American Translators Association Announces the 2021 Winner of the School Outreach Program Award

The American Translators Association (ATA) announced that Majlinda Mulla-Everett – an Albanian, Bosnian, Croatian, Macedonian and Serbian interpreter based in Portland, Maine – has been chosen as the winner of ATA’s School Outreach Program Award.

“We are delighted to present this award to Ms. Mulla-Everett for her weeklong presentation series at Portland High School in June 2021,” said Ted Wozniak, President of the American Translators Association. “Now in its seventeenth year, ATA’s School Outreach Program raises awareness of the role that translators and interpreters play in business, education, government, healthcare, technology and society at large. In today’s global economy, companies and other institutions are realizing the importance of using skilled professional translators or interpreters to communicate their message effectively and successfully to international audiences, avoiding potentially costly and embarrassing mistakes.”

ATA launched the School Outreach Program in 2004 to educate students about translation and interpreting and to interest them in these rewarding career fields. Through the program, professional linguists speak to students of all ages, highlighting the career benefits of studying another language and the increasing potential for exciting work with foreign language skills. Using a variety of model presentations and activities available on ATA’s website, presenters outline the requirements for becoming a professional translator or interpreter, emphasizing that these careers demand far more than simply being bilingual.

“The School Outreach program focuses on educating the public about exciting career paths in translation and interpreting and their wide range of applications around the world,” said Meghan Konkol, coordinator of the School Outreach Program.

In order to receive this award, participants must belong to ATA or an ATA-affiliated organization and must present to a school of their choice. Entrants must also submit photos or screenshots of themselves presenting to the students.

A legal and medical interpreter with over 10 years of experience, Ms. Mulla-Everett was honored to be asked to offer a weeklong class titled “Explore Community Interpreting as a Career” to students at Portland High School in Portland, Maine. Tackling the class as she would an interpreting assignment, Ms. Mulla-Everett engaged the students by giving them information, tips and encouragement using roleplay and memory games.

Seeing the students participating enthusiastically in the exercises and answering quiz questions correctly made her realize how important they viewed the language professions. Ms. Mulla-Everett also invited guest speakers to present their own experiences as in-person and remote interpreters. The bilingual students came out of the class understanding the value of knowing another language and the potential to help their community and make a living while doing so.

As winner of the award, Ms. Mulla-Everett received free registration to ATA’s 62nd Annual Conference, taking place October 27 through 30 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. She will be presented with the award at an awards ceremony before more than a thousand of her colleagues in the translation industry.

To learn more about the American Translators Association and the School Outreach Program, visit http://www.atanet.org or call 703-683-6100.

Celebrating National Apprenticeship Week

In celebration of National Apprenticeship Week, the Maine DOE would like to highlight the industry-driven, high-quality career pathways offered through the Maine Department of Labor Maine Apprenticeship Program and foreshadow the work underway to build the Maine Pre-Apprenticeship Program.

Currently, there are 1126 active apprentices and 191 active employers in the Maine Registered Apprenticeship Program and between September 2020 to September 2021, 117 apprentices completed their apprenticeship. Sponsors play a key role in the Maine Apprenticeship Program and currently there are 119 active sponsors and 58 new potential sponsors of apprenticeships in Maine.

To view the list of current sponsors by occupation, click here.

To view the list of current sponsors by Maine county, click here.

Recognizing Maine’s workforce needs in high wage, in-demand jobs, the Maine Department of Labor is working to increase the number of employers, sponsors, and apprentices in the Maine Registered Apprenticeship Program. A Request for Applications (RFA) process will be used to allocate federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds for the expansion of the Maine Registered Apprenticeship Program and the creation of the Maine Pre-Apprenticeship Program. The unique qualities of each of these two programs is highlighted below.

Maine Pre-Apprenticeship Program:

Pathway to begin apprenticeship training for high school juniors and seniors who are 16 years of age or older.
Pre-apprenticeship programs may also be established for out-of-school youth (at least 16 years old) or adults.
Collaboration and formal agreement approved among the school, the employer, the student, Maine DOL Apprenticeship Program staff, and in some cases the parent or guardian.
Student must be full-time student, in good academic standing who works part-time for a registered employer/sponsor and is interested in becoming a registered apprentice after graduating from high school.

Maine Registered Apprenticeship:

Registered Apprentice must be at least 16 years of age (except when a higher minimum age standard of 18 years is otherwise fixed by law or a sponsor) and employed to learn in an occupation approved by the Maine Department of Labor, Maine Apprenticeship Program.
Employers, employer associations, and joint labor-management organizations, known collectively as “sponsors”, provide apprentices with paid on-the-job learning and academic instruction that reflects industry needs.
Individual apprentices obtain paid work experience, classroom instruction, mentorship, and a portable, industry credential.
Length of time of an apprenticeship is dependent on the specifics in the formal agreement and ranges from 1-5 years. Apprentices are expected to make a long-term commitment to the apprenticeship.

As Maine high schools and Career and Technical Education schools implement the Maine Learning Results Life and Career Ready Standards and design, develop, expand, and refine career exploration and development pathways for high school students, they are encouraged to engage in the Maine Apprenticeship Program’s RFA process and connect current extended learning career exploration programs, Co-op programs, and Maine Career and Technical Education programs as on-roads to the Maine Pre-Apprenticeship Program or Maine Registered Apprentice Program. These partnerships will create more options and career development pathways for students that will lead to industry credentials and employment.

For more information on the Maine Pre-Apprenticeship Program or Maine Apprenticeship Program contact Joan Dolan, Director of Maine Apprenticeship Program at joan.dolan@maine.gov and Kristine McCallister, Maine Department of Labor, Career Center Consultant-Apprenticeships at kristine.mccallister@maine.gov

For more information on Maine Career and Technical Education, contact Dwight Littlefield, Maine DOE State Director of Career and Technical Education at Dwight.littlefield@maine.gov

For more information on developing high school extended learning career exploration opportunities contact Diana Doiron, Maine DOE Life and Career Ready Education Specialist at diana.doiron@maine.gov and Rick Wilson, Maine DOE Distinguished Educator for Career Exploration at rick.wilson@maine.gov

For more information about the foundations and bridges the Maine Learning Results Life and Career Ready Standards lay to support career exploration and career planning contact Diana Doiron, Maine DOE Life and Career Ready Education Specialist at diana.doiron@maine.gov

Teaching Cybersecurity Training Opportunity for High School Teachers

Recognizing October is Cybersecurity Awareness month and recognizing that a career in the high demand field of cybersecurity may be of interest to students in high school, the Maine Department of Education (DOE) would like to share information about a scholarship opportunity for high school teachers to be trained to teach cybersecurity.

Jointly sponsored by the Department of Homeland Security and the National Security Agency, the National Centers of Academic Excellence in Cybersecurity is funding the first credentialing program for high school cybersecurity education in the country through a collaborative of higher education institutions called the National Cybersecurity Teaching Academy (NCTA). The inaugural program will prepare 90 high school teachers to teach an advanced cybersecurity course designed for high school teachers.

Three universities (DePaul, University of Louisville, and UA Little Rock) will be offering the virtual program, with a little bit of variation depending on the university’s program. Teachers who are accepted into the National Cybersecurity Teaching Academy will receive funding covering tuition for the 12-credit hour virtual graduate certificate program that will include coursework on teaching cybersecurity, foundations of cybersecurity, network security, and advanced topics designed for high school teachers.

With 90 scholarships available, interested teachers should register for information before December 1, 2021 at this National Cybersecurity Teaching Academy link. The application for the National Cybersecurity Teaching Academy will open in December and the National Cybersecurity Teaching Academy program will begin in Summer 2022.

To view the University of Arkansas at Little Rock’s press release about its National Cybersecurity Teaching Academy program click this UA Little Rock link.

For more information about the K-12 Maine Learning Results Life and Career Ready Standards and specific strategies for facilitating career awareness, exploration, planning, and development with students, contact Maine DOE Life and Career Ready Education Specialist, Diana Doiron at diana.doiron@maine.gov or 207-592-2128.

Governor Mills Visits Portland Adult Education To Promote Its Work

Governor Janet Mills visited Portland Adult Education (PAE) this week to promote its work in providing job and workforce training opportunities for Maine people. As part of her tour, Governor Mills visited with students in English learning classrooms, joined a virtual classroom, and participated in a discussion with former students who have graduated from PAE programs and are now in the workforce.

During the Governor’s Oct. 19 visit, immigrant students in a beginning English class took turns explaining to her why they’re learning English – reasons such as being able to get better jobs and to understand more about the culture in which their children are growing up. One student said she was thrilled that Mills had shaken her hand as they both were entering the building. “I’m so happy,” she said to the Governor.

“Maine welcomes you with all our heart,” Governor Mills told the students.

PAE is one of more than 70 adult education programs across Maine that provide job and workforce training, English learning classes, and other instructional courses that lead to better employment opportunities. Governor Mills, with the support of the Legislature, has increased funding for adult education in Maine by approximately 14 percent since taking office in January 2019, including a $1.2 million increase specifically in adult education workforce development funding.

“Maine has been grappling with a workforce shortage for decades now, and the pandemic has only made it worse,” continued Governor Mills. “Adult education is a critical component in our efforts to address that serious problem and strengthen our workforce. Not only does adult education equip more people with the skills needed to get a good-paying job, but it also allows them to put down roots, raise families, and live a rewarding life while contributing to the overall growth of our economy. It was a pleasure to visit Portland Adult Education, meet with its incredible students and staff, and see firsthand the important work they are doing every day to make Maine a better place.”

The Maine adult education system also partners with the Maine CareerCenters, local employers, higher education, and community agencies to maximize the education and training opportunities for adult learners.

PAE serves more than 2,000 racially and linguistically diverse students in its academic and workforce programs each year. Working with strong employer and community partnerships, PAE designs and implements customized workforce training opportunities for students to enter or advance in a range of professional fields, including health care, education, financial services, early childhood education and transportation. PAE offers 10-12 week intensive programs that integrate targeted language and skills training, as well as career advising and job search support in partnership with PAE’s New Mainers Resource Center.

“It was great to have the Governor acknowledge the incredible work of our staff and students,” said PAE Executive Director Anita St. Onge. “Adult education programs throughout the state are working to provide education for students seeking a high school diploma, preparing students for college, and providing training to strengthen Maine’s workforce. We are also working with foreign-trained professionals to provide education and advice with workforce issues and licensing, enabling them to reach their highest potential.”

“We were happy to welcome Governor Janet Mills to Portland Adult Education,” said Portland Public Schools Superintendent Xavier Botana. “PAE is a wonderful resource to Portland and a major source of economic development. I always say that every dollar we invest in adult education is not just a dollar invested in PAE students. It is a dollar invested in their children, in their families, and in the whole community. I appreciate Governor Mills’ recognition of this and look forward to working with her and the adult education community to maximize the value of PAE and direct the appropriate resources to support their growth and development.”

JMG to Host Statewide Extended Learning Opportunity Conference

Jobs for Maine Grads (JMG) is collaborating with GEAR UP Maine to sponsor a statewide Extended Learning Opportunity (ELO) Vision Casting Conference focused on expanding access to—and increasing capacity for—Extended Learning Opportunities for Maine high school students. All Maine educators interested in learning more about expanding ELO opportunities in their districts are encouraged to apply to attend this overnight conference free of charge.

Extended Learning Opportunities (ELOs) are hands-on, credit-bearing courses outside of the traditional classroom with an emphasis on community-based career exploration. They are highly personalized experiences that provide an opportunity for students to connect real-world experiences with traditional academic instruction. Frequently, these experiences include job shadows, internships, and community interviews in combination with reflection and traditional academic components aligned with Maine Learning Standards.

“It is no secret that Maine is facing a workforce shortage. And after the last 18 months, educators are more aware than ever of the need to increase student engagement in schools,” says Rick Wilson, Career Education Specialist with the Maine Department of Education, “ELOs are a perfect intersection of meeting those needs because they
expose students to careers available right here in Maine in highly interactive and engaging ways.”

This overnight conference is the first of its kind in Maine. As districts are seeing positive results from this experiential approach, interest in ensuring all Maine students have access to ELOs is growing and more programs are being developed across the state. With this in mind, JMG intends for this conference to be just one of many opportunities for professional development related to ELO programming.

The focus of this conference will be the development of a shared vision for creating equitable access to ELO programming for all Maine high school students. “Maine has a number of schools doing fantastic work around ELOs,” says Samantha Brink, Director of Statewide ELO Programming at JMG, “But this programming is largely confined to districts in Southern Maine with funding to hire full-time coordinators, and even these positions have limited scalability. This conference is a chance to really dig in, identify barriers, and brainstorm solutions to increase the capacity for all schools in Maine—no matter their geography—to offer these valuable experiences to students.”

The Statewide ELO Vision Casting Conference will be held December 1st to December 2nd at the Samoset Resort in Rockland, Maine and is open to educators across the state interested in learning more about how to bring this programming to their schools.

The conference is free to all attendees, but space is limited. Masking will be required in all indoor public spaces and space will be provided for social distancing. Maine educators selected to attend the conference will be notified by November 1, 2021. Join us as we cast our ELO vision and build Maine’s model!

For more information, please visit JMG.org.

Application to attend the conference is here.

Student Career & Degree Exploration Event at Thomas College on 9/30 and 10/28

Thomas College, in partnership with the Maine Department of Education and the Maine Teacher of the Year Association, is hosting two hands-on, experiential career exploration days led by professional faculty and college students.

These career and degree exploration events are open to high school sophomores, juniors, and seniors who will have the opportunity to select a track and work with Thomas College professors and students to tackle real-world challenges.

The day also includes campus tours, lunch, and Thomas College swag. Space is limited, so reserve your spot today!

Choose one day to attend:

September 30th
9am – 1:30pm
Thomas College

October 28th
9am – 1:30pm
Thomas College

Students attending can choose from the following tracks:

Future Teachers
Future Business Leaders
Future Tech Innovators
Future Crime Scene Analysts

Note: Thomas College does have some limited funding available to help support transportation to and from campus. Please reach out if you/your school would need this! For more information, please contact admiss@thomas.edu or 207-859-1101.

Register now!

Water Treatment Provides Opportunity for Adult Education Program

Maine Adult Education Hub 9 staff, Biddeford Adult Education students and some of their college aged children attended a professional Water Treatment forum at Southern Maine Community College recently.

Across the county, a growing need is present for trained water treatment professionals. As such, Southern Maine Community College has partnered with Northern Maine Community College to create a training program for the profession at the South Portland campus. Their lectures can be accessed remotely, however, hands-on laboratory exercises guided by trained faculty members are taking place on campus.

The Hub 9 group learned about scholarship and apprenticeship opportunities, and toured the learning lab. Industry professionals were available to discuss the great need for new water professionals and how dynamic and exciting this important work is, an exciting experience that the group intends to bring back to their learning community in Biddeford.

Visit Maine Rural Water Association and Maine Water to see current job postings. Anyone interested in discussing this as a potential pathway into the field, can contact their local adult education student advisor.

This article was written by Marci Dionne, student advisor at Biddeford Adult Education, in collaboration with Maine DOE Intern Clio Bersani as part of the Maine Schools Sharing Success Campaign. To submit a story or an idea email it to Rachel at rachel.paling@maine.gov.

CTE Summer Camps Offer Safe, Hands-on Learning to Middle Schoolers

Middle School Career and Technical Education (MS-CTE) summer camps are keeping it cool this summer! There are currently nine Career and Technical Education (CTE) schools across Maine that are hosting summer camps specifically for middle school aged students this year as part of an on-going effort to bring career and technical education opportunities to students at the middle school level.

Students participating in these excellent summer programs are exploring careers, participating in hands on experiences in culinary arts, media technology, automotive, engineering, welding and carpentry, just to name a few. The MS-CTE camp experiences are offered either for one or two weeks for two to five days per week. Maine’s CTE instructors are enjoying the opportunity to share many career options available in Maine to middle school aged students, a younger audience than the traditional high school age of students that attend CTE schools throughout the school year.

Students, too, are excited about the opportunity to spend a few weeks of the summer learning about career options and engaging in hands-on learning opportunities. “I am the happiest girl in the world right now,” said one of the students currently participating in a MS-CTE summer camp.

There are 21 CTE schools across Maine that are piloting MS-CTE programs which have allowed students to experience career options through hands on activities. The pilots have ranged from in-school programming, online career exploration, mentorships as well as the camp experiences currently taking place this summer. All programs offer a hands on component and a career exploration element as required by the standards.

Check out this recent Portland Press Herald news article highlighting this excellent work: Summer camps build on effort to extend vocational programs to middle schoolers.

For more information about Maine’s MS-CTE programs, visit the MS-CTE website at or contact the Middle School CTE Specialist Margaret Harvey at Margaret.Harvey@maine.gov

‘Aspire Golden Bucks’ Partnership Highlights the Many Pathways to Lifelong Learning

“Aspire Golden Bucks” (AGB) was formed as a partnership between RSU 25, Jobs for Maine Graduates (JMG), and Maine Educational Loan Marketing Corporation (MELMAC) to encourage students of all ages to create a plan for their future and empower students to continue their education. The Aspire team puts a focus on local needs-they make sure to interview teachers and students about what they specifically want more or less of in their schools. AGB provides books for elementary schools, supports career opportunities and school visits for higher grade levels, and seeks to partner with, and promote the work of, both Hancock County Technical Center and adult education. In order to show fellow students returning to education that not everyone takes a traditional path through education, RSU 25 Adult Education is sharing AGB timelines of people who may have tried several different jobs or schools to get where they are.

Jessica Gerrish stopped attending the University of Maine at Augusta (UMA) after two semesters. She was a strong student but her decision to withdraw caused her GPA to drop. Jessica worked as a nursing assistant and did not know whether she wanted to continue on the nursing path. After dropping out and exploring other positions, Jessica realized her heart was in nursing. She applied back to UMA and completed three semesters of school with high honors before withdrawing again. Withdrawing twice affected the school’s willingness to accept Jessica back again. Jessica was able to find advocates and work together to create a plan to ensure she would be able to complete her schooling. Jessica submitted her plan to UMA and was reaccepted. Jessica completed the RSU 25 Adult Education Certified Clinical Medical Assistant program in March of 2020 and is now enrolled in the University of Maine’s Bachelors Nursing program. She has maintained honors since 2019. Her anticipated graduation date is in May of 2023. “I had an extremely rocky road, making plenty of mistakes along the way, but the support I have now has paved the way for it to all be possible. Life happens, and sometimes things get in the way, but there is always help out there for people who truly want it,” said Jessica Gerrish.

Jessica’s story is one of many aspirational timelines that will be used through the AGB initiative. More examples of aspirational journeys are in the works to help showcase the many pathways that can lead to life-long learning and success for students of all ages

For more information on the initiative, please look at their website: RSU25.org/aspire. To learn more about adult education options in Maine visit: Adult Education | Department of Education (maine.gov)

This article was written by Maine DOE Intern Clio Bersani in collaboration with RSU 25 as part of the Maine Schools Sharing Success Campaign. To submit a story or an idea, email it to Rachel at rachel.paling@maine.gov.

Maine Virtual Career Fair for High School Students Offers Dynamic, Professional Experience

Maine Community Coordinators Collaborative (Maine C3 ), in collaboration with the Association of Computer Technology Educators in Maine (ACTEM) and Educate Maine offered a unique opportunity for high school students across Maine, from Caribou to Kittery, to engage together in real-time with representatives from a wide swath of cross-sector Maine companies and nonprofit organizations.

During the Maine Virtual Career Fair, students self-selected from the 168 live-streamed sessions and learned about the unique job expectations, skills, and potential career pathways of different jobs in large and small Maine companies and nonprofit organizations.

For students, the ME Virtual Career Fair offered a window to feed their curiosity, aspirations, plans and actions towards a vision they have for themselves. For teachers who attended the sessions with their students, the ME Virtual Career Fair offered an opportunity to make direct connections among the learning targets in their classrooms across all content areas and the skills, understandings, and context of the job expectations and potential career pathways to the jobs. For Maine companies and nonprofit organizations, the ME Virtual Career Fair provided an opportunity to make connections with students, be a part of building student aspirations, and offer examples of the value of living and working in Maine.

During the live-streamed sessions, students communicated with the presenters by typing their questions into a chat space. The 30 minute live-streamed sessions gave students ample time to deepen their understandings with follow-up questions. Maine C3 educators served as the moderator of the sessions by keeping the questions flowing and making connections. Presenters often shared their own career journeys to their current positions, sometimes surprising students in the way skills, knowledge, and experiences build and transfer across career clusters.

The ME Virtual Career Fair offered a dynamic, professional career exploration experience for Maine high school students to engage with companies and nonprofit organizations from across Maine and hear the thoughts and questions from other students. The concept for the virtual career fair grew out of a deep desire to create a statewide experience and offer all high school students the opportunity to explore a variety of career options together in real-time and see possibilities for their lives. Maine C3 has created an experience worth repeating and they are committed to making this an annual event.

For questions regarding Maine C3 and the 2021 ME Virtual Career Fair, contact Planning Committee Co-Chairs, Samantha Brink at sbrink@sanford.org or Sheree Inman at inmansh@spsdme.org.

For questions regarding the Maine Learning Results Life and Career Ready standards contact Maine DOE Life and Career Ready Education Specialist, Diana Doiron at diana.doiron@maine.gov or 207-592-2128.