At this year’s Dane County School Consortium Youth Apprenticeship Banquet, Belleville High School’s Teresa Gartley was named one of this year’s Outstanding School-to-Career Coordinators alongside Penny Thompson from McFarland High School. To receive this award is meaningful in so many ways, but it represents the incredible work School-to-Career Coordinators do in their schools to help students gain critical work experience before graduation. These mentorships are often key experiences that help graduating students know what working in a field of interest would be like before making pivotal decisions for next steps beyond their high school education.
Gartley was touched not only to receive the award, but by who nominated her for this honor. To be recognized for the work you do by your own District Administrator carries a lot of weight — especially when you are among a strong team of educators!
District Administrator Nate Perry has served the students of Belleville for some time alongside Gartley and has seen the program she has developed locally for a small rural district up close as it developed.
Perry reflects, “When I started as the Belleville High School Principal in 2014, there were no Youth Apprentices (YAs) in the School-to-Career program.
A decade later, Teresa Gartley, the district’s School-to-Career Coordinator, has grown the program to 22 students.
Those numbers, in comparison to our school size, are outstanding! Teresa works tirelessly to find the right fit for her students.”
Knowing the needs of your high school students is just half of the battle when it comes to being a strong Schoolto- Career Coordinator. The other half of it is finding unique ways for students to utilize the skills they have acquired in school and put them to use on the job.
Many students come to Gartley each year for help matching their interests and passions with a real-world fit.
Teresa Gartley takes her knowledge of the marketplace and local businesses, along with the unique needs of each student and employee, to make her final placements each school year.
“Once Teresa finds a business partner, she fosters that relationship so that she may draw upon another placement with them in the future. Last year alone, she was partnering with 30 local businesses between YA and Work Experience.
Teresa is always looking for additional opportunities for our students. For example, she found two YA alumnus to serve on the Youth Apprenticeship panel at FutureQuest, with two more YA graduates sharing their experiences with the state legislature and at the Department of Workforce Development’s annual meeting,” notes Perry.
Belleville is fortunate to have Gartley, and Perry feels it was time to publicly recognize her incredible work in a small school district. To have the success of 22 students involved in the YA experience speaks volumes! Building a solid Youth Apprentice program is not something that happens overnight, so it is wonderful to pay witness to how it has blossomed since 2014. It is the by-product of a teacher who cares deeply for her students and the work she does to make the future bright for those who choose to let her help fulfill their dreams and career aspirations. Belleville is a lucky recipient of Gartley’s efforts, and this recognition is well deserved.
— Marie Perry is the Communications Director for the School District of Belleville. She can be reached at perrym@belleville.k12.wi.us.
