From the first word you utter to the day you walk down the aisle with the person of your dreams, there are many milestones in life.
But perhaps the most overlooked is the transition from school to the workforce; whether that happens after high school or post secondary.
Having a solid grasp of what your skills are and how to market them can make all the difference in securing a fulfilling and successful career, which is why the North West Career Development Partnership is advocating career development in schools, and has been doing so since the group's inception.
Hazel Lorenz, one of the founding members, explains, "We formed accidentally, as most good partnerships do, about three years ago."
Lorenz, who at the time was Living Sky School Division's career development consultant, was speaking at a Rotary Club meeting.
Afterwards, she wound up discussing issues about promoting career development with a few people involved in education, including Bryan Nylander, president and CEO of North West Regional College.
"We found we had exactly the same challenges," said Lorenz. "We determined we could join forces and possibly support our students, teachers, parents and businesses."
The goal of the newly-formed partnership was to promote the participation of the business community in the career development of both high school and post-secondary students in the region.
Lorenz stresses the difference between career development and career education, saying career education focuses on specific occupations and training for those occupations, whereas career development, which can include career education, is broader and focuses more on skills applicable to any career, such as portfolios, interviews and workplace relationships.
With a projected shortfall in the workforce in many sectors, Lorenz said increasing the awareness of the benefits to both students and the business community of participating in career development activities is vital.
"We really want to make connections between businesses and students," said Lorenz. "We want to show businesses how they are going to benefit and gain from getting to know our young people."
Currently, the NWCDP has as partners Living Sky School Division, Light of Christ Catholic School Division, Northwest School Division, North West Regional College, Sakewew High School, CanSask Career and Employment Services and the Battlefords Chamber of Commerce.
There are also over 400 businesses in the region that have pledged their support, committed to providing work placements for students.
This year, with funding from the federal government, Human Resources and Skills Development Canada and CanSask, the NWCDP will be launching a speaker series.
The first speaker will be Kristen Cumming, a career development practitioner, who will speak on the topics of the multigenerational workforce and the importance of portfolios. There will be three sessions held at North Battleford Comprehensive High School and John Paul II Collegiate, as well as a free session for the public Nov. 30 at 7 p.m. in the North Battleford Library lecture theatre.
For more information, contact Leanne Merkowsky at 937-7936.
Other speakers, tentatively slated for early next year, are Kelly Lendsay, president and CEO of the Aboriginal Human Resource Council, and Ryan Lebjak, owner of zu.com, an interactive technology company.
