Barb Piscopo, Executive Director of the Lorain Historical Society, discusses several active programs based around student involvement applied to the Society’s motto, “History is the Foundation for strong, vibrant communities.”  She discusses the efforts of Lorain County Community College students in recording oral histories, particularly from Lorain’s Latino community as well as development of  the society’s newest initiative for the African American community in Lorain.  She also talks about how the Lorain Historical Society will be involved in this year’s 55th annual Lorain International Festival

American teenagers, particularly young women, are in the midst of a mental health crisis as social media and smartphones are contributing to high levels of depression, loneliness, sadness, and even suicide in some cases.   Rebecca Jones is the Child and Adolescent Services Director of the Mental health Addiction and Recovery Services Board of Lorain County. She describes the types of cases her office has encountered in county schools and successful strategies and remedies that are being employed.

Deanna Strauss-Hersko, Manager of the Career Technical Pathway, part of “Bridges to Success” at Lorain County Community College, discusses with Vince Ventresco, an Avon High graduate and early participant in the program, a program developed by LCCC at the request of Avon High School.  It is already benefitting students who had been seeking career paths during their senior year in high school.  Ventresco, one of the program’s first participants, talks about how it led him to pursue an eventual bachelor’s degree for applied science in Microelectronic Manufacturing

Jennifer Harmon, the Community Engagement Director of the Elyria Public Library System, describes a new mobile program being introduced by the system to assist people in workforce training and development.  It helps individuals complete paperwork for government assistance programs, and it’s done inside a new mobile training vehicle called the EWOC, short for the Elyria Workforce and Outreach Center.  The new vehicle serves as a mobile classroom with instructors to assist those in need of training

“We Serve” is a national program offered to high schools giving students opportunities to assist students from other districts with tutoring or service assistance.  In this interview, Krystine Frisch, a veteran English teacher at Avon Lake High School, gives details on how 60 Advanced Placement English  students from her school tutored first and third graders at Clearview’s Vincent Elementary School to prepare for their state reading exams.  This highly successful program is only one of several involving voluntary participants from Avon Lake high school. She further explains how “We Serve” can be available for other interested schools

Ken Trump of National School Safety and Security returns with more detail on a timely topic.  In this second interview, he details the training of building staffs for awareness and response to the possibility of a security breech which can occur unexpectedly on campus.  He also offers additional insights on student safety

Safety and Security in our public school buildings are the topic of this Dialogues interview with Ken Trump, the President of National School Safety and Security Services. His company, a preeminent, nationally recognized consultant on school safety and security, is based in Cleveland, and was recently hired by the Lorain City Schools to enhance their programs.  He explains evaluation process and training exercises which include administrators, teachers, and consultations

An issue which has been facing educators for centuries continues today here in Ohio: ”How to teach our children to read.”  Dr. Sue Corbin is Chair of the Division of Professional Education at Notre Dame College in South Euclid, Ohio. In this interview, she discusses the latest challenges to educators in Ohio, maintaining that politics and money are again influencing the Science of Reading program being “thrust upon educators.”  The opinions of a professional educator on this controversial topic are presented here in detail.

Lorain County Community College continues to be a leader in Ohio and across the country in providing local high school students programs and activities geared to career planning and development.  This extraordinary progress has taken place under the leadership of college president Dr. Marcia Ballinger. In this annual update for Dialogues, she discusses the highly successful “Bridges to Success” program where high school students earn college credits while attending LCCC classes in career exploration and life planning.   She also explains the free, virtual “Fast Track” program which offers industry recognized credentials to adults in high demand employment areas.

Virginia Waratinsky, a veteran former teacher in Elyria schools is the Scholarship Chair for The Lorain County Retired Teachers Association (LCRTA). She announces new scholarships for qualified Lorain County students. Her exciting news is two special programs sponsored by the LCRTA.   She outlines the efforts of her organization to support  advancing the education of local students and offers insights to those who wish to seek these special aid opportunities. Their website is LORCORTA.org.