FOR PARENTS
Internship Days:
January 20 and 27
February 3, 10, 17, 24
March 3, 10, 17, 24, 31
April 14, 21, 28
May 5
On each of these Wednesdays, your student will go directly to their internship and spend the day there.
(They should not come to school on these days since they are not even allowed on campus! )
This is an exciting time for your student and probably one of the reasons you chose Impact Academy over other high schools: Workplace Learning Experience!
We hope this page helps you find answers to your questions.
Frequently Asked Questions:
When will the student be at their internship?
Students must be at their internship for 7 hours each wednesday. Generally, between 8:00am and 5:00pm on Wednesdays, although earlier and/or later times are negotiable on an individual basis.
How can I reach my student while they are at their WLE?
You can call your student’s mentor (your student should have their number). Please don’t call your student directly since they are not allowed to use their cell phones at the WLE (school policy). You can also call Impact Academy’s main office. We will have all students’ WLE contact information.
Can the student get paid?
No. Students receive school credit and cannot be paid during the workplace learning experience. Many mentors hire students after the workplace experience is concluded, but this is not an expectation of the program.
As a parent, can I meet my student’s mentor?
Sure! Just contact your student’s Academic Seminar teacher, and he/she can set up a time.
How long is the Workplace Learning Experience?
The students will be available to complete an initial Job Shadow/Interview on January 6th for half a day. The first day of the internship will be Wednesday January 20th. The last day of the internship will be Wednesday May 5th. The school calendar includes one week of vacation the week of April 5-9. Students are not required to be at internships during vacation, but may choose to work during vacation if they need to make up missed hours.
What about insurance?
The school district will be responsible for insurance coverage, as this is a school-sponsored activity. Naturally, employers would be liable in the event of gross negligence or sexual harassment.
What type of support will I have?
An Impact Faculty Advisor will meet with the mentor and the student at the beginning of the internship to set goals, create a job description, and begin to design a project for the experience. The advisor will visit the workplace several times during the course of the experience period.
Here are some things you can do to help:
1) On a daily basis, ask your student about his or her progress on identifying a mentor. Discuss ideas with your student. Encourage him or her to make exploratory phone calls to potential mentors. Remind your child of the power of networking.
2) Brainstorm with us on possible mentors, then let us know about them, whether or not it's in a field of interest to your child. If you have ideas, email them to Joel Key (joel@es-impact.org).
3) Make a pitch to potential mentors. Tell them that the most important qualification for a mentor is willingness to provide guidance to a young adult. Inform them that Impact faculty advisors will be visiting the job sites regularly to offer support to mentors.
4) Remind your student to think outside the box. Impact students are skilled in ways that have value to a wider range of employers than many of our students first consider. For example, an interest in computers doesn't mean that a student should work at a computer company; almost every company or organization needs computer expertise for networking, designing, web publishing, etc. The Bay Area’s wealth of nonprofit organizations is a particularly good source for such opportunities.
Important Documents:
If you want to know the details of our WLE program, this document has everything you’ll want to know.
This is the “permission slip” for WLE. When you sign it, you are giving your student permission to attend their WLE internship instead of coming to school on WLE Wednesdays in the 2nd semester.
WLE intro letter home to parents Impact 09.doc
The letter we send home to all parents at the start of WLE.
Contact an Academic Seminar Teacher for help!
We are always available by phone and/or email.
Kristina Becht kristina@es-impact.org
Kiera Chase kiera@es-impact.org
Steven Faivus steven@es-impact.org
Morgan McGilchrist morgan@es-impact.org
Micah Morris micahm@es-impact.org
Nida Sahr nida@es-impact.org
WLE director: Joel Key: joel@es-impact.org
2021 Highland Blvd.
Hayward, CA 94542
Phone: (510) 300-1560
Fax: (510) 300-1565
2560 Darwin Street
Hayward, CA 94545
Phone: (510) 300-1560
Fax: (510) 300-1565
