Junior Achievement USA® Releases Education Summit Findings On Preparing Youth For The Workforce

Leading nonprofit publishes position paper with support from the Goizueta Foundation

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Oct 15, 2014, 10:14 ET

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo., Oct. 15, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Junior Achievement USA^®, the leading nonprofit organization dedicated to empowering young people to own their economic success, has just published a critical issues paper highlighting key findings from an education summit on preparing youth for the workforce. The paper, "Are Students Prepared for the Workplace? New Tools for a New Generation," addresses the belief of many business leaders that students entering the workforce today lack many of the critical "soft" skills that contribute to an individual's and an organization's success. These skills include the ability to identify a problem, apply effective problem-solving and decision-making skills, and recognize and seize opportunities when they arise.

Summit attendees included representatives from nine different areas of specialization focused on the preparation of America's next-generation workforce. Dr. Ruben Garcia, SBA Director of San Diego and President/CEO of the Hispanic Education Foundation, a summit participant, said, "Understanding the needs of the next generation of both students and employers is critical to our nation's future success. The model generated through this process and articulated in the paper proposes a new solution to preparing this next generation of workers with next generation tools."

Additionally, the summit's discussion focused on ways to effectively communicate with Millennials and with members of "Generation Z" (those born from the mid-1990s to mid-2000s), who are accustomed to nearly instantaneous access to information. To stay relevant with this generation of learners, Junior Achievement recently launched its JA Education Gateway, a robust "blended learning" platform featuring a combination of mentor-led classroom and digital experiences. The organization is embarking on a progressive development initiative to move all of its middle and high school programs into the JA Education Gateway within the next five years.

To adapt to a rapidly shifting global economic landscape, attendees came to a consensus around the need for the following:

defining a new model that describes life readiness;
developing innovative and relevant courseware that conveys this new model; and
delivering creative new content that excites and captures the imagination of students who are seeking guidance as they enter a constantly changing global society.

Junior Achievement's proposed model of instilling workplace skills links a foundation of recognized knowledge, skills, and attitudes to measureable engagement and achievement activities. This model can potentially lead to students who are credentialed to be "workforce ready" and fully prepared to contribute meaningfully to the 21^st-century global workplace.

Jack E. Kosakowski, president and chief executive officer of Junior Achievement USA, noted, "Junior Achievement is focused on providing students with relevant educational experiences that prepare them for life after graduation. Working closely with the education and business communities, we are uniquely positioned to help young people adapt to—and succeed within—the changing demands of the workplace."

Summit participants expressed strong support for Junior Achievement USA to initiate and lead an important discussion about the role of nonprofit educational organizations and the business community in preparing students for life after school.

About Junior Achievement USA®
Junior Achievement is the world's largest organization dedicated to giving young people the knowledge and skills they need to own their economic success, plan for their future, and make smart academic and economic choices. JA programs are delivered by corporate and community volunteers, and provide relevant, hands-on experiences that give students from kindergarten through high school knowledge and skills in financial literacy, work readiness and entrepreneurship. Today, JA reaches 4.5 million students per year in 115 markets across the United States, with an additional 5.8 million students served by operations in 120 other countries worldwide. Visit www.ja.org for more information.

SOURCE Junior Achievement USA