Fall River educators and community leaders gathered at White's Restaurant in Westport on April 15, 2010 to reveal the effects of the City's two-year Multiple Education Pathways Blueprint project. In addition to Fall River School Superintendent Meg Mayo-Brown, the line-up included lead speaker Terry Grobe, Project Manager Dale Hayden, Durfee Principal Paul Marshall, Multi-Lingual Dropout Prevention Specialist Joyce Paulo and two students who described their experiences with the program. Designed to create multiple pathways that students can follow throughout high school experience, the project has resulted in cutting the dropout rate from twelve to six percent over the 2008-2009 school year. The program was led by Bristol Workforce Investment Board Executive Director Tom Perreira, who played a major role in the project along with the school district and local education providers. Click here for the Herald News article about the event. For more information, contact Tom Perreira at 508-675-1165.
 

(Top row, left) Fall River School Superintendent Meg Mayo-Brown talks with Dr. Matt Roy, Associate Dean of the Charlton college of Business at UMass-Dartmouth, and Karen Fischer, director of the BOLD Coalition before the program begins. (Top row, center) Tom Perreira, Executive Director of the Bristol Workforce Investment Board opens the session by praising the work that has been done on the Educational Blueprint over the past two years. (Top row, right) Mayor Will Flanagan closes the session by underscoring the importance of education in ensuring a healthy future for the City. (Middle row, left) Superintendent Mayo-Brown hailed the success of the project which resulted in immediate changes in the school system after the first year. (Middle row, right) Terry Grobe, lead speaker for  Jobs for the Future, applauds the Superintendent. (Bottom row, left) Dale Hayden, Project Manager for the initiative, outlines future recommendations and next steps. (Bottom row, center) Student speaker Carrie Smith pose with Resiliency Preparatory High School Principal Omari Walker and Assistant Principal Janice Manning. (Bottom row, right) School Committeeperson Marilyn Roderick comments about the importance of offering educational alternatives to students.