Maslowski
Educating, cultivating and retaining talented workers is a primary concern for both local schools and the Johnson County business community.
A new initiative is helping connect those two sides in hopes of bolstering the area workforce.
Aspire Johnson County, announced the creation of an education-industry partnership this week. The initiative is designed to identify opportunities to further development and build a school-to-career labor pool pipeline across the county, according to a release from Aspire.
“It’s really about getting our students exposed to the types of jobs that are available in Johnson County, keeping our students in Johnson County as much as possible, and helping our employers get themselves set up for the incoming work force,” said Amanda Rubadue, vice president of economic development for Aspire. “It’s just making those connections for them.”
With obvious benefits to both schools and businesses, the initiative is generating excitement throughout the county, Rubadue said.
“What we’re getting from both sides is excitement that they have a third party coming in who’s taking the time to learn each side of this and wants to make sure both sides benefit as much as possible,” Rubadue said.
The initiative started coming together in October 2021. Aspire gathered educators from Johnson County school districts, as well as from Ivy Tech Community College and Franklin College, to discuss potential partnerships with industry. They shared existing workplace learning programs, in addition to highlighting what made those programs successful.
A common concern was the need to get career pathway opportunities for students, and how businesses could assist with those efforts.
Kent DeKonick, former superintendent for Greenwood Community Schools, helped facilitate those meetings.
“Part of my work as a school superintendent involved getting job opportunities for students. And my work with local businesses as a volunteer for Aspire involved me in efforts to grow the local workforce. These experiences, I think, enabled me to become a conduit for this program, working to provide opportunities for students and a workforce for businesses,” he said in a statement.
Just as school leaders had gathered to discuss the issue, Aspire’s business partners came together for a meeting as well. Their focus was on the current challenges faced in recruiting and retaining a strong workforce.
They were asked how they could help further build a relationship with local educators to train, recruit and retain a strong workforce.
With input from both meetings, Aspire then gathered leaders from both sides together again to collaborate in opportunities to develop and build the labor pool from school to career.
“As a result of these conversations, Aspire is currently planning summer teacher field trips to let educators peek into local workplaces and engage in dialogue with local employers. And we are hosting virtual field trips to businesses during class time,” said Christian Maslowski, Aspire president and CEO.
Aspire is also drafting a work-based learning handbook template for schools and employers to implement, in addition to planning a series of school-business alliance roundtable meetings, Maslowski said.
