Parents, Schools, Workforce Development and Industry Need To Form A "Careers" Alliance!

The above picture has a special meaning. My wife and I and 3 of our children were visiting Nairobi, Kenya to support the efforts of my daughter's (second from right) non-profit organization Ngoma Kenya. Her non-profit was created to expose orphans to the arts (Dance) with the possibility of one day taking them on tour to raise funds for their children's home. It is amazing to consider that she started this non-profit at 14. She has been over there several times since then and we have been with her multiple times to support. She is only 17. The young lady sitting next to my wife far left is one of the children we have embraced like family from Kenya. Why and I starting this discussion off sharing this story you might ask? Well, it was not the school or other organization that placed this sense of purpose in our daughter. From day one, my wife and I realized that when we had kids, we were going to be the ones who help to direct their goals, dreams, and ambitions. Their ambitions, not ours! It was not the school's responsibility to place purpose in our kids, we as parents play the larger role in this. The schools, workforce groups, and industry can be assistant coaches, but we need to be the coaches (See my book by that title below) Now, to settle those of you who are ready to attack me with "Many of our kids don't have parental support and yours are lucky", that is why I am writing this article. I am well aware that many parents (or caretakers) have not been exposed to the kind of information my wife and I have, so I am suggesting the approach that will be highlighted in this article. I wrote a book regarding the parent's role in this below. Click on the book for more information.

I am also writing this article to address a concern I have, a very serious concern. I have the honor of conducting hundreds of assemblies and youth training globally. I love motivating and aspiring youth towards career and life goals. Saying this one might ask, "well what is your concern?" After all of my events, I leave time for Q&A. Q&A typically goes well, but there is one more thing I do after the events-I ask the students no matter how big or small the event, "What type of career do you desire?" Here is the concern, most American Born kids will say "Youtuber, athlete, entertainer or some other type of celebrity. I find they are saying this because we are so focused on academic and other outcomes, we are failing--at an early age-to inform them that the purpose of all of this is to lead to careers. When I asked this question at an assembly in Minnesota of Hmong (China) youth, the answers were "Biologist, Doctor, Aerospace Engineer, Chemist, Professor, etc. Not one of them said "Athlete." Why is this? What do they get that many American born kids do not? The answer, they are exposed at an early age to "real world" careers and the need for academics to achieve them, not Lebron James, Brittany Spears. Jay Z and other celebrities-as role models. Their parents and community are helping to direct their children down a pathway of career development, from their kindergarten years. Career development for youth in some cultures is a top priority. Family plays a major role in conjunction with education, workforce and industry-to point their students in the right direction relating to careers. Another point to consider as well, many other nations have taken on a national focus around certain career paths. Places like India have made STEM a national priority and it is paying off in the number of successful STEM type businesses and careers that have emerged. We have a long way to go in the USA relating to this-hence the challenge we face in STEM and another specialty career related employment.

In the video above, I am keynoting at the largest first-generation college and career readiness conference in the USA, NCCEP, GEAR-UP. My son who is highlighted in the beginning, was 15 at the time. I was discussing his career passion in Animation and how he as been at this career dream since he was 4. In May of this year, he will be graduating from one of the top animation and illustration colleges in the country. We were taking about this vision on stage 8 years ago! Again, we helped him to find his career purpose at an early age and education, workforce and industry were critical partners in this pursuit.

Speaking To 700 8th Graders during a "Careers In Texas" Tour last year.

Parents, Education, Workforce Development and Industry in the USA need a collective plan. Employers are screaming from the rooftop that youth in our career are not "Career Ready." Education is often concerned about test scores so career focus only gets a "day" that is called "Career Day:-)" One day a year focused on careers is not going to do it. But, it is not the school's responsibility to focus on this by themselves I might add. Parents (Caretaker and mentors) need to be on board helping to shape the career purposes and motivation of their youth. Workforce Development, as it takes place in the great state of Texas-should become the norm all over. Workforce and Education work hand in hand to expose the youth to innovative careers of day and potentially tomorrow. The industry provides input into career needs and in the case of the pic above, CEOs and VPs of STEM and Manufacturing companies were available to the youth to discuss their company needs and career possibilities. I was there to motivate the youth around STEM and Manufacturing careers. The beauty of this model is the responsibility was not placed on the shoulders of one stakeholder group, it was a collaboration. My hope in writing this article is to stir up the pot and say it is time for the key career stakeholders to see this they should be communicating with each other as to the role each group plays, areas of synergy and the clearest pathway to helping youth in America become exciting about real-world career possibilities over the lofty and unachievable goals of fame and celebrity. I feel this national paradigm is going to hurt the future job market if we don't address it. There needs to be a serious effort to have discussions about the best pathway forward in a collective manner for the key groups, to create a local, regional and national paradigm shift around youth career development. This article cannot provide the best pathway forward for everyone everywhere but the goal of it is an awareness it is time for agencies and organizations to realize we have a real problem in our nation relating to youth career development when 80% of the students who respond to my question, are still looking at "celebrity" as a career pathway. Especially when less than 1% of the population will ever see success there and there are annually over 250k Stem Jobs going unfilled because there are not enough qualified people in our nation.

Youth "Passion Mapping" Workshop In Oklahoma (A Very Popular Youth Event)

So I have been beating the drum for 20 years. Standing on stages, conducting workshops with youth and adults, meeting with thought leaders in education, workforce development, and industry but still feel like my firm is a voice in the wilderness! I sincerely hope many begin to listen. Our kids need a clearer pathway, and our nation a sense of identity as it relates to the future workforce. The aforementioned stakeholders are not separate entities, we are the same. We all are trying to secure a great future for our youth and nation. Again, I am stirring up the pot and we are open to speaking (training, consulting) to your school, workforce development group, think thank agency or corporation on this topic. If interested, contact us at the info below, even if for a phone discussion. With 2 decades of observing, motivating and establishing systems-we believe we have innovative solutions. Have a passionate day!

Darrell Andrews Enterprises | Darrell "Coach D" Andrews | Motivational Strategist, Consultant, Speaker, Author | 302-834-1040 | [email protected] | www.coachdspeaks.com