| College Opportunity to Prepare for Employment Program
The COPE Program
LaGuardia's College Opportunity to prepare for Employment (COPE) program was
created in an effort to provide public assistance recipients a plausible
opportunity through an academic program and support services to become
self-sufficient individuals.
The goals of the COPE program are to see that public assistance recipients
graduate quickly, improve job retention, and ultimately find stable employment.
Created in 1992 as a response to the Federal Job Opportunities and Basic Skills
(JOBS) program established by the Welfare Reform act of 1998, the COPE program
of LaGuardia Community College has aided hundreds of students with diverse
cultural backgrounds, to graduate with marketable skills for today's economy.
Services Available for COPE Students:
Department Staff
Audrey Harrigan - Executive Associate, Ada Bedor - COPE Director, Harold
Jamison - Assistant to Director and HRA Liaison, Frank Minton, COPE Counselor
Carla Davidson, COPE Counselor Kimberlee Vogel, COPE Counselor Angela Villafane,
Intake Specialist Christopher Miller, Case Manager, Attendance Verification
Yvonne Roman, COPE Tutorial Coordinator Rosalie Khan, Job Developer Sofia Matos
, Assistant to Job Developer
Membership
If you are registered at LaGuardia Community College and you are on public assistance you are eligible to be a member of the COPE program and receive the services we provide.
The Human Resources Administration Liaison
The Human Resources Administration Liaison processes all training related expenses( transportation and childcare) . The HRA Liaison is an intercessor for students and the Family Independence Administration (FIA). Advice on welfare issues such as housing, childcare, WEP are supplied by the HRA Liaison. Please see our HRA Liaison in Room MB42.
COPE Counselors
COPE counselors offer a wealth of counseling services designed to steer a
student across the bridge of college to the working world. These services
include: academic, personal, career and transfer counseling.
Our counselors meet with students on a per semester basis to plan academic
programs so that all major and graduation requirements are completed. Our
counselors are trained to deal with varied issues from academic problems to
personal crises. Please feel free to approach them and they will be more than
willing to give you assistance and support.
There will also be a counselor on duty during peak hours to accommodate students
with emergency problems or concerns. Please see our COPE counselors in Room
MB42.
COPE Tutoring Center
To improve and ensure COPE students academic achievement, a series of tutorial
arrangements have been put in place.
* peer student tutors will be responsible for leading study groups students on
public assistance, who are advanced and successful in their studies assume peer
tutor positions
* dedicated COPE tutors located in the COPE tutoring center (MB13) who will
tutor students from the hours of 9 am to 5 pm.
To Sign up for Tutoring
Bring a copy of your schedule at the beginning of the semester and fill out the
Tutor Request Form. You will be called and informed of your tutorial schedule.
Tutoring is available for most classes in the college curriculum.
Please visit the COPE Tutorial Center at MB13.
The Job Placement and
Developer
Prior to graduation the Job Placement/Developer
will consult with students to prepare them for
the work place. Building a network with various
public and private businesses, corporations and
institutions is the goal of our Job
Placement/Developer. Secondary is to establish
positions with room for growth for graduating
students.
Some of our students have found employment in
field such as Occupational and Physical Therapy,
Travel and Tourism, Accounting, Mortuary
Science, Computer Operation, Human Resources and
other fields. Please see our Job Placement
Developer in Room C231.
Resume Tips
- Keep your Resume down to one page
- Highlight your past Accomplishments and skills
- Focus on information that's relevant to your own career goals.
- Proofread, proofread, proofread
- Don't exaggerate
10 Questions Interviewers Frequently Ask
- Why are you interested in this position?
- Why do you feel you'll be successful in this
position?
- Tell me about yourself.
- What does success mean to you?
- What are you greatest strengths? Weaknesses?
- Do you have any skills which will be useful in
this position?
- Do you work well with others?
- What is your opinion of your present boss and
co-workers?
- How dependable are you?
- What kind of salary are you looking for?
HRA Advocate/Attendance Verification
The Human Resources Administration requires that students be in school in order for them to receive their benefits. Any absence from your college course has to be accounted for.
Students must be diligent in their attendance at school and must bring in documentation for their absences. Documentation includes a doctor's note, a letter stating a Begin site appointment. Our Intake Specialist, located in MB42 provides a form for absence documentation.
If your BEGIN site requires evidence that you are in attendance at the college you can see the Case Manager whose office is located at M103D. You may drop off any attendance verification related forms at the Registrar's office and the Case Manager will process them.
Please see our Case Manager in Room M103D
Please see our Intake Specialist in Room MB42
|