- Northview High School
- 2020-21 News
Urban League Helps Northview Students Prepare for Careers
May 4, 2021 – Students at Northview High School have been working on their job readiness skills with assistance from the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis.
“[Principal] Brian O’Connor and [Assistant Principal] Mark Sharp were very interested in establishing a relationship with the Urban League since the Urban League plays such an important role in our community,” said Sally Difani, SSD’s administrator of community partnerships. “Establishing partnerships that would allow our students to meet and interact directly with the Urban League personnel could potentially introduce them to a resource they could utilize throughout their lives.”
Cynthia Wilson and Hosea Jackson of the Urban League have been working with a group of freshman students on expanding their job skills. With the goal of sharing job skills in an interactive and engaging way, Wilson and Jackson have asked students to identify areas they feel are their strengths. This information is then used to develop their resumes, as they learn more about each component that makes up a resume and important details about job skills.
“While we hope that this collaboration imparts information to students that will assist them as they begin thinking about employment, we also believe that the relationships being created with Ms. Wilson and Mr. Jackson could be valuable to Northview students as they progress through high school and beyond,” said Difani. “This partnership is one that is valued by the staff at Northview High School, and we believe that the relationships being created could lead to other programs being established that will be of benefit to our students.”
The partnership is meant to act as a foundation to University of Missouri’s Pre-Employment Transition Service program (Pre-ETS). Pre-ETS is a no-cost transition service for students who are eligible for vocational rehabilitation services. The program focuses on self-advocacy, work-based learning, post-secondary counseling, workplace readiness, and job exploration.
The Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis has been serving the community for over 100 years. Beginning as a social services organization, they now also promote education excellence, economic opportunity, community empowerment, and civil rights and advocacy.