Durango High School has been working hard to develop our career and technical education programs. Over the last few years we’ve added pathways for our students in the areas of business, computer science, culinary arts, early childhood education, engineering in addition to our existing programs of agricultural, alternative education, construction trades, studio arts, and welding. We have grown the number of seats in CTE programs from a little over 300 to almost 1200 in less than three years! Additionally, we have partnered with Pueblo Community College to offer students college credit for many of these programs.

The push to bring these programs back to Durango High School proliferated from meeting with community members and business leaders, and by talking with students over the past few years. Across the nation our students are entering a very strong economy. Our unemployment rates are near historic lows, and yet thousands of jobs go unfilled every year. The primary reason is there is a skills gap. Students were not being prepared to enter the workforce with the necessary skills to be successful. Locally, we have in-demand, high-wage positions available right now. We are trying to fill the needs of our community by developing our own strong talent pipeline.

We have been listening to our business partners to understand what the job market looks like in Durango. What trends are we seeing? How can Durango High School best prepare our students to enter the workforce either right out of high school or through continued education in trade schools or traditional colleges? We have been working to develop opportunities for our students to gain real-world work experiences.

We would like to personally invite you to participate in the J.I.V.E. Fair! Friday, September 13, 2019, sponsored by Durango School District 9-R . J.I.V.E stands for Jobs, Internships, Volunteer opportunities and Experiences. This event is intended to bring area businesses and nonprofits together to present and screen for these opportunities for our area high school students.

Why should your business participate? This is a great way to build community partnerships, grow our own talent pool, expose students to a wide range of employment opportunities and more. Research has shown that through participating in work-based learning partnerships, local businesses reduce training costs and turnover rates. It provides opportunities to recruit and develop a highly skilled workforce for hard-to-fill and in-demand jobs. All of this leads to a significant return on investment (ROI) for you, for our students and for our community. Your ROI expands way beyond your bottom line by building community partnerships, strengthening your community by developing local talent, and providing students with the work experiences to gain those transferable skills of strong work ethic, communication, collaboration, critical thinking, and problem solving.