About Us |
Prepare. Connect. Achieve.Our mission is to improve the educational success and career prospects for K-12 aged youth through school, business & community partnerships. Linking Learning to Life envisions a community in which all youth are engaged, inspired, and equipped to achieve their career and educational aspirations. We foresee all members of the community valuing and nurturing youth in the process, thus assuring the educational, economic, and social vitality of the whole community. HistoryLinking Learning to Life began in October 1997 as a partnership of the Lake Champlain Regional Chamber of Commerce, the Burlington School District, and the University of Vermont. Its initial charge was to develop school-to-career opportunities for all students within the Burlington school system. Along a similar timeline, the Lake Champlain Regional School-to-Work Collaborative, managed by the Lake Champlain Regional Chamber, was developing career related programs and services with other schools throughout the rest of Chittenden County. In October of 2002 these organizations merged to form Linking Learning to Life, Inc., a non-profit dedicated to continuing and expanding school-to-career opportunities for K-12 youth in the region. Currently Linking Learning to Life engages 4,000 - 6,000 students per year. AwardsLinking Learning to Life has earned recognition as an exemplary school-to-career organization from four national awards programs. In 1999 the National Transition Alliance (based at the University of Minnesota) recognized Linking Learning to Life as an “All Means All” School-to-Work Award Site for our commitment to, and success with, serving all students, including students with disabilities. The American School Counselors Association and the U.S. Army selected Linking Learning to Life as a “Planning for Life” exemplary career guidance program in 2000 and again in 2001. Linking Learning to Life is one of only seven organizations selected as new PEP Net (Promising & Effective Practices Network) Award sites by the U.S. Department of Labor and the National Youth Employment Coalition in 2000. In 2005, the Institute for Educational Leadership and the National Collaborative on Workforce and Disability for Youth recognized Linking Learning to Life as a “Pro-Bank Promising Practices Feature Site”.
Linking Learning to Life has also presented at numerous state, regional, and national conferences. Individuals from many in-state and out-of-state schools and organizations have visited with us, as well as visitors from Japan, Tibet, Finland, Poland, Hungary, Russia, Kyrgyzstan and Honduras. |
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