Kara Pontius
Career Readiness Coordinator
Wednesday, April 24, 2024 at 2:00pm (ET) | 11:00am (PT)
As districts, schools, and career and technical centers prioritize work-based learning as a component of their career and technical education programs, challenges continue to arise with recruiting, managing, and scaling business partnerships.
This webinar will discuss the importance of sustainable business partnerships, which can be achieved through strategic planning, effective communication, and a commitment to mutual benefit. It will present the most common challenges and how to overcome them. Additionally, the presenter will propose three elements to consider for successful business partnership engagement to cultivate and grow dynamic partnerships that enrich educational experience, enhance workplace readiness, and help business partners measure ROI.
Learning Objectives
During this webinar, the presenter will:
- Identify the key role businesses play in the work-based learning ecosystems and the importance of bridging the gap between education and the workforce.
- Understand the common challenges faced by WBL programs with business partnerships and strategies to overcome them.
- Learn how to effectively recruit and target business partners to provide attractive, sustainable WBL opportunities for students.
- Create unique opportunities for partners to engage with students and enhance the career continuum.
- Explore best practices to refine your business partner processes and management to increase value for all stakeholders.
Presenters
Beginning as an industry professional in Business & Marketing, Kara entered career tech education when she joined a Career Services team to provide career exploration and planning services to K-12 students. Presented with an opportunity to support Work-Based Learning measures, she transitioned to the role of Career Readiness Coordinator. During her time serving as the Career Readiness Coordinator, she worked to provide professional development to staff, students, and business partners regarding WBL compliance measures in Ohio. In collaboration with CTE instructors, she also assisted in the growth and development of business partnerships, mentorships, and Work-Based Learning placements for students.
Kara’s passion for students and business helps bridge the gap between classroom instruction and industry needs to assist with building the pipeline for the next generation workforce. Today, she has the privilege of helping schools throughout the US scale their Work-Based Learning programs, create a change management plan for staff, students, and business partners, and streamline their program processes for success.
