Overview
Envision Financial has a strong interest in enhancing education opportunities for the youth in its communities. To pursue this mission, Envision has developed and maintained business-education partnerships with many of the school districts in its communities.
The business-education partnerships are in place to develop mutually beneficial opportunities for students, educators, and Envision.
The objectives of the partnerships are to:
- Develop and deliver programs that have a direct benefit to the school community and to the partners.
- Share innovative approaches and programs conducive to the continuous professional and technical growth of the partners’ staff.
- Explore opportunity to develop business relationships among the partners.
- Inform the community about partnership initiatives and successes.
Envision’s business-education partnerships are based on the Conference Board of Canada’s guidelines for successful Business-Education Partnerships.
Current partnerships
Envision currently has partnerships with the Abbotsford, Chilliwack, Coast Mountains, Delta, Fraser-Cascade, Langley, Maple Ridge-Pitt Meadows, Mission, and Surrey school districts.
Below is a brief description of the programs the partnerships support.
In Abbotsford, the partnership supports a Summer Reading and Recreation Program for students leaving grades one and two who are identified as being at risk with their literacy levels. The program runs for four weeks in July at several schools throughout the District. Each class is staffed with a teacher and a teaching assistant providing intensive literacy instruction, coupled with recreation.
The Chilliwack School District business-education partnership supports a summer literacy program called Read 'n Rec. Read 'n Rec is an innovative reading program offered in the summer for at-risk students entering Grade Two. The program involves students nominated by their home school and the classes are held during the first three weeks of August. Students are assessed before entering the program and at the conclusion of the program.
The objective of the Chilliwack Read 'n Rec Program is to have all student-participants improve their reading readiness skills as measured by the district assessment tools. A qualified classroom teacher provides instruction in basic reading skills, supported by a Teacher’s Assistant and volunteers. This learning opportunity was provided to children who have been struggling with reading, providing each student with instruction for two hours per day and one hour of supervised lunch and recreation for three weeks. Parents are partners in this process and must make a commitment to support their child. There are expectations for parent participation and these are provided in the application information.
Coast Mountains School District
The business-education partnership with the Coast Mountains School District supports bringing the PALS© — Parents As Literacy Supporters program to all three elementary schools in Kitimat to enhance literacy in young learners. PALS© is a literacy program for parents and families of 5 to 6 year old children, designed to strengthen the connection between home and school. The four PALS© sessions enable parents/grandparents to work with their children at school and learn techniques for literacy support at home. After each session, parents take home a learning package consisting of a book and activity materials for literacy support at home.
The business-education partnership program with the Delta School District is currently supporting grants for school initiatives aimed at heightening students' social responsibility and healthy living. Social Responsibility is defined as: respect for self, others, and one's environment. Anti-bullying, the Virtues Project, and peer mediation are some examples of programs the grants support in this area of funding. Healthy Living is defined as: making good choices in nutrition, fitness and lifestyle choices.
Fraser-Cascade School District
The Fraser-Cascade School District supports schools in the communities of Agassiz, Boston Bar, Harrison, Hope, Silvercreek, and Yale. Envision’s partnership with Fraser-Cascade focuses on supporting the District’s Education Enhancement Agreement by focusing on kindergarten to Grade 3 early literacy intervention for First Nations/Aboriginal students. The partnership is focusing on two programs: a full day kindergarten of First Nations/Aboriginal children and the Story Time in the Park program that runs once a week throughout the summer. The partnership programs will strive to support the integration of indigenous culture and knowledge into the curriculum in the selected schools.
In Langley, supporting early childhood literacy is the objective of the business-education partnership. Each summer, the Langley School District, with the support of Envision and other donors, runs the Summer Literacy and Numeracy Days (Summer-LAND). SummerLAND includes Rec 'n Reading, a sixteen day early intervention summer reading program for grade one and two children who could benefit from extra reinforcement in their literacy development. Rec 'n Reading combines literacy activities in the morning with recreational activities in the afternoon. Other programs offered during SummerLAND include Rhyme Time, Numbers 'Til Noon, Intermediate Rec 'n Reading and French Immersion Rec 'n Reading.
The partnership with the Maple Ridge-Pitt Meadows School District supports alternatives that encourage adolescents to stay in school. Three programs are supported through the partnership including: Outdoor Education, Fine Arts, and Trowel Trades. Each of these programs are designed to help engage students with alternative learning models and help motivate the students to stay in school and graduate.
The business-education partnership with the Mission School District is supporting an Author in the Schools Program where annually, a well-recognized local children's author will be touring Mission's elementary schools to give readings and engage the children further through workshops. By bringing authors into the schools to discuss their career and work, the partnership committee hopes to broaden children's curiosity about and enthusiasm for writing, reading, and other literacy activities.
The partnership with the Surrey School District currently supports two distinct programs. The Visiting Authors Program provides funding for local children’s authors to visit elementary schools and give a reading of their material. Funds are also available to each of the schools to purchase books from the visiting author for the school’s library. The second program that the partnership funds is Project SPARK Family Literacy program. SPARK runs throughout the District and provides enhanced literacy support for students, while integrating family participation in the students’ learning.
Voom Credit Union
Voom Credit Union is a unique “children’s credit union” first piloted by Envision Financial in partnership with Langley Montessori School in 2006. Voom Credit Union now operates at Promontory Heights Elementary in Chilliwack and Cougar Canyon Elementary in Delta.
What is Voom’s Objective?
- To help children understand the importance of setting and achieving goals
- To build self-esteem and introduce the value of money management skills
- To create a hands-on model which will help the students understand the difference between a bank and a credit union
Student led Voom Credit Union operates twice monthly with a staff of 10-15 students fulfilling the roles of:
- Greeters/Assistants
- Tellers
- Cash Desk
- Branch Manager
- CEO
- Secretary
- Treasurer
Students are provided passbooks that are updated with each deposit made at the Voom branch. They also receive monthly statements from Envision and can withdraw funds from their accounts through any Envision Credit Union branch. Envision Financial provides guidance to the students through volunteer staff who join Voom staff to help with the flow of operations, and to ensure the security of the funds deposited. Students operating Voom also receive training though Envision’s employee training facilities and learn about social responsibility through the donation of $2,000 to various causes in their community.
 |
 |
 |
|
You may also be interested in: » Apply online » Tools and calculators |
 |
 |
 » 50 Best Employer » Caring Company Award » WorkLife BC Employer of Choice » Innovation Award |
 |
