2017 Annual Conference

Dr. Kelly Walter, Mariela Medina, Aprell Hamilton-Taylor

 “To find out what one is fitted to do, and to secure an opportunity to do it, is the key to happiness.” 
― John Dewey

This session will help counselors define their roles in the school-to-work pipeline and how best to prepare Georgia’s future workforce. We will examine ways to provide a full array of options to help students make the best career decisions for the benefit of the individual and community. 

This presentation will examine school counselors’ role in developing the career interests of students as related to career academies. One might say the goal and aim of education is to produce an educated workforce which benefits both the individual and the community as a whole. This goal is complicated when one considers the clientele is young and still trying to discover themselves in a world that is changing very rapidly. Helping students make informed choices must start with career information delivered in a systematic way that benefits all students and makes available viable options at all levels. We will use our Architecture and Construction Academy to illustrate a clear pathway to the workforce and how school/community collaboration makes this possible. 

In high need schools, graduation rates take center stage leaving little time to spend with students on post-secondary planning and with the high counselor-to-student ratios, playing a role in the academic, social, emotional, and career development of individual students makes having a positive impact difficult at best, impossible for most. Knowing a little about everything, but not enough about what matters most makes collaboration a must. The effort to move students forward must include not only the school counselor, but also the faculty, administration and community stakeholders. 

The development of career academies helps narrow the focus to a specific career cluster so that school counselors can become experts on a few, rather than many, and thus become instrumental in helping students find the right career path for their interest and skills. Another benefit of career academies is the emphasis on partnerships. In this model, the school and community are working together in a concentrated effort to provide students with practical experiences that will shape their interests and chart a positive trajectory. In this regard, the school counselor is not alone in guiding students into a career path that best fits their individual needs, be they academic or economic.

Learning Objectives:
Counselors will be able to:
1. Identify at least three “hot jobs” sectors and be able to name one career in each
2. Discuss the current labor trends in Georgia as they relate to their schools career preparation programs
3. Evaluate their schools career pathways in relation to the population their schools serve
4. Prepare a career pathway for students at each education level: HS diploma, certificate, diploma, associate degree and bachelor degree

Audience participation:
1. Anonymous submission of their schools career programs and their assessment of effectiveness (obj. #3) 
2. Creation and sharing of career pathway for each level (obj. #4)

Handouts

1. List of current “Hot Jobs” for Georgia
2. Online resources for professional development pertaining to career development
3. Tips for working with advisory boards