The story of the name change started six years ago. We were at graduation and feeling good about graduating 25 or 30 students. As we watched the students walk across the stage it felt very uncomfortable. Only ONE student had a make-shift plan for gainful employment and that was to just work more hours at a fast food restaurant. It became a bittersweet graduation that started the program changes that led us to change our name to NW Connect.
The first change was to use what we already had in place, by increasing our student enrollment at the Career Center. Next, we looked for partners that focus on career development and exploration. Michigan Works! was a natural fit and became our first partner. Michigan Works! provided career readiness activities along with job shadowing opportunities and externships. We also focused on sending students to Jackson College, either for dual enrollment or for the 13th Early College Program. This year we graduated our first Early College student and had five students dual enrolled with Jackson College. Our third partner was Youth Build. Youth Build provides pre-apprenticeship certifications in Skilled Trades along with OSHA 10, First Aid, and CPR. Youth Build is a hands-on program that has dynamic mentors and totally captivates participants. Our third partner to date is Junior Achievement focusing on financial literacy and employability skills. Junior Achievement volunteers that have real careers take time out of their day to come and teach these skills from an employer's perspective.
In 2020-21 NWAHS graduated 53 students, 91% of our students graduated with a solid plan for their future employment. Each student had already begun the employment process or had next steps planned within the next few months. This demonstrates the importance of connecting students with meaningful opportunities.
This is why we chose Northwest Connect for our new name, truly representing what this program does. Connecting students with opportunities for their future!
