Did you know that September is National Workforce Development Month?
My passion for workforce development began shortly after I started my role at the Frisco Chamber of Commerce. Before that, I had not realized how many opportunities existed to grow and develop our future workforce. Once I began participating as a mentor to students, mock-interviewer, and competition judge, I became hooked on these rewarding experiences and have since grown a passion for not only participating in but also sharing these opportunities with others in the community. And of course, I am so excited that one of the Frisco Chamber’s key initiatives in our new strategic plan includes workforce development and workforce advocacy. So let me begin by first saying Happy National Workforce Development Month!
Get Involved!
Throughout the year, there are many opportunities not only in Frisco ISD but also in the other area school districts and local private and charter schools. There are also opportunities to get involved at the college and university level! I genuinely feel that as a business leader, one of the most important things you can do is have an impact on our future leaders!
This past week, I learned of several opportunities within Frisco ISD. I hope you will carve out some time to help with one or both!
Business Communications Assignment
Sara Anderson, a teacher at Panther Creek High School in Frisco ISD teaches a class called Professional Communications. This class is in the middle of a project called “Welcome to North Texas.” In this project, students are paired together and are tasked with choosing a city to bring a new business to. Groups research information about the city and look at the current businesses and census to figure out what type of company they could bring that would be successful and benefit their chosen city.
They are currently working on creating a business proposal to persuade the city’s chamber of commerce to say “yes” to their business. Mrs. Anderson would like to make this as real as possible for the students and are asking for volunteers from the chamber to come and hear their business proposals.
Presentations will be set up in 15-minute time frames, where the students present for up to 10 minutes and then have 5 minutes of question and answer. We would ideally like to have 8 volunteers for each slot, if possible.
The days and times volunteers are needed are:
Monday, Oct 3rd – 9:00 AM – 10:40 AM
Tuesday, Oct 4th – 10:30 AM – 12:10 PM and 1:25 PM – 3:05PM
Thursday, Oct 6th – 10:30 AM – 12:10 PM and 1:25 PM – 3:05 PM
Mock Interviews
Business community members are invited to participate in a meet and greet with Frisco ISD Independent Study & Mentorship program students and then facilitate 15-minute mock interviews where students can practice skills and you can give honest feedback!
The ISM Business Symposium will be held at Panther Creek High School on Wednesday, October 5, 2022. There will be a morning session from 7:30 AM – 11:15 AM (CHS, EHS, HHS, HIS, LSHS, LTHS, PCHS) and an afternoon session from 1:00 PM – 4:30 PM (FHS, LHS, MHS, RHS, WHS).
If you are interested in either or both of these opportunities, please click the button below. Once you have clicked on the link, you will need to create an account or login. From there, you can click on “I Want to Help” on the top right corner of the event. You can read more about this event in an earlier blog post.
Business Professional of Americas
Julie Barker, a Frisco ISD CTE teacher is a Regional Advisor for Business Professionals of America (BPA) Texas. BPA is a student organization that contributes to the preparation of global professionals through the advancement of leadership, citizenship, academic and technological skills for students at the Middle, Secondary and Post-secondary levels.
As students come together for their contests, Ms. Barker is in need of assistance with judges. Opportunities are available for judging presentation contests that pre-submitted prior to the face-to-face contest (late December to mid January) as well as opportunities to judge in person final rounds on January 28, 2023 from 8:00 AM to 12:30 PM . This conference includes Frisco and surrounding areas and usually has between 900-1,100 students. Approximately 120 judges in total are needed.
Volunteers at Work
Shelly Francis, founder of Lone Star Food Tours was recently asked to speak at a Business Communication class as part of a project the Panther High School students were completing. The discussion included information about the company and the assistance and interaction businesses in Frisco receive from the Frisco Chamber of Commerce from a business owner’s perspective. First, we are thankful that Shelly and her teammate Amy took the time to educate the students, and secondly, we are grateful that these students are learning about the chamber industry at a young age.
We Love to Connect with Students Too!
In another instance, two students from Reedy High School contacted the Frisco Chamber to learn more about the chamber industry as they prepare to compete in the BPA competition! This inquiry resulted in a Zoom call with the students, myself, and our President/CEO, Tony Felker. Praveena and Nithya asked such great questions, leaving both Tony and I feeling very energized about our future workforce!
Want to Learn About More Opportunities?
We do have an email distribution list for workforce development opportunities. Please email me at karen@friscochamber.com if you want me to add you to that list!
If you know me, then you know I can’t end a blog post like these without my favorite saying…the future looks pretty bright!!
