STORIES FROM THE FIELD: PARTNERING TO HOST VIRTUAL CAREER FAIRS FOR WEST HAWAII PUBLIC SCHOOLS
Hōkūpa‘a believes strongly in helping students choose and pursue pathways into career success. Before COVID-19, we would do this by running career exploration programs or hosting a booth at a school’s career fair.
Last fall, nobody knew how long distance learning would be the norm. We decided not to wait around, and talked to our partners. West Hawaii Complex Area’s awesome district office was willing to rapidly produce a pilot virtual event together. For us, distance learning was a chance to do something bigger and broader than a traditional on-campus career fair. Using a virtual platform, we could reach more schools at once. We could also invite and coordinate many wonderful presenters from local businesses and organizations. Presenters needed just 25 minutes to join us remotely and didn’t have to worry about travel time or costs.
…So in December of 2020, we tried our first event. It featured dozens of local guest speakers from a diverse array of industries. We invited all the West Hawaii Complex Area middle and intermediate schools. Hundreds attended. Teachers streamed or shared a link to the event with their students, and were able to choose between different speakers. Presenters helped students get a sense of what it’s like to be in different careers; many presenters had too many questions to answer in time, and many generously gave their contact information out so that attendees could get in touch after the event. Despite technical growing pains, our pilot was praised by teachers and guest speakers.
…So in February of 2021, we did a second event with even more choices and opened it up for public charter schools, as well.
We had many presenters return from the first event, but also sought out more industries. While the middle school event was mostly about exploring different careers, we wanted to energize high school students into thinking about how to get into a rewarding career. This time, the focus was how people arrived at their jobs, as well as how students could pursue specific career pathways. We encouraged speakers to talk about their personal and professional journeys. Teacher and student feedback revealed that this was the right move! Students saw that many successful people in their own community began as public school students just like them. They also saw real examples that you don’t necessarily need to know what you want to do when you’re in high school, and that it’s okay to try different things or make a big career change. They shared takeaways about the importance of persevering and putting in time and effort to pursue what they want to do.
They also learned that there is a surprising array of local job and training opportunities, even within sectors they thought they were already very familiar with. Some students were surprised to see how much people could enjoy their jobs!
Where will we go next? The events have been so successful that we plan to keep them going. Next month, there will be another event for middle school students to explore. West Hawai’i complex area public and public charter middle and intermediate schools have all been invited. Haven’t heard about it? Encourage your school to set aside time for this event, if possible!
In the coming school years, perhaps virtual complex-wide events will be the norm. Going virtual has certainly helped us broaden accessibility and build more bridges between schools and our incredible local businesses, nonprofits, technical schools, and government agencies who eager to share their stories, jobs, and opportunities with students.
You can help. Feeling inspired to be a presenter or connect with schools in another way? We need more people like you! Go to https://climbhi.org/portals/ to learn more and sign up (see video below). ClimbHI Bridge lets you connect with schools and easily field invitations from teachers, counselors, and others in the Department of Education that want to connect students to real-world opportunities! You can even specify what kinds of opportunities you’re open to.
One last thing…
Mahalo to our partners in the Department of Education and ClimbHI, as well as all the presenters who gave their time, wisdom, and stories. We are excited to continue leveraging technology and community members to help inspire the next generation in the workforce!
