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Welcome Students, Teachers, Parents and Partners to the Career Ready Blog

Check out stories about City School's students as they prepare for college and careers.

Senior Recruitment Fair 2024!

City Schools is partnering with the Mayor’s Office of Employment Development, for the sixth year in a row, to host the 2024 Senior Recruitment Fair!

The Senior Recruitment Fair will be in-person on March 20, 2024 for all seniors graduating in June 2024 or August 2024. The event is ideal for seniors who do not have a plan or a confirmed plan after high school for any postsecondary pathway including college, direct to career, military, or apprenticeship and training pathways.

To help prepare seniors for the event, and in preparation for their launch into the world or work, City Schools, MOED, Youth Opportunity Centers will be hosting in-school career readiness workshops beginning in January. Workshops aim to meet seniors where they are to ensure they are equipped for their launch, and include topics such as postsecondary planning and discussions, resume review and writing, and mock interviews.

To register your school to participate in the 2024 Senior Recruitment Fair and preparation senior workshops, please sign-up here by January 12th. Sign-Up Here

For more information, please contact Adenike at aakintilo@bcps.k12.md.us.

#CyberSecurity Pathway #WorkBasedLearning

National Youth Cyber Education

CyberPatriot is the National Youth Cyber Education Program created by the Air & Space Forces Association to inspire K-12 students toward careers in cybersecurity. At the core of the program is the National Youth Cyber Defense Competition, the nation's largest cyber defense competition that puts high school and middle school students in charge of securing virtual networks. Through a series of online competition rounds, teams are given a set of virtual operating systems and are tasked with finding and fixing cybersecurity vulnerabilities while maintaining critical services. The top teams in the nation earn all-expenses-paid trips to Maryland for the National Finals Competition where they can earn national recognition and scholarship money.

Two teams from Mervo HS, the first and only competing teams from Baltimore City Public Schools, competed in Round 1 of the competition on October 19th. Their participation in the program is a continuation of a new work-based learning partnership effort between BCPS (your office/dept would go here) and Startfield, a Northern Virginia-based non-profit focused on leveling the playing field in tech through career exploration, mentoring, and training opportunities for underrepresented communities.

Both teams will compete in Round 2 in early November and State Finals in early December.

Key to this collaborative work is the advocacy and support of Mervo HS teacher Ms. Robin Perry, who worked with Startfield to host both a virtual career exploration program in the spring and 5-week cybersecurity WBL experience over the summer for 20 BCPS students. These programs provided students with new cybersecurity skills and seeded interest in participating in the national competition.

The partnership activities were funded through a grant from the Greater Washington Partnership's Talent Ready initiative.

Workforce Hub Announced at Carver High School

On Monday, November 13, 2023 in celebration of National Apprenticeship Week, Principal Somerville and the students at Carver, the Requity Carver House team, Governor Moore, Acting U.S. Department of Labor Secretary Su, Senator Chris Van Hollen; and Mitch Landrieu, White House Infrastructure Coordinator, led and participated in a tour of the Carver House project, toured Carver's CTE construction labs in welding, HVAC, and carpentry; and closed out the event with a landmark announcement as Baltimore City as a national Workforce Hub.

In Gov. Moore's remarks, he announced Amtrak, Baltimore City, and the state of Maryland’s commitment to support the Baltimore Workforce Hub. Through the Workforce Hubs Initiative, the Biden-Harris Administration is partnering with local officials, employers, unions, and other stakeholders to ensure a skilled workforce is ready to meet the demand for labor driven by historic public and private investments.

In May, Baltimore was noted as one of the five workforce hubs in the nation. As a workforce hub, Baltimore will have public and private commitments with the goals of hiring Baltimore residents to work on the Frederick Douglas Tunnel project; providing more union job opportunities to Baltimore residents; training workers for construction careers; and scaling the work across the Northeast Corridor. An investment in Baltimore's workforce and infrastructure of over $4 billion.

Spotlight: Maritime Transportation & Technology Pathway

In Maryland the one of a kind Maritime Transportation & Technology Pathway is only available at Digital Harbor High School in Baltimore. Students learn about a wide variety of job and career opportunities at the Port of Baltimore, BWI-Thurgood Marshall Airport and across all logistics systems including railroads, trucking and warehousing.

Ben Graeff is very experienced in the vital area of maritime opportunities and leads this Pathway at Digital Harbor teaching courses, arranging field trips and coordinating valuable paid internships.

During the summer of 2023 some Digital Harbor students participated in an exciting paid internship at the US Coast Guard Yard in Curtis Bay where Coast Guard ships are repaired and rejuvenated. They were mentored by experts and received hands on training in multiple departments.

Watch this video that tells the story of that internship and the opportunities it can provide.

For additional information contact: bgraeff@bcps.k12.md.us

#MaritimeTransportation&TechnologyPathway

Efficiency Enterprises Apprenticeship Talent Solution

Efficiency Enterprises is a leading company in commercial truck leasing and maintenance services and has a large need for diesel mechanics, a role that has been historically hard to fill.

In 2021, Efficiency met with the Employment Services division of the Mayor's Office of Employment Development (MOED) to find a solution to their talent need. MOED looped in City Schools' automotive career readiness team to explore how youth apprenticeship could help build a workforce of diesel mechanics for Efficiency and companies with similar needs.

Through this private-public partnership, Efficiency hired its first youth apprentice, Jeremiah, in 2022-2023 school year, and hired him in a full-time role in June 2023. This school year, Efficiency has hired its second youth apprentice, Roberto, and is planning on scaling its youth apprenticeship hires, as well as expanding to adult apprenticeship!!

Efficiency is the first employer in Baltimore City to partner with City Schools in launching youth apprenticeship opportunities for City Schools' students as an economic and options multiplier for both students and employers.

#Apprenticeships

Baltimore City Local Advisory Council

The Baltimore City Local Advisory Council (LAC) is a joint council between Baltimore City Community College and Baltimore City Public Schools, administered by the Maryland State Department of Education. The LAC’s role is to advise, assist, and advocate for high-quality and robust career and technical education (CTE) programming at the secondary and postsecondary level.

The Council meets three times a year. For the SY23-24, the Council is focused on three main priorities, with 3 aligned workgroups:

Building youth apprenticeship to meet the Blueprint;
Increasing the effectiveness of the committees that oversee each CTE pathway which are called program advisory committees (PACs); and
Strengthening student career readiness activities and opportunities.

PLTW Engineering PAC Networking Event

The PLTW Engineering PAC held its very first Networking event for students to connect with industry partners. It was a successful event at the Motor House on North Ave. Employers included Northop Grumman, as well as higher education partners Johns Hopkins University and UMBC. They hope to grow this event and repeat it again soon to reach more students.

#PLTWPathway

Middle Schoolers Explore the CTE Labs at Carver Vocational Technical HS

Carver Vocational Technical High School in conjunction with the Office of Career Readiness - Work-Based Learning brought together students from 6 Baltimore City Middle Schools to tour the CTE Labs and learn more about the opportunities at Carver Vocational Technical High School. Students were treated to a showcase of student life; including Carvers Cheerleaders, Majorettes, and Band. Students and staff had the opportunity to have hands on exposure to the over 10 of the programs offered at Carver. The event ended with students eating lunch sponsored by the Food and Beverage program.

The Office of Career Readiness - Work-Based Learning would like to extend a huge word of thanks to the students and staff of Carver Vocational Technical HS for their hospitality. Special thanks to Principal Summerville, Ms. Dean and Ms. Scribner (our CTE Leads) for organizing this great opportunity. Your dedication and support to the Middle School CTE Choice process never goes unrecognized.

If you or a loved one is interested in Carver Vocational Technical High School or are interested in learning more about Career and Technical Education in Baltimore City Public Schools, join us at the 2023 Middle School Choice Fair being held at the Baltimore Convention Center Saturday, December 9, 2023. For questions or further details please speak to your School Counselor or your Choice Liaison.

Have you joined a Program Advisory Committee?

City Schools encourages industry and community partners, and CTE instructors to become a part of Program Advisory Committees (PAC), which bring together educators and industry professionals to cultivate the future of our CTE pathways. The focus of the PACs are to advise, assist, and advocate for high-quality CTE programming that are aligned with industry standards.

Learn more here

Career Readiness Systemic Professional Development

On November 17th CTE Instructors and WBL Instructors came together for a full day of professional development on topics that included: infusing career preparation and student engagement strategies; effective lesson planning; CSTA Standards for IT Teachers; 9th Grade CTE Choice; CTE Business Instruction and Strategies; Enhancing Instructional Practices and Student Engagement -- and more. We thank our instructors and industry partners for leading these informative sessions.

City Schools Culinary Students Experiene the Sagamore Pendry

On November 28th, 2023 Baltimore City students within the Culinary Pathway from Carver Vocational School, Edmondson Westside High School, Forest Park Senior High School, and Mergenthaler Vocational-Technical High School attended an experience at The Sagamore Pendry. Within this experience students were able to have a fine dining etiquette lunch lead by Crystal L. Bailey, where they enjoyed salad, pasta, steak, and cake. Students also participated in a tour around the hotel where they were able to see the presidential suit, the gym, the rooftop, and much more. Lastly, students listened to a chef from the hotel, in order to understand his experience within the culinary field and they were also able to speak with the general manager, Juan Webster, in order to understand his experience within hospitality. With the help of Visit Baltimore, Baltimore City students were able to explore their own city and see the job opportunities that are available to them!

Business, Management And Finance Pathway Attend Career Panel

On December 6th, 2023 students within the Business, Management, and Finance Pathway from Edmondson-Westside High School attended a career panel and tour at RSM. With collaboration with Junior Achievement, these students were able to hear from Certified Public Accountants, learn about working within a business, and also were able to see what an office space looks like. Students were able to use the knowledge they learn within the classroom and what they learned at RSM to end the event off with a business Jeopardy game! Students were exposed to the environment of CPAs, partners, managers, and more!

The Mid Atlantic Carpenter's Training Center Welcomes Students

On a brisk November morning, a group of eager students embarked on a unique learning adventure at The Mid-Atlantic Carpenters' Training Centers for the National Apprenticeship Week Open House. The air was filled with anticipation as the students, clad in their curiosity and determination, looked forward to gaining firsthand experience in the carpentry trade.

As they entered the training center, the students were greeted by the energetic hum of activity. The scent of sawdust and the sounds of tools in motion created a symphony of craftsmanship. This open house, hosted in collaboration with the Eastern Atlantic States Regional Council of Carpenters and the Carpenter Contractor Trust, promised more than just a tour—it was a journey into the heart of work-based learning.

The day commenced with a warm welcome from seasoned carpenters and trainers who emphasized the importance of practical, hands-on experience in mastering the art of carpentry. The students were then divided into groups, each led by a mentor, and were encouraged to participate in various workstations.

At one station, students delved into the intricate world of framing, learning the precise measurements and techniques required to create the skeleton of a structure. Skilled instructors patiently guided them, explaining the significance of each step and fostering an environment where questions were welcomed.

The Eastern Atlantic States Regional Council of Carpenters booth became a hub of inspiration for the students. Journeyman carpenters shared their personal stories, emphasizing the impact of work-based learning on their careers.

The students discovered that carpentry was not just about skills; it was about passion, commitment, and the pride of contributing to the built environment.

Moving on to the Carpenter Contractor Trust area, students engaged with industry professionals who shed light on the collaborative nature of construction projects. They learned about effective communication between contractors and carpenters, gaining insights into how successful partnerships contribute to the seamless execution of projects.

Throughout the day, the students actively participated in hands-on activities, from honing their skills in precision cutting to understanding the importance of teamwork in executing complex carpentry tasks. The real-world applications of their theoretical knowledge became apparent as they witnessed the transformation of raw materials into tangible structures.

As the National Apprenticeship Week Open House drew to a close, the students left with more than just a collection of newfound skills. They carried with them a deeper understanding of the carpentry profession, gained through immersive, work-based learning experiences. The day had not only demystified the intricacies of carpentry but had also instilled a sense of passion and purpose in the hearts of the students, setting the stage for a future generation of skilled carpenters ready to shape the world with their hands and knowledge

Maryland Page Program Update

The Maryland Page Program has successfully completed the recruitment and selection phase for the next legislative session. We are proud to report that we have filled all 10 seats and 3 alternate seats with very impressive senior student profiles. Applications came in from Carver, NAF, City College, Edmondson Westside, Poly, and Mergenthaler Vocational High School. Dr. Offer from MGA in Annapolis is pleased and sent out welcome/acceptance letters mid-November. Our team is excited and plans to visit the students during the legislative session in Annapolis to see how this paid internship runs.

Share A Story, Event Or Opportunity With Us!

We value the voices of our students, teachers, school based staff and partners. If you would like to share a recent story highlighting our students as they prepare for college and careers, or share a relevant opportunity or event, please send us your submission.

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Upcoming Events & Announcements

Career Ready Fridays

Each month the Office of Career Readiness offers schools the opportunity to engage in a comprehensive program to provide exploration and experiential learning through 10 career pathway clusters.

If you are interested in participating in this dynamic program please use this link to gain access to our program file. Should you have any questions or concerns, please contact Celina Acham - Work-Based Learning Staff Specialist, caacham@bcps.k12.md.us.

#CareerReadyFridaysPlaylist

Host a City Schools' Senior this Spring

Host and/or sponsor a City Schools’ senior for their 13-week spring semester work-based learning internship experience through a virtual or in-person internship, pre-apprenticeship program, or a training/certification program.

Senior Spring work-based learning internship experiences run for 13 weeks, four days a week (Monday-Thursday), four hours a day from Monday, February 12, 2024 to Friday, May 10, 2024.

Important Dates

December 19th – City Schools’ Senior WBL Internship Fair
January 12th – Internship Host Site Application Deadline
February 12th – Senior Internships Start
May 10th – Senior Internship Conclude
June 3rd – 10th – Senior Graduations!!!

For more information, contact Adenike at aakintilo@bcps.k12.md.us.

JA Inspire

Join us Monday, December 18th and Tuesday, December 19th as we launch our 3rd Annual Junior Achievement Inspire Secondary and Post-Secondary Fair. JA Inspire is an interactive virtual CTE and Career Fair that partners our learners with CTE Centers across the district as well as many of our industry partners. Students in grades 6-12 can experience webinars, company tours, and panel discussions with leaders throughout the City.

If you are interested in registering your school to participate, please complete this form or contact Celina Acham (caacham@bcps.k12.md.us) for more details.

Baltimore’s Promise and the Youth Grantmakers Initiative Release Workforce Development RFP

The Youth Grantmakers (YG) Initiative endeavors to establish a permanent, youth-led grantmaking body through which public and private youth-serving resources can flow. This grantmaking structure has been developed by older youth from Baltimore City ages 16-24 serving as the inaugural cohort of YGs. In this second cycle of grantmaking, YGs will be allocating $500,000 in resources to support Baltimore City’s older youth ages 16-24 connect to workforce and post-secondary employment opportunities. The $500,000 will be used to support efforts increasing access to opportunities that put youth and young adults on track to employment through programming such as career exposure, job shadowing, job readiness, credentialing, internships, apprenticeships, and certification programs.

RFP opportunity

Proposals are due by January 5, 2024.

Student Opportunity Board

WISE Spring Paid Internship 2024

The JHU Center for Educational Outreach, is excited to begin accepting students for the spring and summer WISE paid internship. The deadline to apply for Spring is 11:59 PM on January 7, 2024. Below are the three things you must complete to be considered for this opportunity to work alongside JHU faculty and their graduate students on cutting-edge research. We suggest you contact your teacher now to request a recommendation, and you should reach out to your counselor to have them send your transcript; you’ll want to give them enough time to submit. You should also pay close attention to the word count requirement on the application and take the time to proofread your submission before submitting. As always, if you have any questions or need help completing your application just send me an email or we can arrange a call.

Spring—Approximately 14 weeks between February – May 2024, 3 hours per day, twice per week

Summer—Approximately 4 weeks between July – August 2024, 6 hours every weekday

Seawall Development Shadowship

At Seawall, we believe in creating accessible opportunities for students to learn from a community-centered real estate company. Because longer internships aren’t always the right fit (for students or us!), we have the Seawall Shadowship Program, designed to let high school and college students get a glimpse into the world of real estate. We hope that through this program we can access more students throughout the year and give them a taste of what development looks like when approached differently. We accept applications on a rolling basis - and encourage you to share with any young people in your life looking to learn more about real estate, social entrepreneurship, and community development.

Learn more and apply.

NIH Summer Internship Program

Gain hands-on biomedical research experience in laboratory and clinical settings. Work with internationally recognized scientists while participating in professional development workshops and other activities to enhance investigative skills.

The online application opens in mid-November and closes Friday, February 16, 2024 @ noon ET.

Join an information session to learn more on January 04, 2024, 4-5 pm via Zoom, please visit https://www.training.nih.gov/events/attnihhssip-010424/ to register.

For more information, contact Lizzy Jackson Fleischmann, Lizzy.jacksonfleischmann@nih.gov, or visit https://www.nia.nih.gov/nia-summer-internship.

Invest in Girls- Be the CFO of Your Life

A series of free virtual workshops for Baltimore City high school female-identifying students to learn more about managing money and careers in the financial industry. Topics include: budgeting, using credit cards wisely, understanding interest, paying taxes, and careers in finance.

Jan. 17, 24, 31 and February 17, 21, and 28th from 8pm-9pm virtual sessions with an in-person culminating event on March 25th to meet professional women and discuss careers. Girls who complete all sessions will be rewarded with a certificate of completion and $100 at the in-person event.

Registration required: Deadline January 8th

Registration Here

Contact: mcee@towson.edu or ffalatko@towson.edu