TOMBALL, Texas – Dr. Anne Ginnett, director of Lone Star College-Tomball’s lifePATH® program, has always believed that having a vision also requires taking a leap of leap of faith, believing that someone else will at some point join in to help bring it to reality.
“When we started this program our vision was to have our students interning and being hired to work at local organizations and businesses, which we call our community partners,” Ginnett said. “Thanks to the city of Tomball, our first lifePATH® student has secured an internship.”
lifePATH® student Kennith will work in the city of Tomball’s IT department beginning in September. East plans to pursue a career in IT and network administration. LSC-Tomball lifePATH® Manager Jim Engelke said it’s an amazing feeling to have one of its students accepted for an internship in the community.
“Although I’m the internship manager for lifePATH®, I’m new, so I’m sort of like the guy in football who carried the ball across from the three yard line, while everyone else are the ones who have done all of the work bringing the ball all the way down the field. We’re continuing to work with partners in the community and look forward to our first student’s internship and those coming afterward.”
Ginnett went on to note that lifePATH®, which has grown to about 80 students, has received tremendous support from faculty, staff, elected officials, and the local community.
LSC-Tomball’s lifePATH® is a four-year comprehensive model of post-secondary educational opportunities for students who have disabilities that affect executive functioning. Students can earn various Lone Star College certificates in Occupational Studies, ACT®WorkKeys® Assessments, the ACT® National Career Readiness Certification, and can choose to earn college credit in general Lone Star College credit courses.
Students can exit lifePATH® after two years, receiving a Lone Star College Certificate in Foundational Occupational Studies. All students who choose the four-year lifePATH® option participate in a community internship during their fourth year.
“The way that this works is that before students go out into the community for internships, we provide them with experience here on campus first,” Ginnett said. “For example, if a student is interested in marketing, we would give them opportunities to work with departments that may need promotional flyers or other marketing-related things. If a student is interested in a field that requires customer service, we place them in an area on campus that requires customer service interaction. This process allows us to see their strengths in action and gives us the opportunity to troubleshoot before they intern in the community.”
LSC-Tomball’s lifePATH® program empowers adult students with cognitive disabilities by providing an opportunity to learn academic skills and the social skills needed in the business world, the academic world, and personal relationships. What makes this program unique is that LSC-Tomball is the only college in the state that offers it. Admissions is selective and students join lifePATH® as part of a cohort. Each cohort remains together for all classes during the first two years. During years three and four, students can continue to take lifePATH core classes as a cohort or enroll in traditional college credit classes and receive lifePATH Wraparound Support.
To learn more about lifePATH®, visit http://www.lonestar.edu/lifepath.
Lone Star College-Tomball is located at 30555 Tomball Parkway, at the intersection of SH 249 and Zion Road. For more information about the college, call 281.351.3300 or visit LoneStar.edu/Tomball.
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Known for its leadership, innovation and steadfast commitment to student success, Lone Star College provides high-quality academic transfer and workforce education/career training programs to more than 83,000 credit students each semester, and a total enrollment of 95,000 students. LSC is training tomorrow’s workforce today and redefining the community college experience to promote student success and economic prosperity. Stephen C. Head, Ph.D., is the chancellor of LSC, the largest institution of higher education in the Houston area, which consists of six colleges, eight centers, two university centers, Lone Star Corporate College and LSC-Online. To learn more visit LoneStar.edu.