Learning and Education

When you make a difference in the life of a young person, you create a better future. I know because I’m lucky enough to experience it every day as a teacher for the UcanB program. With UcanB, I provide career skills education for students who wouldn’t otherwise have access to it. I connect communities, employers, and schools to provide economic opportunities for students and their parents. I am helping to build a strong, revitalized Pittsburgh region, for today and tomorrow. The best part is, you can join in. I’d like to personally invite you to learn more about this incredible program, and how you can make a difference for young people right here in our region. UcanB is a unique hands-on career education program for students in grades 6-12. Consisting of over 76 weeks of customizable curriculum, UcanB focuses on in-demand fields, STEM careers, entrepreneurship, and soft skills like leadership, teamwork, and time management. Schools choose the areas that are the best fit for their students and communities, and UcanB brings teachers, business and civic leaders, and our unique “Coffee With…” series, that includes interviews with entrepreneurs in a wide array of industries. Students participate in classes, small group projects, mentorship, and portfolio building. During the program, students have the opportunity to interact face-to-face with mentors in the career fields they want to pursue, asking questions and getting real world insight into the most in-demand industries in our region. I’d love to share with you what our students are saying about the UcanB program and the difference it’s making in their lives today. Here are some reactions from students who have experienced UcanB: “I believe that the speakers were helpful and well spoken. The topic of health care careers was most helpful to me. I want to be a paramedic. I believe that I have more understanding of my career plans. They did address me and answered my questions and that was appreciated. I also liked how they saw the potential in each and every one of us. They actually believe in people like us. They came to encourage us. We need more speakers like these.” M.B. Shaler High School “I want to get a career that I LOVE!! I learned this through the UcanB classes. My next step is to explore internships in an interesting field.” 11th Grade Propel student U can B Teacher, 2018...

Americans have always taken pride in having the best-educated workforce in the world, but now that is no longer true. In Tough Choices, Tough Times, the New Commission on the Skills of the American Workforce reports that over the past 30 years one country after another has surpassed the United States in the percentage of its population entering the workforce with the equivalent of a high school diploma, and many more countries are on the verge of doing so. Thirty years ago, the U.S. could lay claim to having 30 percent of the world’s population of college students. Today that proportion has fallen substantially, to 14 percent, and continues to decline. American students place anywhere from the middle of the pack to the bottom in all three continuing comparative studies of achievement in mathematics, science, and general literacy among advanced industrial nations. Students from low-income families are six times more likely not to finish high school than those from high-income families. Dropouts face severe obstacles to employment, livable wages, and civic participation; instead, many drift into crime. This situation means a loss of opportunities for the individuals, substantial cost to the government and taxpayers, and a decline in productivity for businesses. Even those students who do graduate may not be well prepared. According to the National Reading Panel, American companies lose nearly $40 billion annually due to illiteracy. A survey by the National Occupational Information Coordinating Committee and the National Career Development Association found that a majority of students report feeling unprepared in skills, knowledge, and attitudes upon entering the workforce. According to the Manhattan Institute, only about 20% of African-American and Hispanic students graduate college-ready. This skills crisis is becoming more critical because the American economy is shifting. Not only will the traditional skills of reading, writing and math be needed to thrive in this economy, but also technological know-how and proficiency in self-direction. Of the mainstream public school population, graduation rates hover between 70 and 80 percent for all students and 50 percent for minority students. The disparity widens when only “at-risk” students are...

Career education for schools in the region expands into the Mon Valley. The UcanB program has succeeded in schools around the Pittsburgh area, and has expanded to schools throughout Pennsylvania. In many of the schools where our program has been offered, students are experiencing mentorship, technology, and the first time they were ever given information on planning a successful career. We reach students in communities, and build stronger connections between students, parents, schools, and area businesses with our opportunity fairs, that match community members with local employers. How do I become a UcanB Speaker? The process to becoming a speaker is straightforward and will work to ensure that Building Bridges and UcanB career education is the best fit for you. The process includes: 1. Complete the online information session by phone (15 minutes) 2. Apply online (8-10 minutes) 3. Complete an in-person interview with staff (30 minutes) 4. Pass a background and finger print screening (15 minutes after in-person interview) 5. Participate in Training (1.0 hour) Please reach out to info@BuildingBridgesforBusiness.org if you are interested. What is Building Bridges for Business? Building Bridges is a 501(c)3 organization that educates and empowers through: • U can B Career education program (Educating 6th-12th grade students on careers) • Job fairs and job placement for students and adults • The Coffee With Show • Building the Bridges across the business and workforce ecosystem Other Ways that you Can You Get Involved? • Donate to our U can B career education program and help provide students with the skills they need to succeed. All contributions are tax deductible and support classroom education and job placement. • Ask us about our EITC, Education Improvement Tax Credit, program for your business. • United Way Donate Now –...

Today’s episode of Coffee With focuses on careers, specifically career building and training. Joining our discussion is Mrs. Valerie Njie, the Executive Director and Senior Vice President of Bidwell Training Center (BTC). Bidwell Training Center is a non-profit career training school that has been changing people’s lives since 1968. At Bidwell, Mrs. Njie is part of an amazing organization that equips students with superb skills that can lead them to meaningful employment and empower them to become more confident, productive, and professional. Bidwell Training Center has almost 50 years of experience providing top-of-the-line career training and consistently attracts national attention for their innovative training programs. Beyond that, Bidwell Training Center is accredited by the Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges and is a member of over 10 national and regional professional organizations. The majors offered at BTC provide learners with the hands-on skillsets they need to be prepared and competitive in the marketplace. Mrs. Njie has committed decades towards serving the Pittsburgh community and enriching the lives of others. In 2014, she was elected to serve as School Commissioner by the Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges (ACCSC). Mrs. Njie has been one of the ACCSC’s most active volunteers, and was selected as Volunteer of the Year in 2009. Beyond that, she has been honored with the 2009 Duquesne Light African American Leadership Award for Education as well as a 2006 Women of Influence designation from the New Pittsburgh Courier. Mrs. Njie’s outstanding dedication to the Pittsburgh community was most recently recognized in 2015 when she received the University of Pittsburgh’s Volunteer Excellence Award. The award annually recognizes Pitt alumni who have enriched the lives of others through extraordinary efforts in the...

  Ron Alvarado Building Bridges for Business is excited to welcome Ron Alvarado onto the Coffee With show. Ron Alvarado is the president and founder of Novus Group, LLC, a Pittsburgh-based firm specializing in staffing and recruitment outsourcing. Novus Group, LLC offers professional recruitment services and staffing solutions for business sectors from energy to accounting. In 2013, Novus was ranked one of the Top 500 Hispanic Businesses in the U.S. by Hispanic Business Magazine (for the 3rd consecutive year). In September of 2014, the magazine named Novus the 24th fastest growing Hispanic owned company in the nation. In 2013, Novus was honored as one of the Top 100 Fastest Growing Privately Owned Companies in Pittsburgh by Pittsburgh Business Times (for the 2nd year in a row). Mr. Alvarado has a strong record of service for improving diversity and has extensive experience addressing the workforce needs of the region. He serves as the Chairman of the Pittsburgh Metropolitan Area Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, and also serves on the board of the Dollar Energy Fund. Mr. Alvarado’s workforce expertise found him serving on the Pennsylvanian Workforce Investment Board (WIB). The WIB is the Governor’s principal private sector policy advising resource on any workforce development issues. Mr. Alvarado was first appointed to the WIB in 2008 by Governor Rendell, then reappointed by Governor Corbett. Beyond his impressive service and dedication to improving our community, Mr. Alvarado has been recognized as the recipient of many awards. In 2013 he was awarded the Community College of Allegheny County (CCAC) Vanguard Diversity Award. The Vanguard Diversity Award recognizes individuals and organizations who have demonstrate outstanding work towards promoting diversity and inclusion. Mr. Alvarado’s exceptional community service was also recognized when he received the Allegheny County Bar Association’s Hispanic Attorneys Committee 2015 “El Sol Award”. Watch the Coffee With exclusive interview with Mr. Alvarado, where he details his emergence and success within the staffing industry, as well as practical business lessons he’s learned along the way. From his incredible success with Novus to his dedication to improving our community, Mr. Alvarado brings exciting and inspiring experience to share with you on Coffee...

A new report from ACT has found that 20 percent of students who are likely well-prepared for their first year of college are not actually enrolling. Additionally, results from a multi-year College and Career Readiness survey of 165,000 high school students conducted by YouthTruth, a San Francisco-based nonprofit, found that only 45 percent of students feel positive about their college and career readiness. What’s The Problem? According to the same YouthTruth survey, an overwhelming 87 percent of students want to eventually earn a college degree and land a career, but many believe that their schools aren’t helping them develop the skills they’ll need to succeed after graduation. To make matters worse, as a result of being unprepared, approximately one in four students who enter college the fall after high school graduation enroll in remedial coursework during their first year of college. The aggregate additional, direct college expenses these half million students and families had to pay out of pocket for remedial coursework in the first year in 2011-12 was an astounding $1.5 billion. The problem is deeply rooted in the curriculum at many schools across the United States. Graduation is treated as the ultimate goal, which ignores preparing students to reach their future goals. In support of this idea, many schools aren’t encouraging students to challenge themselves and are not helping students find their passion. Instead, schools opt for a random combination of career-prep courses — which ranges from computers and engineering to trade courses in fields such as construction or manufacturing — rather than a series of courses aligned with a particular career field. What Can Be Done? All of these reports support the idea that schools need to reflect on their school’s structure, culture, and instruction, and how those elements influence exposure to rigorous, engaging, and relevant coursework that prepares students for success after high school in various college and career paths. This is especially important as young people need more skills than ever before in order to succeed in today’s knowledge-based economy. Graduating more confident high-school graduates is not an unattainable goal. Research shows that students support this change. In fact, nearly nine out 10 of all recent high school graduates said they would have worked harder if their high schools had demanded more, set higher academic standards, and raised expectations of the coursework and studying necessary to earn a diploma. Programs like U can B are helping schools make this a reality. By providing students with the skills they need to succeed after high school and empowering them to pursue a career that they feel passionate about, U can B is working to close the gaps between college-readiness, college enrollment, and career success. Ultimately, schools that place their students’ futures at the top of their priority list instead of graduation rates are investing in the world’s...