Topics

RISE participants discussed work that was being done throughout the Valley to prepare students for careers. The following are notes from the meeting:

• Jenna Maguire has been hired to develop the Chamber website this summer.
• Youth Leadership program through the Chamber could be an opportunity.
• Chamber is a hub to help students learn about career options.
• Chamber can send out a survey of employers.
• Linsly dorms could be used over the summer to house people.
• Upper level students at Linsly have done speed-dating events with alumni from different employment sectors. It’s been pretty effective. Leadership program at Linsly has a lot of career development and exploration.
• WV Department of Ed CTE is starting a new program to have apprenticeship with businesses. Held a career fair yesterday with employers from the southern part of the state for apprenticeships. Project BEST can be heavily involved in each school in the valley. Held career fair at the ice rink.
• Wheeling Park has done reverse career fairs the past several years. Only had 7 businesses come this year, but students received jobs from the event. Will hold a “job signing” event for students who have jobs.
• Have a summer jobs fair for students.
• At Bethany, have international students that want to stay over for the summer. Struggle to find summer jobs for them. They are pushing to have every student have an internship, Transportation is an issue.
• Contractors need jobs from all different types of employees, including college grads.
• Ohio County is working with Oglebay.
• Orrick has 450 Wheeling-based employees. Looking to expand internships. Only 1 tech internship in Wheeling. Draw from Pittsburgh for technical areas.
• Orrick is looking for a college grad. Orrick.com careers page. Don’t have to pay to post. Can use any service out there. LinkedIn. Orrick doesn’t post on Indeed. Having employees from Wheeling helps to add to their culture. Positions are quickly filled. Belmont Tech IT department.
• Multi-level internships. Job shadowing for high school or college students as well as incumbent employees. Micro-internships over the summer.
• ARC grant with Fairmont is being sought to develop micro-internships.
• Seniors at Wheeling Park have a shadowing option. Chamber could facilitate advertising job shadowing opportunities.
• WVNCC and Wheeling Park looking at micro-credentials (forklift operator, etc.).
• All WP Career Tech programs have an advisory committee. Chamber can help promote/identify openings on these boards.
• Wheeling CC has done these type of programs.
• Communication is key to share information. Everyone has opportunities and knows people who can fulfill those opportunities. A lot on our horizon. People are instrumental in production and making things happen.
• Wheeling University has a strong engineering program. They have a lot of opportunities with Kalkreuth and Touchstone.
• Wheeling U has advisory boards. Lunch with accountants.
• Companies use their own web page to promote their jobs.
• Federal work study can be used externally for paid internships.
• We could also explore scholarships to offset tuition costs for internships. We need to find ways of letting students know about internships and jobs.
• We have many small businesses that have only one or two people running it. Would be helpful for them to have an internship. Engage with individual students.
• Need one place for people to go to find internships.
• Funding for internships is important.
• Find a way to get high school students to talk with college students who are passionate about what they do. Perhaps the Chamber College Fair could expand into helping high school students understand options available.
• West Liberty has gone into the high schools to share information about careers by going into the classrooms.
• Video snippets (3-5 minutes) to post on the Chamber website that talk about careers.
• At West Liberty, the Wesbanco initiative is in a second phase now where a smaller number of students have had an experience at Wesbanco with a tour and a deeper discussion about career opportunities.
• The Chamber Leadership Program is a great tool to learn about the community. That kind of program could be helpful for students to learn about businesses (short exposure to a lot of businesses).
• Business residency concept—do a rotation in a business to take a look at different aspects of a business.
• West Liberty is doing a first destination survey right now. Will have results soon. A lot of students still don’t have a job.
• Bethany has a Title III grant and has hired advisors and a Dean of Student Success.
• We could send our students to the high schools to talk with high school students to talk about internships or what they are doing.
• There is a project to build interest in teaching.
• Sophomores in high school is where we need to focus. If they are scheduling appropriately, they can go to college.
• Sending alums from high schools back to their schools to talk can be helpful. WP has mechanisms in place so that they could sign up for information sessions.
• Military branches could be involved as well. Wheeling Park has done a lot with military recruitment.

Key Outcomes

• Will develop a survey of employers

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