By Scott Marquardt, Southwest Initiative Foundation
The newest issue of our CONNECT newsletter is all about career pathways. Our feature story has highlights from the vast network of partnerships around our region that are supporting our students in finding meaningful work and our employers in filling their workforce needs so that our economy and communities can thrive.
Choosing what to include was difficult because there is so much happening in career and technical education right now. Something we didn’t have room to cover in the feature that I want to call out are the career exploration events in southwest Minnesota. From IGNITE Your Future in Hutchinson to Southwest Minnesota Career Expo in Worthington and Marshall, thousands of students attend these fun, interactive events that help them “try on” different jobs. It takes hundreds of business, agency and education volunteers working together to pull it off.
Southwest Initiative Foundation (SWIF) is proud to not only be a
sponsor, but also to invest our time to support these events. More
than half our staff are based at the office in Hutchinson, and each year a group volunteers at IGNITE, as well as SWIF Chief Administrative Officer Missy Maiers serving on the event’s steering committee.
I’m grateful for the willingness of our team to mobilize their expertise and relationships to make multi-partner and multi-faceted convenings and projects a success. Career pathways work is not just something we fund. It’s something we at SWIF as an employer – and our staff as community members and even as parents – care deeply about.
As you read this issue’s highlights, know that there are many more efforts underway and take the opportunity to explore what’s happening in your own community.
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Child care gets a boost from Heron Lake-Okabena Community Foundation
Heron Lake Day Care Center opened in 1975 in the small town of Heron Lake in Jackson County. Kaye Fury started caring for kids at the center in 1980 and is currently the sole staff member. Earlier this year, Heron Lake-Okabena Community Foundation (HLOCF) awarded a grant to the center to pay for in-service training to comply with licensing requirements as well as supplies and activities for school age kids.
Continue Reading Child care gets a boost from Heron Lake-Okabena Community Foundation
The Ripple Effect of Quality, Affordable Child Care
Personal experience informs Ari Zaske’s commitment to finding quality child care solutions for everyone. When she and her husband, Mark, were expecting their second baby, their child care closed suddenly in 2022. The closure was “so emotional,” with families scrambling to find an alternative. Today, Ari’s family has found child care that’s a great fit for them. She’s also part of the Hutchinson Child Care Coalition, working to provide families options for quality, affordable child care in the community.
Continue Reading The Ripple Effect of Quality, Affordable Child Care
