Professional Development
Midlands Education and Business Alliance offers professional development opportunities to educators to keep them abreast of the rapidly changing world of business so that they can more effectively advise and educate students on future careers and the requirement to pursue those careers. Professional development opportunities include activities such as educator field studies, graduate courses, seminars and workshops, and teacher job shadowing.
Please use your district attendance / participation policies for MEBA activities.
Educator Field Studies
Educator Field Studies are a wonderful opportunity for teachers, guidance counselors, career specialists and administrators to learn about a specific career cluster. Over the course of a day, educators visit business and industry and learn from professionals the skill sets, education requirements and knowledge important to the occupation as well as workforce trends and development. A field study also serves as an opportunity for educators to network with business and industry and establish guidelines for student mentoring, shadowing and other extended learning opportunities. This activity is a great way for educators to take their experience back to the classroom and make their curriculum more relevant, useful and meaningful for students as learn how content area ties to the world of work.
2010-2011 Educator Field Studies
Registration for the 2010-2011 Educator Field Studies will be posted four weeks prior to the activity. A link to the registration form (Survey Monkey) will be posted by the field study listed below. Since space is limited, we ask that you only register if you intend on attending the event. Field studies for the year are Architecture & Construction - March 2011; Entrepreneurship – November 3, 2010; Healthcare - September 15, 2010; Hospitality & Tourism - March 9, 2011; Information & Technology – October 5, 2010; Law, Public Safety, Corrections & Security - TBD; Manufacturing - February 16, 2011; Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics - November 17, 2010; Transportation, Distribution & Logistics – January 19, 2011; and "Uptown" Businesses / Finance - December 8, 2010.
Architecture & Construction - March 2011
Educators explore the many aspects of the residential and commercial construction industry, the technology involved, the many changes of the industry and the advanced math and science skills needed to have a career in construction. The field study is hosted by the Architecture & Construction Alliance.
Entrepreneurship – November 3, 2010
Educators will visit and hear from local entrepreneurs about how they started their companies, what they look for in employees and what it takes to own your own company.
Healthcare - September 15, 2010
Educators will visit area health-care facilities to learn about the different types of careers in health sciences and the expectations of employers for students entering the profession. This field study is hosted by the Health Science Alliance.
Hospitality & Tourism - March 9, 2011
Educators will visit sites such as The University of South Carolina’s McCutchen House; South Carolina Parks, Recreation and Tourism; Midlands’s hotels; Midlands Authority for Conventions, Sports and Tourism; and several other facilities that are part of the hospitality and tourism cluster of study. The field study is hosted by the Hospitality & Tourism Alliance.
Information & Technology – October 5, 2010
Educators will visit sites such BlueCross BlueShield of SC and other “IT” companies in the Midlands. They will learn what types of careers are available in the “IT” cluster and what employers are looking for. This field study is hosted by the Information & Technology Alliance.
Law, Public Safety, Corrections & Security - TBD
Educators will visit several legal, corrections, and military facilities, participate in mock simulations, learn about the careers in law, public safety, corrections, and the security sector, and the about the technology they use. The field study is hosted by the Law, Public Safety, Corrections & Security Alliance.
Manufacturing - February 16, 2011
Educators will visit area manufacturers to learn about manufacturing careers and see the state-of-the-art facilities and how computers, robots and people all come together to manufacture products. This field study is hosted by the Manufacturing Alliance.
Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics - November 17, 2010
Educators will visit various Engineering and Emerging Technology companies in the Midlands area. This field study is hosted by the Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics Alliance.
Transportation, Distribution & Logistics – January 19, 2011
Educators will learn about the careers and different aspects of the Transportation, Distribution and Logistics industry. This field study is hosted by the Transportation, Distribution and Logistics Alliance.
Uptown Careers / Finance - December 8, 2010
Educators will visit downtown businesses that specialize in legal, accounting, marketing, finance, and banking support services to explore the many career opportunities in the professional services industry. The Business, Management and Administration Alliance and the Finance Alliance will host this field study.
Teacher Job Shadowing
Teachers are introduced to the workplace through job shadowing. Teachers are assigned to an employer who mentors them at the business or industry. A sample of business and industries hosting teachers in the past for shadowing experiences include Palmetto Health, Lexington Medical Center, Total Comfort Service Center, Michelin NA, Inc., Sisters of Charity Providence Hospitals, CMC Steel SC, SCE&G, and SCANA.
Workshops and Seminars
Business Matters Seminar - September 22, 2010
Business Matters is a conference for elementary, middle and high school educators to provide them with the opportunity to see firsthand why business matters to educators and to enhance classroom learning. Topics include job keeping and seeking skills, dress for success, customer service, real world math and science concepts and other business principles. Registration Form
Poverty Training Seminar
This Seminar will provide tips, strategies, and resources for working with children and parents of poverty. Registration Form
Entrepreneurship Workshop
The workshop will provide educators information on the concept and application of entrepreneurship. Hear from local entrepreneurs while learning more about what it takes to be a successful entrepreneur in an ever changing world.
Contextual Teaching and Learning One-Day Seminar
The South Carolina Regional Career Specialists in partnership with the Office of Career and Technology Education are sponsoring one-day Contextual Teaching and Learning Workshops (free to all SC educators ) across the state.
The Midlands workshop will provide examples of interactive activities from Midlands business partners. The workshop is open to all curriculum content.
GCDF Professional Development Workshops
Tuesday, March 23, 2010, from 9:00 - 11:00 a.m. at the Airport Campus of Midlands Technical College in the Academic Center room AC 143. Program: Ms. Sherry Williams, State Department of Education .
GCDF Instructor Training - August 4-6, 2010 Registration form
The GCDF Instructor training (GCDFI) provides curriculum, networking, and guidance that will prepare you to deliver the training. CDFI training is designed for advanced career service professionals. The instructor training process was developed by the Career Development Training Institute (CDTI) and approved by NCDA.
Teacher Training
Midlands Education and Business Alliance trains teachers how to effectively use the Building Your Career Piece by Piece in the classroom and how to involve business and industry with their daily activities. In the past two years, over 500 teachers have been trained to assist students in resume writing, job skills and dressing for success.
Graduate Courses
Graduate courses are taught by qualified faculty. Courses are selected based on the results of an annual needs assessment.
Career Development Facilitator Training - Registration Form
Designed to train K-16 educators and other professionals who offer career assistance and guidance services in Career Development Facilitation (CDF). This course leads to a better understanding of career development resources and assessments and an awareness of one's professional strengths and needed improvements in the area of career guidance. (6 hours graduate credit )
Teachers in the Workplace
Teachers in the Workplace is a three-hour summer graduate course sponsored by Midlands Education and Business Alliance. The course requires teachers to take a practical approach to understanding the world of work. Each teacher spends forty hours in a challenging position in business and industry in order to get hands-on experience with the skills needed to be successful in careers in that particular industry. In addition to the internship, teachers participate in sessions with classmates, develop lesson plans and give presentations as part of the successful completion of Teachers in the Workplace. Teachers can draw on the experience to infuse practical knowledge about the world of work and necessary job skills into their classroom presentations. Registration form
Business and Industry Analysis
The goal of this course is to allow the educator to examine the sixteen Career Clusters that South Carolina is working with. The purpose of the “Business and Industry Analysis I” course is to afford students the opportunity to explore in-depth, real places of work. This course is an opportunity for educators to learn the current business technology and interpersonal skills used in two very distinct clusters of study. The student should plan to spend a minimum of 40 working hours, on site, in two local industries (20/20), under a qualified on-site supervisor. (Three hours of graduate credit – 45 hours of class/work time) Prerequisite: Teachers in the Workplace I (with at least one year between courses to begin implementing lessons learned from Teachers in the Workplace course) Registration form
Educators Exploring Career Clusters - Healthcare
The course is designed to support the “Personal Pathways” initiative of South Carolina’s Education and Economic Development Act by providing to educators the opportunity for in- depth exploration of one of the sixteen career clusters. The current course will focus on the Healthcare career cluster/Advanced Healthcare. Through site visits and shadowing experiences, educators will gain insight in to the required technology and other workplace skills necessary to the industry. As a result, the educator will develop methods to prepare their students to transition successfully to this career path (Three hours of graduate credit – 45 hours of class/industry hours).