| Although there are many how-to manuals on forming business/school partnerships, there is little valuative information on what actually takes place within them. This dissertation, a case study of a school-to-work partnership between an urban high school's business education department and the local business community, affords a practical insight into the dynamics of such a cooperative.;A series of in-depth, phenomenological interviews were conducted with student workers and their workplace mentors. Their candid, powerful testimonies reflect the backgrounds, attitudes, and concerns that each brought to the workplace. Their personal voices express the relationships and interactions that defined their work experiences.;Additional interviews with key figures in several similar contemporary programs confirmed that business/school partnerships are as complex and sensitive as the personalities of the individuals and the characters of the institutions that form them. Although all of the participants in this study attest to the value and importance of such partnerships, it is also evident that the demands of sustaining a successful program are daunting. This study suggests that implementing the business/school mandates as proposed in school reform legislation will be difficult, if not impossible.;The evidence in this study illustrates that predominantly minority students from disadvantaged backgrounds can succeed in an initial work experience, can grow through that exposure, and can then create new personal visions for themselves. Of the twenty-five business students who participated in this cooperative program, over half entered a two or four year college upon graduation; six were offered a permanent position with a business partner.;The director of the partnership that is at the core of this study, a committed teacher and a business owner, was available on a daily basis to provide students with personal guidance as they assimilated new experiences, faced unexpected challenges, or redefined new understandings. The overall findings substantiate the value of such consistent individual support for students in their first adventure into the world-of-work. |
