CAREER AWARENESS/LIFELONG LEARNING

Critical to success in narrowing the gap between the needs of Iowa employers and skill sets possessed by Iowa workers is facilitating career awareness among all Iowans and expanding the infrastructure for lifelong learning and professional career growth.

Elevating Career Awareness (ECA) - an Iowa Coalition for Innovation & Growth (ICIG) initiative ICIG focuses intensely on workforce development, retention, and attraction issues in Iowa, the many aspects for which interlock. One that is most prominent within the preK-16 school system is a noticeable lack of awareness regarding the kind of stimulating, rewarding work that is available to qualified individuals right here in Iowa. Whether it’s a high school, tech school, community college, or university graduate, there has yet to be created a widely viewed and broadly accepted method of conveying the many exciting jobs and careers available in this state. The intention of ECA is to efficiently coordinate the many public- and private-sector industry- and region-specific career awareness initiatives in Iowa so that popular technology can shine a bright light on opportunities available to students within the state once their schooling is complete.

Iowa Virtual Reality Education Pathfinder (I-VREP) Surveys reveal that American middle and high school students have positive attitudes towards the subjects of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM). However, many of them lack the necessary encouragement from mentors and role models in these fields. Through the use of donated computer-assisted design (CAD) equipment, I-VREP introduces students (grades 9-12), parents, teachers, counselors, and school administrators to virtual reality (VR) and actualization technology, industrial applications, career pathways, and industry mentors. Students research and design their own virtual programs as well as work with a staff member to create an education program that can be used to enhance an educational concept being taught. Students are required to develop at least one new educational concept each nine weeks.