Over the past two years, Career Academy has had multiple success stories with students referred by the Career Connections program from the DC Department of Employment Services (DOES). For example, Bruce Beuzard IV won the Microsoft Excel National Championship. James Gaston joined Career Academy’s board of directors and represented the school in front of the DC Council. Both of these students could not have met this level of success without the training and stipends received through participation in the Career Connections program.
The DC Career Connections program is a work readiness program designed to provide more than 400 out-of-school and unemployed young adults from Washington, DC with opportunities to gain valuable work experience, skills training, and individualized coaching and support to obtain employment.
To date, Career Academy has grown this partnership to over 100 of those students in the past two years and that number continues to grow.
Ms. Ashelley WIlder, Workforce Development Specialist at Career Connections, reflected on the success of the partnership during the pandemic, “With the changes in the economy and the need in the labor force during the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, The LAYC Career Academy has been instrumental with keeping our doors open by being able to funnel new graduates over to the Career Academy to enhance what we have already provided participants with, ample opportunities, career guidance and support from both partners.”
Career Connections Workforce Development Specialist, Mr. Kenya Harris, spoke about how helpful it was to be able to send students to Career Academy when so many other programs were closed during the last year. “From our viewpoint, Career Academy made their programs available and kept active during times in which our other partners closed their doors. We aim to continue to work together to address the needs of our participants by maintaining this strong partnership and continued growth in the youth that we serve.”
Career Academy is appreciative of the dedication and commitment that Mr. Harris, Ms. Wilder and Mr. Johnson have shown to our organization as exemplary partners. Career Academy and Career Connections students could not have created a culture of success without them. The Career Academy and the Career Connections program have just renewed their partnership agreement to run through 2023.
