Blueprint Education
Glendale, AZ

Knowing how to get along in the workplace is essential to thriving as an adult, and now developing those skills can help high school students not only grow personally, but also help them get their diploma.

Long known for its innovative programs that teach high school students life and leadership skills, Anytown Arizona has partnered with Blueprint Education, an international, nonprofit educational organization, to provide the accreditation component, allowing students to easily receive academic credit for their participation.

Through its school-based and summer programs, Anytown Arizona works with teens to increase self-esteem and personal empowerment; enhance trust, mutual understanding and respect; build leadership abilities, a sense of personal responsibility and an appreciation of diversity; as well as improve communication and conflict resolution skills. Started in 1957, the program has served more than 30,000 youth, said Anielka Contreras.

"We are very excited about this partnership with Blueprint Education," Contreras said. "This will help us take our award winning curriculum to a whole new level. For over 50 years Anytown has utilized the power of experiential learning to raise awareness to diversity, social justice and self-empowerment. Now with a formal partnership with a leading educational organization, we can strengthen the ability of our program to meet the educational needs of today's students."

Blueprint Education, headquartered in Glendale, Ariz., will provide specific assessment tools to evaluate all students both throughout the program and at the end, and the assessments will determine eligibility for credit, said Blueprint Assistant Superintendent for Distance Learning Jennifer Blackstone.

"The Arizona Department of Education has developed eight standards that relate directly to workplace skills," Blackstone said. "The Anytown curriculum aligns directly to many of these standards and helps to create students who will become productive employees in society. It has been a pleasure working with Anytown on this project. They see the need to join with schools to promote the teaching of workplace skills."
The credits students receive will count as "workplace skills," by the state, according to Blackstone. These skills standards are designed to be integrated into the traditional school curriculum with an emphasis on application, she said, because the state recognizes that students will spend more than a third of their lives in diverse and constantly changing workplaces. "Understanding how to thrive in the workplace is therefore essential," said Blackstone.

"This partnership is part of Anytown Arizona's strategic vision of being on the cutting edge of youth education," said Bill Saul, Anytown Arizona Board Chairman. "As the world constantly evolves so does Anytown in how it fulfills its mission. Anytown Arizona
www.anytownarizona.org remains committed to developing leaders and embracing diversity. Through its partnership with Blueprint Education, we hope to increase our capacity to do so on a larger scale."

Blueprint Education has been helping students succeed for 39 years and serves junior high and high school students throughout Arizona, across the nation, and abroad. It originated in 1926 as a correspondence school. In 1969, it was incorporated by the state of Arizona as a private non-profit organization and is governed by a volunteer Board of Directors. Today, Blueprint Education serves thousands of school-aged youth and adults.

Blueprint Education is accredited by the NCA Commission on Accreditation and School Improvement, CITA and the NCAA. More information about Blueprint and its programs is available at www.blueprinteducation.org.