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EDUCATION

West-MEC Glendale recognized for ACTE counseling, innovation

Posted 12/27/22

Western Maricopa Education Center’s (West-MEC) Student Services team won the 2022 Association for Career and Technical Education (ACTE) Counseling and Career Development Innovation Award.

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EDUCATION

West-MEC Glendale recognized for ACTE counseling, innovation

Posted

Western Maricopa Education Center’s (West-MEC) Student Services team won the 2022 Association for Career and Technical Education (ACTE) Counseling and Career Development Innovation Award.

West-MEC’s Student Services team received this award because of the West-MEC High Engagement Grants for Counselors.

“This grant program has been an invaluable tool in our outreach, enabling us to not only get essential CTE college and career opportunities to the community, but also to form close relationships with our counselor colleagues across the West-MEC District,” West-MEC Post-Secondary Partnerships Manager Speranta Klees shared in a statement.

West-MEC is based in Glendale at 5487 N. 99th Ave. There is also a Central Campus at 6997 N. Glen Harbor Blvd., Glendale.

The grant was created to help member-district counselors gain knowledge of CTE and West-MEC programs, provide professional development opportunities, and provide counselors with updated materials for educating students and parents about the career pathways offered at West-MEC.

The grant requires grantees to attend multiple professional development offerings, including industry tours and panels, present to sophomore students about programs available to them, as well as host parent nights and application workshops. Upon completion of the grant requirements, grantees receive a stipend of up to $600.

Since its inception, the grant program has improved and boosted counselor engagement  significantly and continues to move in an upward trend every year. The last time data was available was the 2018-19 school year. But since the start of the program in 2013, the number of sophomores presented information on West-MEC, as required by the grant requirements, has tripled,  parent involvement has doubled and the number of visitors at West-MEC Open Houses has doubled as well.

The Counselor Grant program has proven its worth as an innovative program within West-MEC and has been recognized as such by winning the ACTE Counseling and Career Development Innovation Award.

“In my mind, this award is a recognition of all of our dedicated counselors who work tirelessly to support students’ academic, career and personal development,” said Klees.