Connecting Education to the Business Community

CONNECTING Education

to the Business Community

Robert Sadler Clark

s the country’s economy continues to face challenges from the lingering pandemic, supply chain shortages and inflationary trends, the need for career-centered education in essential industries has never been more vital. Luckily, in Palm Beach County, the pipeline between education and business—and between individual schools and specific careers— continues to be robust. Thanks to the county’s rich variety of education, training and career programs, our high schools, colleges and academies are producing graduates primed with the skills needed to exceed today’s ever-changing workforce demands.

From health care, finance and technology to construction and the culinary arts, the county’s institutions of learning maintain close ties to the business sector, ensuring that they offer today’s most relevant educational programs.

AMore than 35,000 students in the Palm Beach County School District take advantage of choice programs and career academies to learn about career opportunities at an early age. Both the school district and several private schools have programs that prepare students for careers in STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Math) fields. For example, Suncoast Community High School offers magnet programs in math, science, and engineering; computer science; innovative, interactive technology; and other academic disciplines. The Riviera Beach public school was recently ranked No. 15 in the state by U.S. News & World Report. Alexander W. Dreyfoos Jr. School of the Arts features nine choice programs from music to dance to visual arts and digital media, while 10 such programs—including culinary arts, information technology, and environmental science and field research—are available at Forest Hill High School. Furthermore, in partnership with the Palm Beach County School District, as well as private, faith-based and charter schools, colleges and universities, the Business Development Board of Palm Beach County (BDB) has developed a website—PBCedu.org—that provides businesses with easy access to news and top-line data about the county’s educational resources, and a portal to each individual school’s website for more in-depth information. On a collegiate level, Palm Beach State College (PBSC) operates the

Business Partnership and Program Advisory Councils, which were recently established to assist the college in planning, implementing and evaluating each of its occupational programs in order to respond to the changing needs of the community. The mission of the Councils at Palm Beach State College is to provide Palm Beach County businesses and local professionals the opportunity to collaborate with the college’s faculty and staff to foster the academic, career and technical pathways provided by the college. More information can be found at palmbeachstate.edu/bpc. Speaking of higher education, Palm Beach Atlantic University’s Office of Career Development is students’ one-stop-shop to best prepare for postgraduate employment. Beginning in students’ first years, the skilled faculty can assist in a wide range of programs and services, including rèsumè construction, career coaching, graduate school preparation and networking etiquette. Through its DIVE (Discovering Internships as Vocational Exploration) program, participants are able to explore career fields, develop skills, connect classroom knowledge to real-world settings, meet future employers and even earn a full-time position after they graduate. The DIVE program has paired graduates with organizations such as Amazon, Google and Bank of America.

A leader in workforce training, CareerSource Palm Beach County offers a comprehensive package of no-cost services to help the area’s businesses compete in today’s challenging marketplace, including recruitment, assessments and referrals of qualified job candidates; space and staff assistance for screening/interviewing candidates; and grants for training new or existing employees.

As the nonprofit organization chartered by the state to lead workforce development in Palm Beach County, CareerSource operates two career centers, and offers its professional services to all employers and job seekers in the county. During the past five years, this valuable resource has assisted more than 71,000 residents find employment, with salaries from these jobs creating $1.4 billion in annual wages. CareerSource also has awarded $12.2 million in grants to area businesses and employees for training and educational assistance.

CareerSource has helped Palm Beach County employers find the right people in a wide range of industries, placing job seekers from entry-level positions to the executive suite. CareerSource also provides training for employed workers, helping them to upgrade their skills. Financial assistance may also be available for employers to train eligible new employees for needed skills. Participating businesses also receive free recruitment and pre-screened referrals of candidates.

By working closely with government agencies, local communities, other organizations and businesses, CareerSource Palm Beach County encourages growth in the business community, which improves the lives of those working and seeking to work in Palm Beach County.

CareerSource Central Career Center

3400 Belvedere Road West Palm Beach, FL 33406 (561) 340-1060 www.careersourcepbc.com

CareerSource West Career Center

1085 S. Main St. Belle Glade, FL 33430 (561) 829-2040 www.careersourcepbc.com

Palm Beach Atlantic University

ADDITIONAL EDUCATION AND BUSINESS RESOURCES

Top Score Writing

4751 Square Lake Drive Palm Beach Gardens, FL 33418 (561) 577-2097 www.topscorewriting.com

Sixteen years ago, Lisa Collum was working as a teacher in a Title I school and became frustrated watching countless students fail or struggle with writing on standardized tests. There simply wasn’t a curriculum available that focused on real writing skills, which ultimately hurt the students and teachers. So Collum developed a curriculum of her own. In less than a year, she was able to turn her class around from nearly all failing to achieve a 100-percent pass rate. Soon every teacher in the school was demanding Lisa’s curriculum, and Top Score Writing was born. Top Score Writing has since grown to include full teacher curriculums for second to 12th grade as well as student workbooks, a digital curriculum, scoring and training. Today, Top Score Writing is proven to achieve a 70-percent increase in writing test scores on average.