Archive for August, 2007

Register Online And Begin Making Connections In Minutes.

Enroll in Making Connections today. It takes four easy steps

Step 1 » Register Online

Select a registration preference below to signup and pay for this course. A unique enrollment key will be e-mailed to you soon after your registration is complete. If you have a scholarship, you will be prompted for your scholarship license key during the registration process.

If you wish to receive Portland State University credit for this course, you can Register For Credit.

Step 2 » Create An Account

Create a Making Connections course account, specifying a username and password. Be sure to keep a record of your username and password–you will need it to access the course.

Step 3 » Check Your Email

Within minutes you will receive two confirmation emails: one from registration which includes your unique enrollment key, and one from the course verifying your account. Please save the enrollment key – you will need it. And please follow the simple instructions in the account verification email.

Step 4 » Log In

You now have everything you need to log in and begin Making Connections: your new account information and enrollment key!

Comments, Questions, Concerns?

Registration Support

If you have any difficulty registering for this course, please do not hesitate to contact us. You can contact registration by phone or email.
In Oregon: (503) 725-4832
Outside Oregon: 1-800-547-8887 ext. 4832
email: xsreg@pdx.edu

More Information

For more information contact Toni Plato, Program Manager, PSU Continuing Education, Graduate School of Education.

Topics: Uncategorized | No Comments »

Making Connections: Strong Relationships Help Keep Kids in School

How can you help keep kids in school?

When you think of a kid at-risk of dropping out of school, whose face comes to mind? A boy or girl? A struggling student or a gifted one? A poor child or one from a wealthy community?

To see what a typical dropout may look like, click on the photos below.

The truth is, there is no “typical” dropout. The reasons kids drop out of school are as complex and varied as their faces. But the reason kids stay in school is simple. Research, common sense and experience clearly point to one thing: if they are going to succeed in school and in life, all kids need strong, supportive relationships.

That’s where Making Connections can help. This innovative, online learning tool is designed to give mentors, teachers and volunteers the strategies and tools they need to build strong relationships with kids.

Cost is only $35 (non-Oregon residents $50)

Scholarships and group discounts are available! (See registration page for more details)

Click here to register and start Making Connections!

Topics: Uncategorized | Comments Off

Project Background

In 2003, Innovation Partnership (a non-profit organization based in Portland, Oregon) brought together a 30-person Consensus Panel of community leaders and professionals from the fields of education, business and government to review research on student retention and achievement. This examination and synthesis of existing research was done at the request of several local foundation—led by the Jubitz Family Foundation—and was the basis for the creation of a report called “Student Retention Essential Building Blocks.” The purpose of the study was to determine which education programs would be the most effective in retaining students, and thus should receive priority funding.

The research demonstrated that a significant part of students’ success is directly linked to having a one-on-one relationship with an adult who truly cares about what happens to them. The project’s Steering Committee found that most “Cultural Competency” trainings for teachers and non-profit organizations were one-time experiences that didn’t focus on relationship building or encourage people to revisit them.

As a result, the Steering Committee decided to address Oregon’s dropout issue by working with Oregon’s community, education, government and business sectors to create a non-traditional, relationship-building tool that would meet the training needs of both professional and volunteer mentors and educators. That tool is an online course called Making Connections.

For more background information on the project, click here.

Topics: Uncategorized | No Comments »