New memberships are due as of Jan. 1, 1995. Please mail your registration to me ($10 for an individual and $20 for an organization) before the end of the year and I will record and receipt appropriately. If you would like a sample sent to anyone, please fill out the form below and indicate "sample" and I will be pleased to do so. Cheques made payable to CALSCA please.
CALSCA has proved to be valuable for a number of people looking for ideas and suggestions for their local organizations. Members are experiencing tough times and it is now that we can provide support for coaches nationally. In addition---remember the national conference coming up in a couple of years. Keep in touch through a CALSCA membership.
Book Nook: Check out Michael Reynolds. ('94) "Groupwork in Education and Training: Ideas in Practice", London: Kogan Page. Looking for models and schemes to help you put together program proposals? This book provides "ideas on which to base practice" and is useful in designing group activities. Reynolds is from an organizational behaviour background, so the book is concise.
Check it out: In the most recent issue of the Canadian Journal for Career Development, there is an article about the intersection between personal issues and career counseling. It seems to me that the opposite is also true. When we do personal counseling, job issues are just as important to include.
Dana Richardson sent me some material about ENGAGE, a career development approach for youth. It's a complete package with guides, workbooks, mags and so on. Contact Dave Redekopp and Barrie Day at Concordia College in Edmonton, AB T6B 1R7. (403) 466-6633 for more info. It's been funded under the national "Stay-in-School" Initiative (HRD), so we know who likes it.
Love those Maritime folks!!!
Just after I put out the last newsletter, Gary Copeland sent us a complimentary membership to the Maritime Association
of Life Skills Coaches (PO Box 7345, Stn. A, St. John, NB E2L 4S7. Their newsletter contains news and views from
around the association, reporting specific activities (printable ones) in 2 - 4 lines. Also, it included a report
in the St. Croix Courier about their association adopting a mentorship program---you got it, accreditation. Did
you report in your local newspaper? I suggest you hit the smaller ones. They love this kind of news. In short,
it's a great newsletter. Send a buck to Gary. I'm sure he'll get a sample one to you. Nicely done, Gary.
They ran a workshop on proposal writing too, and had a HRD (formerly CEC) rep. drop in to explain government process, criteria and current trends. Great addition!!
Martin Dicken, in asking the question "What can the society do for me?" developed a nice little model for the answer. I am reproducing it here, because we are all out for membership involvement.
What can the Association do for me?
What can I do for the Association? What can we do together?
Eilleen Burkholder, is an ABE instructor and Life Skills coach at Northern Lights College in Fort St. John (Box 1000) V1J 6K1. Drop her a line and let her know "why should Life Skills coaches have credentials and what should those credentials be?" She needs it before Nov. 7/94. Come on you accreditation people!!!
Last, but foremost: Winnie Hunt and I are on the same Internet wavelength. She points out that it is time we got connected to the Internet so that we could communicate. Think of how that would speed up our national accreditation process. I say that we have provided committed Life Skills practice for many years now. It's time we asked either the colleges or the government to assist us, financially, to get on the network. This benefits the whole country. How about an online newsletter. Help me with this one. I'll be talking about it to Ontario's association this weekend.
SLSA Provincial Rep. moves to national conference site: we are all impressed with Dori Britski's commitment to Life Skills, illustrated by her family's move to Prince Albert, the birth place of our movement. Now who can beat that, I ask you!!! Congratulations, Dori.
Accreditation was voted on at the SLSA conference and from all reports, the event itself was a success. Dori shared an inspiring Thanksgiving Address shared with her by a native coach Tia, who we both know and respect.
MANITOBA IS ORGANIZING A COMMITTED GROUP OF COACHES TO START THEIR ASSOCIATION. Great to hear. Let us know how we can be of help.
Ontario's Conference is about to change locations. The dates for their 1995 getaway are June 9 - 11, in North Bay, ON beside the beautiful waters of lake Nipissing. I hear the price is going to be right too. Proposals are already being solicited. I'm really excited about this conference. The new location will make it accessible to a whole new group of coaches in the north part of the province. Oh, and we have an airport there too!
Balance in Bank $78.50
Cash-on-Hand $37.50
Total $105.50
(Another three cheques just received. Keep 'em coming.)
"In 1977, the Life Skills Training Centres, Ltd., in Edmonton (the employer of coaches) and the Canadian Mental Health Association (the funding agency) published in the Social Worker Advocate the results of a longitudinal study. The purpose of the study was to establish the long term monetary efficiency of Life Skills programming. All Social Assistance dependent students from four groups voluntarily took part in a 2 - 3 year follow up study. Prior to their involvement with LS, the 37 participants had received social assistance for an average of 3.5 years each.
Groups 1 and 2 with a total of 21 participating in the study, showed an overall decrease in social assistance payments of 68% in the three years after graduating. Group 3 with 10 participating over 2..5 years, showed an overall decrease of 69%. Group 4 involving six students, had an 87% decrease over two years. 5 students were independent of social assistance for the entire three years. Cost of tuition for 37 students was less than 6% of money saved over the period of study."
Rod rightly points out that there was no control group in the study and I would also add that the sample is extremely small to make any hard and fast calculations or generalizations. But that is no reason why the results should not be used to justify Life Skills in funding proposals...
Rod asks if someone is available to do a controlled study. I would further add that Social Science and Humanities Research monies could be accessed because Life Skills is now a recognized part of educational programs. Moreover, a comparative study across provinces would undoubtedly follow any initial study. A three year project is most suitable for SSHRC grants, with the individual well qualified in quantitative techniques. Good luck!!! !
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