THE CHILDREN’S GUILD SCHOOL OF BALTIMORE SELECTED AS PART OF THE MARYLAND TRANSITION DIGITAL PORTFOLIO PILOT PROGRAM

Digital Portfolio Engages Students In Transition Goals Including Building Employment Skills

Baltimore, MD, August 18, 2022 – As the school year is set to begin, the Maryland State Department of Education has selected The Children’s Guild Baltimore Campus to pilot the Maryland Transition Digital Portfolio (MTDP) as one of the Special Education Nonpublic locations. The digital portfolio assists students with disabilities in Maryland who are 14 or older to actively engage in transition goals and activities developed during the IEP process, build employment skills, and document work experiences.

The transition from high school to college or employment can be an overwhelming and challenging time for students with disabilities and their families. Students face specific challenges in the transition from familiar special education services provided in middle and high school to the changing scope of these services in the workplace, in post-secondary education or higher education.

To proactively support this transition, the Maryland State Department of Education’s Division of Early Intervention and Special Education Services developed the Maryland Transition Digital Portfolio which supports multiple learning styles; encourages self-determination, self-reflection, and self-advocacy, allows students to document personal growth to promote motivation and self-confidence, and provides a strengths-based perspective.  For more information about the Maryland Transition Digital Portfolio visit Portfolio Structure and Age Mapping.

“We are thrilled to be able to offer this pilot program.  We have a new computer lab thanks to a generous donation along with a new career center so are well equipped to provide our students with the tools they need for future success,” said Katina F. Webster, Ed.D, Principal, The Children’s Guild Baltimore School.  “With the help of our Transition Coordinator and community partners we plan to expose students to experiences and opportunities from elementary through high school.”

Dr. Webster continues, “We cannot wait for our students to come back for a wonderful new school year. We have an impressive new curriculum that meets the needs of our unique learners, while also challenging them to make progress on state standards. Our reading program is expanding with the addition of research-based interventions and the continued efforts of our Literacy Specialist to support instruction and gather important data that informs the work we do. We have a new library where students will have access to high interest fiction, non-fiction, and digital resources. It will be a space where students can conduct research and engage in meaningful discussions with their teachers and peers.

The Children’s Guild, Inc., Baltimore Campus is a non-public, co-educational special education day school approved by the Maryland State Department of Education, for boys and girls 5-21 years old, who have emotional disabilities, intellectual disabilities, and multiple disabilities. The TCG Baltimore Campus is part of The Children’s Guild schools and programs which respond to the unique needs of every child, family, and community it serves. The organization is one of the largest providers of charter schools, special education, autism services, treatment foster care, and family mental and behavioral health services in the region.

Affiliates of The Children’s Guild include The Children’s Guild, Inc., Baltimore Campus, The Children’s Guild DC Public Charter School, The Children’s Guild – Prince George Campus, Monarch Academy Glen Burnie, Monarch Academy Global – Laurel, Monarch Academy Annapolis, The Outpatient Mental Health Clinic, Treatment Foster Care, The Children’s Guild- Transformation Academy, Monarch Preschool College Park, TranZed Academy for Working Students (TAWS), and TranZed Apprenticeships.  For more information, visit https://childrensguild.org/.

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TRANZED APPRENTICESHIPS, IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PRINCE GEORGE’S COMMUNITY COLLEGE, TO OFFER HEALTHCARE PRE-APPRENTICESHIP PROGRAM LEADING TO A REGISTERED APPRENTICESHIP

A CNA Qualifies for a Patient Care Tech Program for Further Career Advancement

TranZed Apprenticeships, a Registered Apprenticeship intermediary based out of Baltimore, has partnered with Prince George’s Community College and Employ Prince George’s, Apprenticeship Innovation Program, (AIP) to provide a Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) pre-apprenticeship program for jobseekers at no cost. The pre-apprenticeship program offers free training and licensure, uniforms and books, weekly stipend contingent on attendance, access to full-time employment through TranZed and PGCC’s, newly registered Patient Care Technician Apprenticeship program with one of their employer partners. Three local hospitals, University of Maryland Capital Region Health, Luminis, and MedStar, have lined up as employer partners and early adopters of the program.  

The program has no cost for participants that meet all the following requirements – they must be a resident of Prince George’s County, have a high school diploma, 18 years and older, unemployed, and able to work full-time upon completion. To learn more and apply, click here. 

Our mission is to change lives through non-traditional, modern-day registered apprenticeship programs and we are thrilled to be partnering with Prince George’s Community College and EPG to offer the (CNA) Pre-Apprenticeship program,” said Erin Finnegan, Managing Director, TranZed Apprenticeships. “A key to a successful apprenticeship is equipping the apprentices with the day one skills needed by the employer to hit the ground running, and a quality pre-apprenticeship program is the best way to do just that. Once students receive their CNA, they qualify for our Patient Care Tech Program which provides basic patient care skills to patients in hospitals.

The Patient Care Technician Registered Apprenticeship Program is comprised of 148 hours of in-person training offered through Prince George’s Community College, as well as 2000 on-the-job training hours that occur, while they earn a salary. The program provides training in review of anatomy and physiology of major body systems, medical terminology, legal and ethical issues, skills training in catheter care, phlebotomy, electrocardiograms, glucose monitoring, basic wound care, and more. 

The demand for CNAs and PCTs is growing faster than for workers in every other job. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates an increase of 9% through 2028. (The average rate of job growth is only 5%.) This means that new CNAs and PCTs will be needed to meet the demand of the aging baby boomer population.

TranZed Apprenticeships offers the Registered Apprenticeship Program (RAP) providing an industry-driven, high-quality career pathway where organizations can develop and prepare their future workforce and individuals can obtain paid work experience, formal instruction, and a portable, nationally recognized credential. Apprenticeship is an earn-and-learn strategy combining on-the-job training with related (classroom or online) instruction, blending the practical and theoretical aspects of training for highly skilled occupations.

Prince George’s Community College is proud to partner with TranZed Apprenticeships to offer the PCT Registered Apprenticeship program. “This opportunity came to fruition through the unyielding support of our Employee Partners and PGCC’s Leadership Team and Nursing Department. The TranZed and PGCC teams collaborated with our Employee Partners to ensure that the Related Instruction and On-the-Job Training represented the standards and competencies needed in a Patient Care Technician,” said Dawn Carter, Director of Client Solutions and Strategic Initiatives with PGCC. “The result is a robust apprenticeship program focusing on the skills, competencies, knowledge, and abilities needed of a 21st Century PCT.” 

TranZed Apprenticeships is part of The Children’s Guild’s schools and programs which respond to the unique needs of every child, family, and community it serves. The organization is one of the largest providers of charter schools, special education, autism services, treatment foster care, and family mental and behavioral health services in the region. The first Pre-App training will start on Saturday, August 16. For more information email [email protected] or call 667-688-1015. 

Affiliates of The Children’s Guild include The Children’s Guild, Inc., Baltimore Campus, The Children’s Guild DC Public Charter School, The Children’s Guild – Prince George Campus, Monarch Academy Glen Burnie, Monarch Academy Global – Laurel, Monarch Academy Annapolis, The Outpatient Mental Health Clinic, Treatment Foster Care, The Children’s Guild- Transformation Academy, Monarch Preschool College Park, TranZed Academy for Working Students (TAWS), and TranZed Apprenticeships. For more information, visit https://childrensguild.org/.