As a long time member of North Carolina’s education community, I want to applaud what is happening in businesses and classrooms across our state this week. Hundreds of Middle School students are being introduced to the real world of work through First Gentleman Bob Eaves’ Students@Work initiative.
This collaboration between the First Gentleman, the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction and the North Carolina Business Committee for Education is offering job shadowing or job mentoring to students in fields such as technology, science, banking, investing, tourism, and energy production. The goal – to raise North Carolina’s graduation rate by allowing students to connect what they are learning every day with the possibilities that lie ahead for them after they finish high school.
I was fortunate enough to take part in a program with Fidelity Investments earlier this week where the company hosted over 20 students from Lowe’s Grove Middle School in Durham. The students were paired with a Fidelity associate for a day of one-on-one mentoring, workplace tours, lunch, and a career panel discussion.
Both the students and employees who participated truly exemplified what this initiative is all about. Students were exposed to myriad career possibilities, from customer service to technology and operations to government relations. Fidelity employee volunteer mentors explained the path they took to their careers and helped students visualize themselves following similar paths.
“Fidelity’s participation in the First Gentleman’s initiative was a natural fit, as our community efforts are focused directly on helping middle school students stay on track for career and college,” said Laura Hamre, community relations manager, Fidelity Investments. “With inspiration from keynote speaker Senator Lee, our employee volunteers provided students with a full agenda of mentoring, workplace tours and career discussions that underscored the importance of education for their future success.”
The young people taking part in all of these programs are bright, bold, curious and eager to soak up the opportunities made available to them. That’s where we as educators and the business community come in. We must ensure that these doors continue to be opened so that North Carolina’s students are prepared for their roles in our state’s new and global economy. I challenged the students to stay in touch with their Fidelity mentors and take full advantage of the opportunities like this one as they prepare for their futures.
To find out more about the Students@Work Week initiative, visit http://www.ncbce.org/.
