With the assistance of a local advisory, it is the responsibility of
the CIS District Coordinator to be aware of potential funding sources
and develop proposals to funding agencies to ensure monies are available to hire CIS staff from year to year.
It is the responsibility of the District Coordinator to select
project sites. Once project sites have been finalized the District
Coordinator, together with local leaders, will interview candidates for
the various positions and select participants.
With the participants in place the District Coordinator becomes the
overseer of the projects, as well as a facilitator, mediator and
trouble-shooter.
In this role the Coordinator will visit the various sites on a regular
basis to ensure objectives are being met. S/he will work with the
participants to resolve any difficulties with the particular project.
S/he will ensure that the project is providing a good working experience for the participants involved and will be responsible for the integrity of the projects.
As the CIS participants are responsible for the day to day operations
of the CIS project, so the District Coordinator is concerned with
long-term goals. The District Coordinator will assist the participants
in setting goals and creating deadlines.
The CIS District Coordinator is responsible to facilitate the
learning and project development activities of CIS Regional
coordinators, CIS Community Resource Workers and all other CIS staff.
The CIS District Coordinator is responsible to co-ordinate the
overall delivery of CIS training with CIS Regional coordinators, CIS
Community Resource Workers and all other CIS staff.
The CIS District Coordinator is responsible to network with the
partners of the Community Education Network during the project
development stage, as well as the national CIS organization.
S(he) should draw upon the expertise of the staff of the sponsoring
partner agencies, as well as engage training specialists for specific
workshops related to project development.
The CIS District Coordinator is responsible to take direction from
the advisory committee and work closely with the Director of the
Community Education Network.
The CIS District Coordinator (together with the Participatory Evaluation Co-ordinator) is responsible to co-ordinate the
participatory evaluation process of the program. Specifically, train CIS
staff in using video for data collection in a participatory evaluation;
participate in strategic planning meetings; assist in the thematic
analysis of primary and secondary resource data; and participate both as an interviewer and key informant in the data collection.
The CIS District Coordinator is responsible to co-ordinate the
collection of quantitative or statistical data for report purposes.
As the projects finish the District Coordinator is expected to provide
a written report of each project and the participants performance, as
well as other aspects of the project such as training.
The District Coordinator is expected to be able to work on their own,
be able to organize and supervise various teams of people, be able to
handle and resolve problems that arise and be an effective spokesperson for Communities In Schools.
The CIS Regional Coordinator plays a crucial role throughout the
implementation phase. (S)he is at once a:
leader;
link between the CIS District Office and CIS regions;
spokesperson for CIS;
planner;
partnership developer, consensus builder, and negotiator;
public speaker;
writer;
trainer; and
data collector
Perhaps as much as anything, the CIS Regional Coordinator is an
advocate. (S)he convinces local community partners, on behalf of the
community itself, especially its youth, to embrace the CIS program and concepts. Thus, the CIS Regional Coordinator wears many hats and possesses many skills, including:
The ability to work with a broad range of top officials from
business, public and private agencies, and community organizations;
The CIS Regional Coordinator should be well connected in the education, social service, or business community to give him/her an initial "in" with potential CIS partners.
The CIS Regional Coordinator must be able to deal effectively with leaders from these sectors and other community groups (religious, parent, volunteer, higher education, recreation, etc.)
Skill and persuasiveness in oral and written communications;
The CIS Regional Coordinator must be able to articulate the CIS vision
to divergent community sectors. (S)he will also be required to write
press releases, grant proposals, letters of introduction, etc.
A great deal of the strength of a CIS public/private partnership arises
from combining community voices. A CIS Regional Coordinator acts as a community advocate in that (s)he works to generate systemic change in the way human services are delivered to youth and families by utilizing the increased influence of the collaborative partnership,
Negotiating skills
A CIS Regional Coordinator must also be skilled in negotiating turf
issues, able to convince potential partners who are in conflict to share and work toward the CIS vision.
Networking skills
An effective CIS Regional Coordinator acts as an intermediary between often disparate sectors of the community and is able to make meaningful contact with sectors of the community that may be completely new to him/her.
Planning and organizational skills
The CIS Regional Coordinator organizes not just his/her personal
activities, but must map out the strategy and courses of action that
others involved in the effort will take. The CIS Regional Co- ordinator
must develop, work with, and respond to the pre-implementation task
force.
Information and data collection skills
While enlisting the support of various CIS partners, the CIS Regional
Coordinator needs to collect useful data for both the community
leadership assessment and the community resources and needs assessment.
This multi-talented individual should have a high standing in the
community and should be well respected, so that (s)he is more easily
able to mobilize members of the community and galvanize their support around the CIS concept. The selected individual should not, if
possible, have a history of conflict with the key local figures whose
support must be solicited.
S(he) will also be responsible to:
Co-ordinate on-site the participatory evaluation process of the
program. Specifically, utilize video for data collection in the
participatory evaluation; participate in strategic planning meetings;
assist in the thematic analysis of primary and secondary resource data; participate both as an interviewer and key informant in the data
collection, and assist in the effective implementation of the evaluation by acting upon what is learned in the process.
Use email and encourage CIS staff within his/her region to use e-mail
and provide weekly reports to both the CIS Regional Coordinator and the District Co- ordinator. Reports should include quantitative or
statistical data.
Participate in scheduled networking with other CIS staff in the
region. This includes weekly discussions on the CIS web board, as well
as face-to-face training and networking sessions.
Personal Qualities
While it may be true that a qualified individual may not have every
single attribute listed above, it is a fact that it takes a special
person, energetic and devoted, to perform the specific duties (see
below) required of a CIS Regional Coordinator.
There are five personal qualities that seem to be shared by effective CIS Regional Coordinator.
They are:
Determination -- Not all community partners will accept the CIS model
right off. Tactful negotiation will be required in many instances. A
solid collaborative relationship takes time tobuild.
Selflessness -- A CIS Regional Coordinator must lead the community
toward the establishment of a CIS program but must do so as a "servant leader". When the CIS replication process stalls, an effective CIS Regional Coordinator takes responsibility on his/her shoulders to get things moving.
Experience -- A CIS Regional Coordinator does not necessarily need
experience in organizing community collaborations, but (s)he needs to
have a certain amount of experience in local community affairs. Having a local "insider" as a CIS Regional Co- ordinator stimulates the replication process.
Sensitivity -- The CIS Regional Coordinator must be aware of the
needs of local youth and families. (S)he must also be sensitive to the
needs and experiences of diverse ethnic populations within the
community.
Vision -- The CIS Regional Coordinator must really believe that the
Communities In Schools concept of on-site delivery of human services
represents a positive systemic change for students and their families,
and (s)he must share this conviction with the CIS community partners.
Specific Duties
The following activities are examples of specific responsibilities which
the CIS Regional Coordinator assumes:
Work with the CIS District Coordinator to interview and select
potential CIS employees;
Provide training and orientation to CIS staff within his/her region;
Mobilize financial and human resources to support program
development;
Coordinate all activities with the CIS District Office;
Orient and assess interest and supportiveness of local leaders;
Help form CIS advisory board;
Conduct community resource/needs assessment and present findings;
Help prepare CIS work plan;
Maintain clear documentation of correspondence and reports;
Maintain appropriate linkages with media representatives.
The following activities are examples of specific responsibilities which the CIS Community Resource Worker assumes:
Mobilize human resources to support program development by actively seeking out community volunteers to help with program implementation.
Orient and assess interest and supportiveness of the local community
by doing presentations on CIS within the community and developing local community awareness about CIS and its programs.
Maintain clear documentation of program development and CIS
activities. CIS Community Resource Workers are primarily researchers. They will be responsible for developing "How- to" kits on specific programs. For example, if a CIS Community Resource Worker identifies Homework Haven as a program component for their particular school, it will be their responsibility to clearly document how they got the program up and running.
Report weekly to the CIS Regional Coordinator (Burgeo/Ramea) and CIS District Coordinator
Maintain appropriate linkages with media representatives by
publicizing CIS activities on local radio and television and in local
newspapers.
Facilitate the delivery of the CIS enterprise program - Fast Track to
Entrepreneurship.
Co-ordinate providing young people between the ages of 13 and 18 with an opportunity to access loans of up to $1000 to start up their own business.
Work with local experts to provide youth with an introduction to the
business community, six basic skills workshops and guidance in times of need.
Co-ordinate on-site the participatory evaluation process of the
program. Specifically, utilize video for data collection in the
participatory evaluation; participate in strategic planning meetings;
assist in the thematic analysis of primary and secondary resource data; participate both as an interviewer and key informant in the data
collection, and assist in the effective implementation of the evaluation by acting upon what is learned in the process.
Provide the District Coordinator with quantitative or statistical
data for report purposes.
CIS employees travel should be very limited. Any travel associated with the project will be budgeted before the project begins. Any other travel must be cleared through the District Coordinator.
CIS employees must keep their District Coordinator informed as to their whereabouts.
CIS employees will not be reimbursed for travel to and from their
designated worksite. However, all other travel undertaken during the
course of normal duties will be reimbursed at the following rates:
Mileage (personal vehicle): $0.15/km
All CIS employees must record start and end points, mileage and reason for travel in their daily journals and complete a Travel/Expense Claim Form.
4.2 Attendance Sheets
CIS employees must note any absences (and reasons) on their weekly
report forms. If there are any absences, the CIS worker must inform the District Coordinator by Friday of each week.
The District Coordinator will then transfer the information to a master list, which will then be submitted to the Finance Office each Monday. This information is necessary for the smooth functioning of the payroll system.
4.4 Purchases
Any purchases must be approved by the District Coordinator and must be carried out with a purchase order.
5.1 Intake forms
Every employee must fill out a Participant Documentation form. These
will be kept on file by the District Coordinator.
6.0 DRESS CODE
Appropriate dress is required of all CIS employees. This means that
crop shirts, jeans (unless the school you are working at has a jeans /
casual day), ball caps, beer shirts, or T-shirts with inappropriate
language or pictures are not approved. During the summer months shorts are allowed, but preferably something like Bahamas shorts (mid-thigh to knee length shorts). That means that cycling shorts (spandex), sports shorts (running shorts, etc.) are not allowed. Remember you will be working in a school environment and want to portray a good image. This does not mean you have to wear a shirt and tie, or dress pants / skirt to work, just keep in mind before you dress to ask yourself AIs this appropriate for working in a school?
7.0 TELEPHONE
CIS employees will be provided with the phone number of the District
Coordinator. CIS employees are expected to use the phones of the
particular school where they are working. Every long distance call must be recorded in the weekly report for future reference.
8.0 COMMUNICATIONS
CIS employees are responsible for keeping the District Coordinator
informed about their progress and whereabouts. The District Coordinator will be responsible for contacting each CIS employee every Monday.
District Coordinator Tracy Snow w: (709) 643-4891
h: (709) 648-9357
Regional Coordinator Sherry-Lee Vallis w: (709) 625-2283
H: (709) 625-2172
9.0 SICK LEAVE
CIS personnel may take a maximum of one sick day per month with pay. Any time off over and above one sick day will result in loss of pay for the time taken. All sick leave must be documented on the attendance forms. Official verification (e.g. a doctor=s note) may be required. Sick leave is to be used for the purpose of illness only; it is not to be thought of as an entitlement. If leave is abused, the privilege will be withdrawn.
Call your school principal if you are sick. Make the call as early in
the morning as possible. People will be counting on you!! On the first
day ask your principal for his/her phone number.
10.0 TIME OFF
Time off for personal business must be requested at least one week
before it is required. The request has to approved by the District
Coordinator and school principal. Time off will be without pay.
If the request is for the purpose of keeping a doctor's or dentist's
appointment then time off with pay will be allowed up to a half a day (4 hours).
Other family circumstances such a death in the family will be dealt
with on an individual basis.
11.0 PUNCTUALITY
All CIS employees are expected to be at work on time. If a CIS employee is going to be late for some reason the District Coordinator and school principal is to be notified a day in advance.
Showing up late without a valid excuse will result in a verbal warning
After a second such incident a written warning will be issued by the
District Coordinator and there will be loss of at least one hours pay.
After three such incidents the person will be suspended for one day.
After four the person, at the discretion of the District Coordinator
and school principal, may be dismissed.
Dependability is essential!! You are always expected to report to work
on time and have very few (if any) absences.
12.0 DISCIPLINE
The disregard for any of these policies and/or safe working practices
will result in disciplinary action. This section is not intended to
provide a definition for each possible incident but rather to provide
some overall direction.
Standard procedures for discipline and firing are available in your
information packages.
Communities In Schools (CIS) is a partnership with the local schools and community groups in the various projects that will be undertaken during this program The District Coordinator has the responsibility for all CIS employees.
If any CIS employee is requested to undertake something beyond the scope of the project by the school or community group which may contravene with the purpose of Communities In Schools then the request must be passed on to the District Coordinator.
14.0 SCHOOL CONDUCT
Present yourselves as professionals. Dress and act the part of a
professional person. Follow all school rules especially the ones about
smoking. Ask where the teachers smoke-DO NOT SMOKE WITH STUDENTS. Be careful of your language and expect that students will refer to you as Miss or Sir. Always be conscious of the type of image you are portraying - remember you are a role model!
While you can be friendly with the students in your school, do not
become too friendly with them. Remember that you are not their
buddy.
15.0 SCHOOL HOLIDAYS
Given that CIS employees will be located at schools within their
communities, in most instances, employees will be required to take all
necessary school holidays as access to the building will be restricted.
However, CIS employees will be required to make up lost time incurred as a result of these holidays.