also works closely with Vocational Rehabilitation by making referrals and coordinating the services offered by VR as the student nears the end of his or her high school experience.