18 PLUSS provides vocational development
Signing Day came early in the Arlington ISD for six 18 PLUSS students last week.
With all the pomp and circumstance of an athletics signing day, six students made their future intentions known by signing on for their future in front of friends at family at the district’s food and nutrition services office on Thursday.
The only difference is the students weren’t signing with colleges – they were making their internships official with different district food and nutrition services departments.
Starting Wednesday, the students will intern with the hopes of either landing a full-time job with the district or setting themselves up for employment outside the district once the internship ends.
“We wanted this to be meaningful so that they know we’re excited about this,” said David Lewis, Arlington ISD’s food and nutrition services executive director. “That’s the whole meaning about tonight. We want them to know we’re expecting them. We want them to know we’re excited to have them.”
That’s why there was music, brief bios about the students, balloons, a table to sign at and caps and gear to help the students take the next step.
The Performance-Based Learning in Unique School Settings (18 PLUSS) students will intern at Boles Junior High, Gunn Junior High and Fine Arts and Dual Language Academy, Bowie High School, Martin High School, Seguin High School as well as the district’s food and nutrition services office.
Serving students 18-22 years old, the 18 PLUSS program is designed to support high school students eligible for special education services who require assistance in securing and sustaining employment in their local area as part of their vocational development.
The idea of doing the internship started with a conversation between Lewis and 18 PLUSS coordinator Brenda Cupps back in 2019. But COVID delayed that launch. The two picked up the talks again in the spring.
Cupps hopes it’s a sign of things to come.
“It’s something that we’d like to partner with departments for our students who are capable of working in the Arlington ISD,” she said. “We have a lot of students who if you ask them who they want to work for it’s the Arlington ISD. It’s all they know.”
Now several students will get to learn more about how the FNS department works.
Alyssa Rios, who will begin her internship at Seguin, has lofty goals for her future following the internship.
“Being a chef,” she said.
She’s making small strides toward that goal at home, where her specialties are grilled cheese and egg sandwiches.
For Alyssa’s mom Angela Johnson, the signing day was huge.
“I’m so proud of her,” she said. “This is something that she’s really worked for on her own. Even though she’s going to be living with me, this gives her something where she has her own identity.”
Five of the students will learn the ins and outs of school cafeterias while Jair Gonzales will focus on tech at the district offices because his goal is to work with computers or animation.
Internships like this are hopefully a first step for all the students.
“How can we come together for the betterment of our students?” Lewis said. “It’s what we do. To be able to build a pathway where we can take on interns every year and then open positions where they can become an employee of the district after that is just awesome.”
See more photos from the signing day.