Work Study Program Helped Andrew Warde High School Teens Find Employment in Job Market

The work study program, which was introduced into the Fairfield public high school system in 1966, proved effective in meeting the needs of many of the Andrew Warde High School students who planned to enter the labor market after graduating from high school.

The program, in which students attended classes part of the day and worked a minimum of 15 hours a week at a local business or manufacturing plant, "brought a sense of stability into the lives of many students," said a school official in a newspaper article which appeared 43 years ago this month.

Discipline problems were reduced, school work improved, and some students, who may never have remained in school, received their high school diplomas. During the first year of the program in 1965-66, 33 students were enrolled in work-study. The number jumped to 42 during the second year.

"I think that the work study program was a good idea," wrote Tom Wingreen, who took part in the program during his senior year at Warde in 1974. "The instructor we had was Mr. Fred Basserman, who was fun to work with and had a great sense of humor," added Wingreen, who wrote to me via email today.

"Basically, the idea was to have a job to get work experience," Wingreen told me. "The instructor would communicate with your employer to follow up on your progress. Furthermore, the instructor would provide counseling on interviewing, filling out applications, any problems, and answer any questions concerning employment."

Many students entered the program in their junior year, according to one school official, because "this is the year when many potential dropouts who have reached their 16th birthday plan to leave school," the official said. "Students enrolled in the program generally have no intention of furthering their formal education beyond high school and plan to enter the labor market after graduation."

"I signed up for it because I had no clue as to what I wanted to do when I graduated and felt that the expertise in job searching would help out," offered Wingreen, who is now retired and living in Richmond, Virginia. "I worked at Friendlies Ice Cream Shop which used to be located on Black Rock Turnpike right here in Fairfield. I had already been working there for over a year when I signed up for work study."

Wingreen added, "While in the work study program, I worked for a manager named Ken Reilly most of the time, and we got along rather well. However, by the end of the school year I decided I didn't want a career in food management. The hours were long and most of the time you worked in a fast paced environment."

Industry and business were very interested in the program and willing to cooperate, according to the newspaper article. A total of 106 employers were contacted by the work-study counselor to secure work stations students, and 22 of them participated during the first year.

The types of jobs in which students were placed varied widely. They included shipping clerk, clerk-typist, addressograph trainee, transit machine operator, counter clerk, shirt marker, delivery driver, assembler in an electronics firm, technician, small appliance repair, veterinary nurse, packaging, and mail boy.

The reaction of the employers generally was very favorable, the school spokesman said. On-the-job evaluations were also very positive. "(The) work study program provided feedback as to how you were doing with your job and how you were progressing," pointed out Wingreen, who attended Osborn Hill School, Jennings School, and Fairfield Woods Junior High School before Warde.

"You would also get advice from the instructor on what you could do better. Work study also grouped your classes together in such a way so you could get off early and have more time to work your job.

"Furthermore, we met in class several times a week and sometimes had guest speakers come in and talk to us about their professions," said Wingreen, who went on to serve in the United States Marine Corps before attending Southern Connecticut State University.

"Some of the speakers I remember off hand were a court stenographer, a welder, a human resource person from the phone company, and of course military recruiters were well represented. We also took a few field trips to learn about other professions such as an automobile factory in Terrytown, New York. In addition, we received credits from school while we gained valuable work experience and earned money."

The program had five principle aims: it assisted students in acquiring good work habits; assuming responsibility; gaining knowledge and developing attitudes necessary for successful job performance; providing guidance to students in career opportunities; and helping students obtain more meaning from their high school subjects through on-the-job application of their learning.

Paul

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