FALL/WINTER 2011

• One Year Later: The Ultimate Home Game and Lessons Learned About Career Awareness, Education
• Symposia Blaze New Trails for Career Education, Touch 100+ Students this Fall
• Innovation, Evolution and Improvement
• Pittsburgh Wants You! … for Well-paying Careers in Region's Energy Industry
• Harnessing Energy and Capturing Opportunities: The Allegheny Intermediate Unit Partners with Energy to the Power of Pittsburgh
• 60-Second Insight: Christy Stuber, LCSW, United Way of Allegheny County and the Be 1 in a Million Campaign
• New Opportunity! Individuals May Register as Compact Members and Volunteer
• Welcome New Pittsburgh Regional Compact Members

One Year Later: The Ultimate Home Game and Lessons Learned about Career Awareness, Education

By Amanda Sennert, Allegheny Conference

The Ultimate Home Game was a unique marketing and career awareness outreach initiative that was implemented during the 2010-2011 NHL season. The goal of the outreach partnership was talent retention – demonstrating to college students that numerous career opportunities exist for them in the Pittsburgh region. The kick-off of the initiative was at the opening of the new Gold LEED-certified CONSOL Energy Center for the Pittsburgh Penguins' unprecedented third pre-season game, which was offered completely free of charge to the region's youth.

Ultimate Home Game Strategy Leveraged NHL, Career Education and Professional Development in Unique Combination

The Ultimate Home Game focused its portion of the ticket giveaway for the pre-season game on post- secondary students, who were incentivized to participate in the program through raffles for Penguins tickets, merchandise and events. The unlikely combination of the NHL, career education and professional networking proved to be a successful attraction and awareness method and encouraged more than 33,000 individuals to register during the season for various tickets and autographed merchandise via the region's one-stop job and career awareness portal, ImaginePittsburgh.com. In total, students from nearly 300 schools, apprenticeship programs and the military participated in the series of raffles.

Post-Ultimate Home Game: Key Survey Findings

Now, 15 months later, the information collected in the series of surveys attached to the raffles has increased understanding of the career awareness needs of college age students in the region and how companies can proactively fill in the gaps.

Findings included:

• The survey responses and Ultimate Home Game events made it apparent that there's a high demand for basic career awareness information. Many students don't understand what job opportunities actually exist within their chosen major.

• Students in many cases are not seeing college as a means to a career, and they tend to lack the ability to understand how their academic curriculum translates to workplace skills. Due to lack of capacity, the career services offices at colleges and universities, in general, cannot be expected to provide career awareness assistance to all students seeking it.

• Employers reported learning that the younger workforce often has the technical skills necessary to enter the workforce, but not the soft skills. There is also a great demand for graduates with work experience and hence for internships. There must be greater support in the region of initiatives such as the Regional Internship Center to meet this need.

Ways to Improve, Fill Gaps and Continue to Engage Tomorrow's Workforce

With a handful of modifications, Imagine Pittsburgh can continue to be a valuable resource to the region's workforce of tomorrow. Among these modifications are capitalizing on a more robust social media platform to engage students. Imagine Pittsburgh can also incorporate more video and blog posts into its content. The site can also link to regional partners who are generating career-related content, as well as to young professionals' organizations, to encourage students to engage with their peers in the workforce. As the responses to the survey revealed, the Pittsburgh region is much larger than it's currently defined (i.e., 10 southwestern Pennsylvania counties), and continued engagement of those not immediately in the area can be best achieved through a robust web presence.

To work toward even more robust and impactful engagement with the workforce of tomorrow, companies are encouraged to seek out partnerships with regional college career services offices, student organizations, and alumni associations. Companies are also encouraged to use the information collected from the Ultimate Home Game surveys when creating recruiting opportunities. For example, social media and online outlets can be useful tools for recruitment. Career services offices could also extend their reach if they subsidized their limited capacity by hosting more workshops that would assist students with the career development questions they have, such as how to write a resume for a particular field.

Next Steps: Maximize Resources, Connect Key Players

The Ultimate Home Game initiative was a first in many ways, and despite the time and resource constraints associated with it, the initiative was able to leverage a unique partnership to achieve results. The next steps are to take the information gained and use it to effectively reach out to regional youth and to expand career awareness initiatives more effectively. This can be accomplished by maximizing resources through connecting regional organizations, companies and students, and using the Imagine Pittsburgh site as the headquarters for regional career awareness information.

Symposia Blaze Trails for Career Education, Touch 100+ Students this Fall

By Nyya Jones, Allegheny Conference

More than 100 students from a consortium of nine school districts, north and west of Pittsburgh, attended two symposia, held back-to-back this fall. Additional students participated virtually through Allegheny Connect, a high-speed distance learning system connecting students from all over the county. Presenters – representing a diverse selection of employers including Manpower, the Pittsburgh Pirates, UPMC, Citizens Bank and others – interacted with the participants who were curious to learn more about the world awaiting them after high school. Students got answers to questions that ranged from "how did you know that you were finally in the right job?" to "how much could I make starting out as an accountant?"

Later during the event, students broke into four groups that rotated among three panels of employers who provided additional career awareness insights, and they spent time in an open forum. The open forum allowed students to speak one-on-one with representatives of companies where they might like to work and to get tips from professionals already in the workforce. An occupational therapist from UPMC brought manipulative devices that she uses on the job and an emergency medical technician demonstrated some of the equipment used on the job to save lives.

These events are trailblazers for career education in Pittsburgh in many ways. A replicable model for career fairs was created and successfully executed with schools in the North Hills and the City of Pittsburgh's West End, and high-tech capabilities allowed students from other districts to connect and participate with those present at the host school. Students from different schools, varying grade levels and completely different career interests came together for hands-on career exposure, and feedback received from participants – employers, teachers and students – confirmed success. Planning is already underway for next fall's events.

Looking ahead to 2012, the following career symposia are scheduled:

STEM, Trades and Aviation Career Symposium – January 12, 2012 10:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. at Avonworth High School

Arts, Humanities and Communications Career Symposium – April 20, 2012, 9:00 a.m. - Noon at Moon Area High School

Innovation, Evolution and Improvement

By Stefani Pashman, CEO, Three Rivers Workforce Investment Board

Innovation, evolution and improvement marked 2011 for Pittsburgh Regional Compact Member The Three Rivers Workforce Investment Board (TRWIB). Here are some key highlights of what was accomplished, who helped and where we're heading from here.

We Raised the Bar

With more than 83,000 out of work in the Pittsburgh area, TRWIB believes that an accountable workforce development system connecting employers with qualified job seekers is paramount to the region's economic viability. Tasked by Pittsburgh Mayor Ravenstahl and Allegheny County Executive Dan Onorato, TRWIB now manages more than $10 million in public, private and foundation funds, including $7 million in Workforce Investment Act funds. TRWIB was asked to identify a contractor through competitive bid to deliver Workforce Investment Act adult and dislocated worker services through four PA CareerLink® centers and to identify providers for youth services. TRWIB issued two Requests for Proposals in November for adult/dislocated worker and youth services, and these are available at here.

We're Building our Future Workforce

With the support of Citizens Bank, TRWIB staged its annual Imagine! Career Week in April –successfully reaching more than 6,100 youth and families through 20 coordinated conferences and activities showcasing careers in construction, finance, heavy highway, engineering, healthcare and manufacturing. For the first time, endeavors to educate adults and job seekers were included in the series of 2011events. View an Imagine! Career Week documentary:

TRWIB unveiled its innovative youth internship pilot, WorkReady Pittsburgh (modeled after the successful WorkReady Philadelphia), a six-week program to connect at-risk Allegheny County youth with paid internships at top corporations. More than 35 young people spent 16 hours a week in a corporate placement and four hours each week learning and practicing key work-readiness skills. Youth and corporate mentors reported positive outcomes. Based on this year's success, TRWIB is targeting 100 corporate internships for summer 2012. If you are interested in hosting our summer interns, please contact us at info@trwib.org.

We're Opening Doors

Launched in spring, the Mortgage Training Program represented a significant step toward a balanced workforce supply-demand for the lending management industry. Through this initiative, TRWIB connected 20 unemployed or underemployed workers with training focused on quick entry into the industry. Program participants with previous professional skills were able to gain critical knowledge and re-enter the workforce in a field that offers genuine career advancement opportunities. This training program provided the foundation for a similar initiative set to launch in early 2012. TRWIB will implement a customized training curriculum for the gas pipeline initiative to develop at least 45 new pipefitters.

Energy to the Power of Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh Wants You! … for Well-paying Careers in Region's Energy Industry

By Ben Kamber, Allegheny Conference

From natural gas to wind, solar and beyond, energy is a significant driving force in propelling the Pittsburgh region forward. And most indications say that won't be changing anytime soon. According to new data released in October 2011 by the Energy Alliance of Greater Pittsburgh, 750 companies supporting 150,000 jobs, directly and indirectly, make up the region's total energy industry.

Representing 16 percent of regional economic output, energy-related economic activity has helped the Pittsburgh region weather the recession better than the nation as a whole – with lower unemployment rates and job losses in comparison to other areas in the country. This is positive news and represents enormous opportunity as the recession releases its grip. Yet, challenges remain. For this opportunity – and its potential significant economic impact on the region – to be fully realized, a prepared, well-educated workforce is required. Students, upon graduation, need to have the skills and education required to land one of the thousands of available energy-related jobs.  These are jobs and careers that span a spectrum of skills and interests – from engineering and exploration and production to finance and legal … and so much more.

To get the word out about these available energy-related jobs, and the skilled workforce required to fill them, the Energy Alliance recently launched Energy to the Power of Pittsburgh, a public awareness campaign that aims to raise the profile of the region's energy opportunity.  A number of eye-catching television commercials are currently airing on Pittsburgh Penguins broadcasts on Root Sports as well as digital, print and radio ads that are splashed throughout Pittsburgh Panther football and basketball games. The message is clear:  the Pittsburgh region has enormous energy-related career opportunities – now and into the future – but candidates must have the necessary skills, training and education to land one of these well-paid positions.

A key part of Energy to the Power of Pittsburgh is a PowerofPittsburgh.com – a website that offers a number of useful tools for students and jobs seekers alike. The site's centerpiece, an energy jobs aggregator powered by ImaginePittsbugh.com, lists all available energy-related jobs in the 10-county Pittsburgh region – 2,000+ jobs at last count. Additionally, the site features regular energy-related news updates, training resources and weekly feature stories that highlight energy-related developments taking place across the region.  Stay in the loop by signing up to receive regular energy-related news updates via email.  And be sure to follow the campaign on Twitter @PowerOfPgh.

As the world's demand for energy rapidly increases, energy – and industries related to it, such as the manufacturing supply chain – can drive the Pittsburgh region forward for years to come. To fully realize this opportunity, we'll need to have an adept, well-prepared workforce at the ready to fill the demands of the region's growing energy industry.  While this represents a sizable challenge, it's one that this region is surely capable of tackling.  The launch of the Energy to the Power of Pittsburgh – the only regional energy-related public awareness campaign of its kind, which we're aware of – is one proof point of that capability. 

We've got the resources – below and above ground – the jobs and the campaign to raise awareness.  Now it's up to all of us to ensure greater Pittsburgh's future as the new center of the American energy.

Harnessing Energy and Capturing Opportunities
The Allegheny Intermediate Unit Partners with Energy to the Power of Pittsburgh

By Dr. Linda B. Hippert, Executive Director, Allegheny Intermediate Unit

In Pittsburgh, energy is big news. While the Marcellus Shale industry rapidly expands, companies specializing in traditional and renewable forms of energy continue to maintain a strong presence in our region. The energy industry is one of the economic pillars of southwestern Pennsylvania and as such, it is vital that public education be relevant to this industry's emerging needs. The greater Pittsburgh region is uniquely positioned to be a leader in American energy. To contribute to the effort, the Allegheny Intermediate Unit is pleased to be partnering with the Energy to the Power of Pittsburgh initiative to raise public awareness of the new career opportunities in our region.

At the Allegheny Intermediate Unit, we are partnering with the Allegheny Conference and higher education to create a seamless pipeline for students who wish to take advantage of the career opportunities that energy has to offer. The Commonwealth's burgeoning gas industry has attracted many businesses, and new initiatives continue to promote the long term development of this economic sector. Educational leaders in PreK-12 institutions are preparing students for success after high school in a continuum of careers, all of which require some post-secondary education, although not necessarily a four-year degree. We are working to provide exposure to these careers, beginning at the middle school level, so that students are aware that these jobs exist and that education is needed.

We also want teachers to better understand how to connect with these jobs in the "real world" so that they show our students how lessons in the classroom can be applied to job-related tasks and activities. Just as 21st-Century America cannot rely on one single energy source, traditional public education must provide multiple avenues through which students can gain the education and training they need to be successful. As a result, public education is partnering with local colleges and universities so that students who wish to accelerate their learning can do so. Conversely, we are developing new opportunities for those students who may need more time to reach high, rigorous standards.

Educators realize that the energy sector will ultimately provide a lifetime of opportunities for the children of today. It is our responsibility, as educators in traditional public schools, to assure that students are aware of these opportunities and that they have the educational background to succeed in their chosen fields.

For 250-plus years, the Pittsburgh region has played an instrumental role in the growth and development of our nation. Southwestern Pennsylvania has consistently been a source of innovation, and previous generations have instilled a strong work ethic. This heritage has served us well, and it will continue to shape our workforce as we embrace the opportunities that the energy industry provides.

60-SECOND INSIGHT: Christy Stuber, LCSW, Volunteer Initiatives Director, United Way of Allegheny County

The Be 1 in a Million campaign may well be the one of the most ambitious volunteer recruitment efforts ever, and the largest such effort in the nation. What's different about this initiative versus other volunteer programs that the United Way has promoted? In September 2011, the Youth Futures Commission and United Way of Allegheny County announced the launch of the Be 1 in a Million campaign and local participation in First Lady Michelle Obama's challenge to institute mentoring programs to help reduce dropout rates and juvenile delinquency. Over the past few years, Allegheny County has made great strides in encouraging young people to stay in school and pursue the many educational and career opportunities available to them through programs like Be a 6th Grade Mentor. Be 1 in a Million extends this power of collaboration and community support deeper and further. It takes 12 years to create a graduate or a dropout. We need every adult to step up, make a commitment and volunteer to help our youth stay on track in school and thrive in their lives. Our goal is to recruit 4,000 new readers, tutors and mentors over the next three years throughout Allegheny County.

Why did the organization decide that such an ambitious undertaking was important in our Pittsburgh region?

Those who lack the advantages of a good education, or – in many cases – lack even a high school diploma, can be at high risk for underperforming (if performing at all) as a meaningful part of the workforce. Students with caring adults in their lives – like mentors – do better. These students are 86% more likely to go to college and more likely to work harder in school. This translates to them eventually also being better employees on the job. The volunteer reader, tutor and mentor opportunities in Be 1 in a Million not only benefit the future workforce for our region but also our workers today. People who volunteer through their workplaces feel positive about their employers, their co-workers and even their own physical and emotional health.

To ramp up for Be 1 in a Million, United Way representatives talked to corporate partners across the country to hear about their concerns regarding access to a good education … increasing graduation from high school and more. What did you learn from businesses in our region, and how does the Be 1 in a Million capitalize on flexibility to encourage people to get involved?

Prior to launching this program, the United Way of Allegheny County surveyed our corporate partners, and 84 percent of them felt that their organization should participate in a community-wide effort to improve educational outcomes. In order to best address the needs of employees at our businesses and corporations, we're providing volunteer opportunities in Be 1 in a Million that have a variety of levels of commitment. Employees can become an inspirational "Imagine My Career Classroom Speaker" and volunteer to share their career stories with students. If employees travel for their jobs, or have limited time during the work day, they can participate in our eMentoring or eReading programs where they work with a student to explore career options using an on-line curriculum or read books selected by elementary students and then discuss them online. If employees are able to make a big commitment of one hour per week, they can be involved in one of our four face-to-face mentoring programs.

How's the local response been to Be 1 in a Million and have there been any milestone or "mountain top" moments, thus far?

Be 1 in a Million builds on the success of our existing mentoring program, Be a 6th Grade Mentor. This program now boasts a total of 442 mentors serving in eight middle schools in the Pittsburgh Public School System. Retention rates have been strong with 66 percent of mentors moving into the program's third year. This program has gained widespread support since its inception, recently receiving the 'Excellent in Mentoring' award from the Mentoring Partnership of Southwestern Pennsylvania. In March, City of Pittsburgh Mayor Luke Ravenstahl issued a challenge to city employees, encouraging them to become mentors and giving each participating employee two hours of paid leave each week to serve as a mentor. Leading by example, Mayor Raventstahl is mentoring a sixth grader at Pittsburgh Allegheny 6-8 School this year. Be 1 in a Million has a goal of 1,333 mentors, tutors and early grade readers this year and we are close to recruiting 1,000 to date.

How can interested volunteers learn more and where should they go to get engaged with the Be 1 in a Million initiative?

For more information, interested volunteers should visit www.be1volunteer.org.

Welcome New Pittsburgh Regional Compact Members

The Pittsburgh Regional Compact is growing. These employers, educational organizations/ partner organizations and individuals have joined the Compact during the third and fourth quarters of this year. We welcome them and value their commitment to increasing career awareness and preparing the region's workforce of tomorrow.

EMPLOYERS

• African American Chamber of Commerce of Western PA
• Allegheny Cemetery
• Empire Investigations LLC
• Grubb and Ellis Company
• Jones Day
• Maher Duessel CPAs

EDUCATIONAL/PARTNER ORGANIZATIONS

• Urban League of Greater Pittsburgh

INDIVIDUALS

• Fernando Esquivel (Eaton Corporation)
• Bob Thomas (ASKO Inc.)
• Rachel Weaver (RTI International Metals)

We'd be happy to welcome you as a Compact member, too. Contact Nyya Jones to learn more.

Laura Fisher - Publisher | Philip Cynar - Editor

Contributing writers include Ben Kamber, Nyya Jones and Amanda Sennert
Allegheny Conference on Community Development

The Pittsburgh Regional Compact is an employer-driven initiative collaboratively
sponsored by the Allegheny Conference on Community Development, business
leaders, educators, students, educational institutions and workforce development
organizations across the 10-county Pittsburgh region.