NORWICH – From the late 1980s to the present, Liberty Partnership programs across the state have worked with local high schools, endeavoring to keep at-risk students from dropping out as well as ensuring they are provided with the tools necessary to secure a bright future. In Chenango County,  Morrisville State College supplies Norwich, Otselic Valley, Bainbridge-Guilford and Unadilla Valley school districts each with a full-time Liberty Partnership representative who is on call throughout the school day. Recently Morrisville’s Liberty Partnership signed an agreement bringing the Chenango County Office of Employment Training (OET) on board, further expanding the opportunities available for students.
“We will be doing a portion of the program with them,” said Chenango County OET director Gary Waffle. “We have agreed to provide a workforce development coordinator, and one of out staff members will be visiting schools to teach classes, as well as functioning as an employment/training counselor.”
Liberty Partnership is funded through the state education department and 40 separate programs exist in New York, each reflecting the slightly different natures of the colleges which run them.
“Our goal is to keep the students successful,” said SUNY Morrisville Project Staff Associate and Liberty Program coordinator Shelly L. Bartow. “We cater to the needs of individual students, so ensuring success doesn’t always mean the same thing.”
The program provides a broad range of student aid which can be anything from homework help sessions, to assisting students with college applications. In all four Chenango County school districts benefiting from the Liberty program, students can be referred from a number of sources, such as guidance counselors, friends or parents.
Contracting with OET for 2013 will mean a number of new things for the Partnership. At the moment, some of the ideas OET and Morrisville are throwing around include new career work hops and resume help. Another idea the coordinators having been working on is a career summit which would involve all Chenango County students enrolled in the program. The students would get together for the summit and learn about jobs and networking from presentations made by local businesses.
“The more we help to prepare them for the world of the workforce, the better off they will be,” said Waffle. “Not every student is bound for college, but even for those who are, it is helpful to have a clear idea of what sorts of expertise they should be trying to develop. If they can see the specific skill sets needed for different jobs earlier on in their lives, they will have more time to prepare for their futures.”
In general, the program has had a lot of positive effects on the students, said Bartow. “We have had some students in Norwich with serious things going on in their lives who we have been able to provide support,” she said. With budget cuts, Norwich in particular has had to lean on the Liberty Partnership program for various forms of student aid, she added. “If we hadn’t been there for them, I don’t know who they would have turned to.”
The Liberty program in Chenango recently handled the renewal of its five-year funding contract with the state. Morrisville program administrators requested the full grant level and as a testament of the Chenango County program’s general appeal, it was awarded the full amount.
Though at-risk students typically compose the majority of Liberty Partnership’s demographic, the program is not exclusive – any student interested can refer themselves.
“I think it’s a great program and I am excited more people have been talking about it,” said Bartow. “There are many great resources in Chenango County and as professionals we like to do what we can to support them.” In addition the more positive adult interactions youths have, the better off they will be, and the more they will be set up to succeed, she added.
Of the OET’s impending involvement in the Liberty program, Waffle expressed enthusiasm along with the belief it will ultimately benefit and improve the future of Chenango’s workforce.