How can we match up businesses needing skilled workers with students who want those skills — and those jobs?
Opportunity Internships is one solution that’s working, right here in my district and in districts across Washington state.
It’s working for one student I recently met, Reese Holland.
Reese is pursuing a career in engineering, and instead of simply taking math and science classes in high school, he got hands-on training and experience at the local Frito Lay plant.
Interns like Reese check the settings of dozens of machines and programs at the plant, which is constantly trying to do things more efficiently. They track waste in the tenth of a percentage range.
Opportunity Internships are a creative way to match students up with good careers and to boost our state’s economy.
Many skilled jobs get filled by people from out of state because our high schools and colleges don’t produce enough graduates in those fields.
So it makes sense to emphasize STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) in our high schools and colleges, because our students should be getting those skills – and those good jobs.
The idea behind Opportunity Internships is simple: match up interested students with the right businesses and make sure they get the skills — and on-the-job experience — they need.
Opportunity Internships are focused on fields with high economic demand, including STEM fields, to connect students interested in science, technology, engineering and math with local businesses in those fields.
The business gets a highly skilled employee that they already know is a good worker. The student gets a career with a future. And our state economy gets a boost.
As students like Reese can tell you, the idea is working in my hometown of Vancouver.
Businesses, schools and non-profits like nConnect and the Workforce Development Council are working together to offer 90-hour internships for high-school students.
Students complete their internship with local businesses. They get help going to college to get training in that field — and they’re guaranteed a job interview with a local employer once they’re done with college or job training.
This is a great example of how we can work together to create jobs. It’s a public-private partnership that doesn’t take a lot of oversight and effort.
Local businesses are happy to get motivated young students. They do a good job of mentoring those students, who are thrilled to get the chance to apply what they learn in the classroom to an interesting job that can turn into a career.
Washington state’s high school students just got the nation’s highest SAT scores. Our universities and businesses are world-class. Ideas like Opportunity Internships can take those strengths and turn them into jobs for our people.