Rethinking Education Delivery

Logical Learner As the landscape of education is forever evolving, so is the profile of the college student. You’ve probably heard the term “non-traditional student” and most likely someone you know comes to mind, but this encompasses more than the guy at work who went back to college for a promotion. Just who is this “non-traditional student”?

The National Center for Education Statistics shows that this moniker is most commonly applied to any student over the age of 24, but there is more. Most of these adult students have families and full-time jobs, along with other life circumstances that can interfere with successful degree completion. In addition to their personal life, many put college right after high school or maybe didn’t graduate college at all. Brighton College is aware that a lot of these students may find the right time and the right funding to pursue a college degree despite any of these challenges, however, many may not find these opportunities. For that reason, Brighton College wants to find ways that we can stand in the gap to provide career training to those that may need a more efficient way to improve their situation through affordable and accelerate certificate programs that lead to employment.

How is Brighton College standing in this gap for the non-traditional student?

One way is through connecting with non-profit agencies that offer education and training to select members of their communities to help them improve their current condition. Our goal is not just to supply education, but to provide it in a manner to maximizes community member access and their flexibility in completing the program.

We can maximize community member access by re-thinking our approach to how we charge for our training and support services. To do this we designed a couple of different delivery models by considering the budget or donor contributions of our community partners. These are also designed to increase the number of individuals that these agencies can afford to put through career training, to maximize their impact in their community while minimizing their overhead. They also consider what support and employment-related services that the agency currently offers, so that Brighton’s services can be added or removed from its programs, as it would help the client. This way we can design a plan that saves them money, either by keeping training costs low or so they don’t have to invest in a new hire to provide support services.

What do these models look like?

The site license model is designed for organizations that are training more than 200 or more individuals in a year or for those that want to provide a donor with a tangible application of their dollars. This license allows the agency to offer unlimited access to all the training programs that Brighton College has access to over the course of the agreed time, like 6 months of course access.

The other option is a subscription model, and can be used by all organizations, but is a good fit for agencies that are training less than 200 individuals each year. The benefit of this model is that it sets the cost of certificate training to a fraction of what it would cost at most other schools. While it isn’t unlimited access, it can allow individuals to complete training in more than one area, or in some short-term courses that help their skill set and resume.

Why is Brighton College offering such affordable education?

At this point you may think that this is too good to be true or that there must be something wrong with Brighton College’s education, but you can be assured that the college is nationally accredited, state-approved, and provides training that leads to recognized industry certifications, to the extent that we’re working with a national company to provide training that fills their employment needs. The reason that we’re happy to adapt our training to the needs and financial concerns of our clients is that we deeply understand that the more individuals that partner agencies can afford to train, the more we can positively impact the lives of those we want to serve. We are not here to charge the highest tuition we can, but instead to stand in the gap for the non-traditional student so that they can be successful. If we do this right, we have helped them, their families and the community.

Will you join with us to reach as many as we can afford to train? You’ll find more information HERE.

Fundamental Behaviors

Success doesn’t happen by accident or luck. Success only happens when we assess ourselves and honestly identify where we are, what we need to create the life we desire, and build the foundation for the future. At Brighton College, we have identified the Fundamental Behaviors that describe our Student Culture to pave the way for successful career outcomes.

Fundamental Behaviors:

1) Desire to enhance Employability skills:

Change of career
Advancement in current career

2) Ability to manage time commitment

Adhere to academic commitment of completing an average of 3 lessons each week

3) Willingness to proactively communicate

Take the initiative in openly asking for help from faculty, staff, and success coaches.

These behaviors, coupled with industry driven curriculum, faculty who are experts in their fields, and a strong student support team lead to improved Employability Every Day. Your Employability in a new career is our #1 goal.

Our Why

At Brighton College, we know that dreams are fulfilled through learning that is linked to our career passion, skills, talents, and interests. Providing learning solutions that teach job readiness skills, how to leverage your natural talents and are aligned to in-demand careers is our specialty. In the Venn diagram below, you will see the nucleus is created the the point of intersection for your Passion, Talent, and Career. Our programs take these areas seriously to provide students with rich, relevant learning experiences to improve employability.

This new year holds unlimited possibilities for you to embrace your strengths and passion for the career of your dreams. We are eager to contribute to your personal journey and proud to meet you at the finish line: GRADUATION! Happy New Year!

Where are you going?

Do you know where your life, your career, your future is heading? Do you have a game plan to get you from where you are today to where you envision yourself next week, next month, next year, or 5 years from now? Though we can not control every event that enters our paths, our reaction to those events leads the way to our desired outcomes, through obstacles, or foils our plans. Life happens. We get complacent. We get lazy. We gravitate to what is familiar. We compare our lives to others and notice that some have more than us, some get where they want to go in life, some have it easy, some have it all, some are less fortunate or less advantaged. In a ‘look at me’ moment in time where lives are exposed more now than ever, there has never been a better time to look in the mirror, take inventory, re-calibrate, plan, focus, and create the path you wish to go into.

Brighton College offers a variety of programs for adults who want to take life by the reigns and create the future of their dreams, one experience at a time. What is keeping you from living the life you have envisioned? Knowing where you are going and how to get there takes a few simple steps. First, spend some time silently thinking about your decisions, your options, your future. Second, write down your goals. Third, write down any anchors holding you down, keeping you from growing as a human, standing in the way of your dreams. Fourth, look at your calendar, how you spend your time, how you spend your money. Fifth, are you taking good care of yourself, your body, your mind, your overall well-being? Last, make a list of your habits, the good, the bad, and the ones that don’t fall into either category.

Take some time to review this list and share it with someone who cares about your well-being and wants to see you happy. The next step is to determine what changes are needed to bring you to your goals. Make those changes, find a strong mentor, volunteer your time by sharing your talents as you map out your goals, identify options, commit to creating the future of your dreams. Take the next step…. your future is waiting.

Certifications Matter

Why Certifications Matter?

According to Microsoft.com: Getting certified gives you a professional edge by providing globally recognized industry endorsed evidence of skills mastery, demonstrating your abilities and willingness to embrace new technologies. Verify your skills and unlock opportunities with certifications.

Get Ahead

On average, Microsoft certified technologists earn 15% more than their uncertified peers. What’s more, certified employees are often entrusted with supervising their peers—putting you on the fast track for a promotion.

Get Hired and be Productive Faster

Microsoft Certified Professionals spend less time interviewing and more time driving value. Adding a Microsoft certification to your resume helps you stand out and get hired—faster. What’s more, certified new hires are fully productive an entire month sooner than their uncertified peers, making your skills clearly stand out.

Get Recognized

91% of hiring managers consider certification as part of their hiring criteria.

Microsoft, Microsoft Certification Program Satisfaction Study, April 2012

39% Certified new hires reach full productivity 39% faster than their peers

IDC/Microsoft, The Business Value of IT Certification, November 2015

38% of IT professionals claimed certification helped them perform complex tasks more confidently.

Pearson VUE, The Value of IT Certification Survey, January 2016

Employees who are certified are ideal for a cloud-related position.

Employability – Do you Have It?

At Brighton College, our 2017 focus is on ’employability’ which is the ability to gain employment and maintain successful employment in a chosen industry or field.

Your employability hinges on 1) your knowledge, 2) skills and abilities, and 3) your attitude. Investing in your professional development involves formal training, informal learning opportunities, networking, and a determination to improve your skills over time.

The programs offered at Brighton College give students a competitive advantage in their fields by providing relevant and affordable growth opportunities to secure desired employment while expanding skill sets. Employers want to know that you take your career seriously and invest in your future in diverse ways. Examples include earning a degree, diploma, certificate or showing evidence of overcoming obstacles while learning along the way.

An individual’s attitude reflects their outlook on life, ability to handle difficult situations while learning from each, flexibility, communication style, and is the lens in which they look through to frame their experiences. From an employer standpoint, attitudes can not be taught because they are the very fiber that makes a person who they are and impact quality of life, including job satisfaction. Having a can-do attitude coupled with adaptability, strong work ethic, and motivation to grow in a career are traits that stand out in the crowd. To learn more about this recipe for success, our students utilize the Employability Resource Center and have access to numerous tools as they approach program completion. Check it out!

Developing Grit!

So, what is ‘grit’ anyway? In recent years the term is popping up in books, tv shows, articles, and social media across industries. Grit describes the personal qualities of individuals who successfully overcome adversity while displaying optimism. A person’s mindset goes hand in hand with overcoming challenges, accomplishing goals, maintaining a positive outlook, and displaying confidence even under difficult circumstances.

There are several key qualities needed to develop the ‘grit’ trait:

1) Define your purpose

2) Know your game

3) Get back up after a fall

4) Unwavering commitment

Each of these qualities is essential to finding your passion, persevering, overcoming challenges, accomplishing goals, and seeing each task as necessary to achieve what you envision. Here at Brighton College we have the career programs to arm our students with the skills needed to accomplish their professional goals. Coupling your program with personal ‘grit’ will yield positive results while learning about yourself every step of the way.

Brighton College Announces New Employability Resource Center

Brighton College is pleased to announce it is now offering employability learning resources for all students who graduate any of our programs, at no cost! This program is geared to take students/learners through four (4) critical steps that enable you to: learn how to leverage your natural talents, access quality employability skills training on over a dozen topics, create an employability portfolio to share with potential employers and mock interviews along with access to hundreds of employability partners/employers. As students enter their final course, they are provided access to these employability learning resources and encouraged to take advantage of them.

“Career Services needs more focus helping people find an entry level job in their career field”- Says Sean Dixon, Director of Student Services for Brighton College. Our goal is to provide resources that are specific to gaining those important employability skills not always taught in the classroom”, Dixon goes on to say. Learning these skills is important to today’s leaders as a recent Business Round table survey of CEOs (June 2017 Work in Progress Report: How CEO’s are helping close America’s skills gap) has identified three major categories of skills lacking in the workforce that include: Fundamental employability skills, including basic math, technical reading, communication, teamwork and problem solving.

Our goal is to provide everything possible to help our students become “employability ready”. You can learn more about these excellent resources and get more information here!

By:

Jeff Coruccini

“Improving Employability Everyday”

CEO

Spotlight: Brighton College Curriculum team take one!

This week we are proud and excited to spotlight another team member of Brighton College/The Paralegal Institute, Gilda Rada who has embraced our “Why” on Improving Employability Every Day! You may have read a bit about her on one of last month’s announcement, however, due to popular demand we wanted to share more about her role and share some great advice she has as well.

What is your role at Brighton College? I’m the Curriculum Program Manager at Brighton College, my role is overseeing design, authoring, development, and revision of courses for Brighton College and The Paralegal Institute. In addition, I maintain ongoing coordination with student services, SME’s, faculty and senior management, in the areas of course implementation, supplementation, modification and revision of curriculum content, with a focus on continuous improvement to the educational programs our institution offers. In the process of overseeing and coordinating the academic development of our curriculum, I also oversee the timely fulfillment and completion of various ongoing academic projects, which ultimately helps us leverage strategic organizational goals, thus yielding positive student outcomes.

What part of your job do you like the most? I love (not like) my job, and everything I do in the curriculum development process. In fact, effectively planning for our student’s academic development on a daily basis, makes me jump out of bed every morning. The reason behind my excitement, is the realization that what we do today as a department, can have long term effects in our students, our faculty, the institution, and the community.

Have you ever taken online college courses? I am constantly taking online courses for my academic and professional career. In fact, this month I will receive the (CHEP) Certified Higher Education Professional in Online Learning; this certification is one of the many online certifications our accrediting body offers to institutions in distance learning. In addition, I’ve been privileged to take virtual, hybrid and blended courses through various online platforms, which included Moodle, and Blackboard. In traditional higher- learning institutions, I’ve also been involved in the testing and launching of various distance educational platforms. It is certainly exciting to see new and improved adaptive learning platforms in distance education; this improvement allows institutions such as ours, to maintain a high level of student engagement and quantifiable student outcomes, thus allowing us to reach a student population which was almost impossible to reach in the past.

What advice would you give a student attending an online college? My advice to a student attending or planning to attend an online college in 2017 is very simple, “Get Ready to Meet a New YOU.” Today’s students have technology at their fingertips, but not all of them know how to use technology as an educational or a productivity tool, therefore, it is up to us (educators, curriculum developers, faculty, distance learning institutions) to provide the typical components of traditional learning, and adapt this model into a student-centered learning environment. In this new model of distance and adaptive learning, students are capable to work at varying paces, with content created with their abilities in mind, develop greater responsibility towards their own learning, and find a work-life-balance, which they may not be able to find in the traditional model of learning.

Share one of your favorite benefits of why students should attend Brighton College? One of my favorite benefits, which I know students derive when they join Brighton College is in our mission statement, and this is personalization. At Brighton College, we strive to be readily available to engage with students, their needs and circumstances, and yes, academics is at the top of our lists, but we understand first and foremost, that we must be present in our student’s life, like never before, and convey this message every time we interact with them. In fact, when our students experience a high level of engagement through non-traditional interaction, they feel confident in their academic and career growth, and by default we help them solidify the future with certainty in a new era of distance learning.

Be sure to check back weekly as we will continue to spotlight more members of our team. Once again, please join us in welcoming Gilda.