Employers Handbook

"I took advantage of the co-op program which gave me the experience that I needed to get a ‘jump start' on my career. Now, as an employer, when I review someone's resume and see that they have also taken advantage of the program, I feel confident that this individual has put forth hard work, dedication and discipline and is serious about their career."

History/Philosophy of Cooperative Education
Cooperative Education began in 1906 at the University of Cincinnati. In 1975 Eastern Kentucky University instituted Cooperative Education. At present, all five colleges are involved in the program. On the average over 950 students co-op in our program annually.

The underlying philosophy of the Cooperative Education Program is that the integration of academic training with professional experience provides for a quality education. Learning to apply theory to the world of work produces a combination of applied knowledge and experience essential to the educational process.

Cooperative Education is defined as a method of study that incorporates career-related work experience into the curriculum. Students may alternate periods of study with full-time paid employment in career-related work, giving you, the employer, an opportunity to test their potential. Since participation is typically optional, the co-op program generally attracts more goal-oriented, motivated students.

Cooperative Education Plans:

1. Alternating Plan - Under this plan the student will alternate a semester of work with a semester on campus. This will be the basic pattern for co-op students and three or four work assignments may be completed during a four-year period, a minimum of two semesters.
2. Parallel Plan - The parallel plan allows the student to gain work experience concurrent with enrollment in regular college classes. The basic pattern of this plan is that students will work multiple assignments (3 or more semesters) part-time. Students may also work full-time ( 12 weeks) during the Summer semesters under this plan./li>
3. Special Plan - Special calendars may be developed to meet the needs of students and employer.

Lexmark International, Lexington KY Ronald Hoskins

Advantages for Employers
Cooperative education is a "three-way partnership" involving you, the University and the student. Some incentives for companies utilizing co-op students include:

• Provides a cost-effective recruitment and training program with no continuing obligation to students for permanent employment, unless desired by both parties.
  
• Aids effective recruitment efforts, as the company has had an opportunity to observe and evaluate the student's performance.
  
• Enables the employer to participate in and influence the educational process and career development of a student.
  
• Co-op students provide employers with valuable technical and professional assistance and bring new talents and ideas into an organization.
  
• Integrates education and experience into the field to produce potential employees with greater depth of knowledge.
  
• Frees high-salaried professionals from time-consuming but essential tasks.
  
• Provides continuous job coverage since two students can alternate the work assignment - no loss of continuity.
  
• Students serve as ambassadors for the employer on the university campus.
  
• Enhances the industry-college relationship by creating closer ties between the business world and the university community.
  
• Motivates professional staff toward continuous learning necessary to stay current in their field.
  

Employer Responsibilities
As a co-op employer, your responsibilities include planning the student's duties, providing qualification criteria, meaningful training, supervision and evaluation of the student's performance at least once during the semester. Remember, the first few days on the job are critical.
A thorough orientation and an interested supervisor are essential for initiating, developing and maintaining a successful co-op program.

• Define the duties and responsibilities of the co-op position.
  
• Submit a job description informing the co-op office of desired qualifications, salary, duties and responsibilities and other pertinent information. Include any available company literature.
  
• In order to help the Co-op office in awarding academic credit, all EKU Co-op employers are required to complete and return the Employer Agreement on the Co-op/AL Job Information form to the co-op office prior hiring our student(s). Students should receive a broad range of experiences related to their major along with increasing levels of job responsibilities.
  
• Permit an on-site visit by a faculty coordinator in the student's academic major.
  
• Provide a safe work environment for student(s).
  
• Provide Workers Compensation.
  
• Instruct the student with respect to company policy and define expected work tasks, outlining duties and responsibilities.
  
• Evaluate the student's performance by electronically submitting an on-line evaluation or returning the evaluation form to the co-op office at the end of the semester.

Toyota Motor Manufacturing U.S.A, Georgetown, KY
Micheal Thomas, Ken Acree, Jr., Jonas Hill, Ronald Nichols, Jason Lynch, Carlton Queen, Lee Clark

Supervisor's Responsibility
To ensure the success of your co-op participation, the following tips should improve the overall experience.

1. Orientation of co-op students. All supervisors should orientate co-op students during the first week of employment. The orientation should
   include the following:
   
   1. Introduce students to co-workers.
   2. Inform students of the individuals he/she should contact for information.
   3. Explain students' assignment(s). Explain all aspects of the task and expectations. Explain how performance will be evaluated and how often this will occur.
   4. Inform students of your organizational structure, policies and procedures needed to perform their duties more efficiently.
   5. Provide tours of facilities and an explanation of the equipment.
   6. Encourage students to participate in agency meetings, classes and decision making conferences.
   7. Familiarize students with available community resources: housing, churches, restaurants, transportation, recreation, social events, etc.
2. Job Assignments
   
   1. Make sure students know job expectations and the time frame he/she has to complete each project.
   2. Assignments should be challenging, varied, stimulating and measurable.
   3. Enhance duties each semester and provide a breadth of experiences related to students' major.
   4. Students should provide written and oral reports on their assignments if requested.
   5. The supervisor should encourage students to continually review their assignments and suggest methods of improvement.


3. Appraisal
   
   1. A Faculty Coordinator will contact the supervisor midterm to check on the status of the student. If problems develop, the supervisor should contact the Co-op Office and/or the faculty coordinator.
   2. The supervisor is also requested to evaluate the student's performance. This assists us in measuring a student's progress and in helping a student understand what qualities he/she should strive to improve. The evaluation may be submitted electronically or mailed to: Co-op Office, 521 Lancaster Ave., Richmond, KY 40475 at the end of the semester.