Recently, Lewiston found itself amidst investigation and culling of the welfare rolls spearheaded by Mayor Robert Macdonald. To maintain eligibility, a number of program recipients are required to participate in education attainment, career training, community service, counseling and other gainful pursuits.

With so many people working toward independence, it is more important than ever for employers, educators and community organizations to know how to effectively document that kind of participation with thorough, detailed verification letters.

The Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Labor and the Maine Adult Education System have robust relationships with one another and rely on community partners to communicate the hard work that the population does to reach their goals of independence. We believe fervently in rewarding the people who are giving it their all.

Our business is to know which organizations will support our students’ needs and which organizations can benefit from students’ talents. In order to relay all of the pertinent details, there are some things that I look for when documenting student activities.

It is important for organizations to provide the student with something that verifies the work they have done. A certificate of completion is aesthetically pleasing but too often there isn’t enough information. I recommend writing a letter for participants, making sure they include certain components.

We have got to know who we are verifying as having completed required work. I recently attempted to contact an organization about a letter regarding volunteer work. I quoted the letter citing the students’ name and the response was, “We have many people with that name.” We must be more precise when identifying student’s specific achievements and identification, perhaps even including a photo of the student or copy of the student’s government ID card.

I recommend that the letter go beyond verification and serve as a recommendation, too.

I tell students to ask for a written recommendation that includes these pieces. This also gives them practice in the skill of forging associations with organizations that can speak to their character.

To award students the credit they have earned, I need to know what the participant did and what this demonstrates about their abilities and potentials. This shouldn’t be a letter for me; this should be a letter for the participant. That is the most powerful way that businesses and organizations can contribute to the goal of fostering a society of independent people.

I need to know who you are, too. Make sure the letter is on letterhead that clearly states contacts for your organization and the person signing off. Digital contacts are imperative; email, websites, social networking and other web-based communication are appreciated.

Snail mail addresses and phone numbers are always helpful and should not be left out; however, please include as many ways to reach you as possible.

Being able to check on the validity of documents is often the difference between success and missed opportunities.

Dates of service are important. More importantly, the duration of work completed must be documented. In adult diploma programs, a certain number of hours warrant credit, and in unemployment, Social Security, restorative justice and family assistance, the state seeks to know the number of hours a participant was engaged. For instance: “Sara volunteered for a total of 280 hours, from Sept. 15, 2011 through May 6, 2012.”

No learning experience is complete unless one knows the purpose of the student’s efforts and how that student got there. This will be your greatest gift to the student allowing them to reflect upon why their work was important.

Why is it essential for your organization to do this work? What does volunteerism do for your mission? How did our student help you and how can they replicate this in the working world?

Does it feel like you have just been given homework? In truth, you have.

The topic of welfare in the state of Maine is dense and contentious, but it is important to point out that the path to getting this right lies in the hands of everybody.

Indeed, we can charge those people that swindle assistance programs, and we can stand idly by judging the unemployable and undereducated. However, I have yet to see a good argument for how that makes Androscoggin County a better place.

Reward those who are doing it right. Business owners, employers, congregation leaders, teachers and nonprofit organizers — make sure that people who are working toward independence, education, achievement and a better quality of life are being recognized and that your recognition covers all of the bases.

Sara Flowers, a Lewiston resident, is director of Adult and Community Education for the Lisbon School Department and a Ph.D. student in educational leadership at Lesley University in Cambridge.