ICR Iowa Sector Partnerships

ICR Iowa Sector Partnerships

Sector Partnerships are comprised of diverse businesses within an industry, as well as education, workforce, economic, and community organization partners.  These business led partnerships develop goals and strategies, and implement and evaluate strategies to meet the workforce needs of a given industry.

Learn more about the work of the six ICR Iowa Sector Partnerships in the region and how to get involved.

Business Leadership/Executive Committee

Board Chair: Tom Cavanagh, Goodwill Light Manufacturing
Vice Chair: Erik Lewis, Climate Engineers
Treasurer: Jodi Wacha, Frontier Co-op

Facilitator

To learn more about the work of the sector partnership or to become involved, please contact:

Barb Rawson, Barb.Rawson@kirkwood.edu (319)398-2754

Data

Goals/Strategies/Accomplishments

Goal: Develop a system that increases awareness of the industry and enhances students’ exploration of viable careers offered through employers in the region.

Outcome: Twenty-one companies have sponsored a portal; individuals can learn more about these respective companies, jobs available, wages, etc. by going to https://explore-manufacturing.org/

Goal: Engage middle school students in project based learning opportunities that increase awareness of the manufacturing industry.

Outcome: Partnered with Vernon Middle School’s technology exploration unit. Students created a design concept of the schools’ character pillars, shared their design plans with Kirkwood’s AutoCAD class via zoom simulating a real world work experience, and the AutoCAD class created the design and shared it with New Leader Manufacturing. The students toured New Leader Manufacturing where they watched their design get laser cut and then hung in their school.

Goal: Partner with the Kirkwood High School Academy students and instructors to increase industry awareness, real world training and career opportunities.

Outcome: Formed a relationship with instructors to:

  • use the portal in the classroom for career and business exploration and to
  • alert students of internships and job opportunities.

Upcoming Events

Advancing the Future Tours is an annual event held in October during Manufacturing Week. Local middle school and high school students, along with the public is invited to tour local manufactures to learn what is created in the region, careers in the industry and training/credentials required. For more information about this event, please contact Barb Rawson at (319)398-2754 or Barb.Rawson@kirkwood.edu.

Resources/Tools

Statewide career pathway mapping

Business Leadership/Executive Committee

Board Chair: Derek Powers, Martin Gardner Architecture
Vice Chair: Craig Montz, Miron Construction
Treasurer: Mike Nemschoff, City Construction

Facilitator

To learn more about the work of the sector partnership or to become involved, please contact:

Kylie Gudenkauf, Kylie.Gudenkauf@kirkwood.edu, (319)398-5888

Data

Labor Shed Report
EMSI Report

Goals/Strategies/Accomplishments

Goal: Host Build My Future- ACE Event to give students an opportunity to experience careers with hands on activities in a wide range of trades and craft professions while promoting career pathways.

Outcome: The event brought together 18 companies with 153 7th and 8th graders from 10 different schools. Students engaged in hands on activities that aligned with the traits that were elevated in their career interest assessment profile.

Goal: Further develop a system that increases awareness of the industry and enhances students’ exploration of viable careers offered through employers in the region. Developments will include curriculum content that will serve as a tool for schools, educators and at sector board events.

Outcome: https://explore-ace.org/

Upcoming Events

Build My Future
The Build My Future event, which showcases high-skill, high-wage, in-demand careers in Iowa’s skilled trades, allows students to explore and participate in hands-on activities in carpentry, electricity, welding, roofing, masonry, plumbing, advanced manufacturing, computer-aided design, architecture modeling, heavy equipment, and more. This immersive event puts students in the middle of the action so they can see the different career paths available in Iowa with varying levels of training and education required.

2020 Event: April 21, 2020 at the Kirkwood Continuing Education Training Center
2020 Employer Registration Form
2020 Employer Sponsorship Form

For more information, please contact Kylie Gudenkauf with Kirkwood Community College.

Resources/Tools

N/A

Business Leadership/Executive Committee

Board Chair: Joe Collier, Sedgwick
Vice Chair: Angie Swartzendruber, Hybrid Transit
Treasurer: Mollie Woltz, BankIowa
Website Committee Chair: Matt McPherson, Robert Half
Iowa Works Partnership Committee Chair: Chris Carr, US Cellular

Facilitator

To learn more about the work of the sector partnership or to become involved, please contact:

Cheri Kampann, Cheri.Kampman@kirkwood.edu

Data

Labor Shed Report
EMSI Report

Goals/Strategies/Accomplishments

Goal: Develop a system that increases awareness of the industry and enhances students’ and the available workforce’s exploration of viable careers offered through employers in the region.

Outcome:

  • Local companies have sponsored the development of a website that supports students and the available workforce in completing an interest assessment and exploring careers in business services that align with their personality type. To learn more, go to: https://explore-business.org/

Goal: Increase awareness of occupations and careers in the business services sector among BlendEd participants.

Outcome:

  • Local businesses implemented a series of four interactive sessions with 62 students in partnership with BlendEd instructors at Jefferson High School.  In session 1, businesses introduced students to Business Services Industry, career paths and soft skills that are transferable to the industry. In session 2, businesses helped students make the connection between the Holland Code they most identified with on their career interest assessment and job descriptions in the industry. Students identified items in a job description that they would be most interested in/ mostly align with their natural skills and interests. In session 3, businesses coached students on draft resumes produced for a specific job. Businesses introduce students to the interview process, interview questions, what to wear, non-verbal communication, etc. In session 4, students completed mock interviews with business representatives from the industry.  The businesses provided coaching to students.
  • The Board is developing website content that will help visitors make connections between their skills and interests, employers in the region and career opportunities.

Goal: Develop a working relationship with Iowa WORKS staff that increases staff awareness of industry occupation demands and connects job seekers to job opportunities or training.

Outcome:

  • Businesses representatives met with Iowa WORKS staff to provide an overview of in-demand jobs and shared tools for IowaWorks staff to use with job seekers (Pathway Maps and Customer Service Hero videos).
  • The Business Service Sector Board is collaborating with Iowa Works in piloting a work-based intermediary service that helps the available workforce population explore career opportunities in the industry.

Upcoming Events

N/A

Resources

Customer Service Hero Videos with Call to Action for High School Students:

Customer Service Hero Videos with Call to Action for Available Workforce Populations:

Customer Service Hero Videos with No Call to Action

Business Leadership/Executive Committee

Board Chair: Sam Monroe, MercyCare Community Physicians
Vice Chair: Stephanie Humphries, Right At Home
Treasurer: Jenna Gardner, The Gardens of Cedar Rapids
Past Chairs: Dan Helle, Iowa City VA Health Care Systems and John Meyer, Unity Point
Committee Chair: Christine Gust, University of Iowa Healthcare

Facilitator

To learn more about the work of the sector partnership or to become involved, please contact:

Judy Stoffel, Judy.Stoffel@kirkwood.edu (319)398-5503

Data

Labor Shed Report
EMSI Report

Goals/Strategies/Accomplishments

Goal: Develop a system that increases awareness of the industry and enhances students’ and the available workforce’s exploration of viable careers offered through employers in the region.

Outcome: Local companies have sponsored the development of a website that supports students and the available workforce in completing an interest assessment and exploring careers in healthcare that align with their personality type. To learn more, go to: https://explore-healthcare.org/

Goal: Increase awareness of high demand occupations in the region and preparation for the workforce among students participating in the Patient Care High School Academy.

  1. Twenty- five businesses interacted with 188 students through interactive activities at the Health Care Expo highlighting in-demand occupations in the region.
  2. Fifteen businesses completed mock interviews and interview coaching with over 60 students who completed Certified Nurse Aide training.
  3. In 2020, the board will be holding Mock Interview events with High School Academy students in Linn, Benton and Johnson counties.

Goal: Increase the number of businesses in Linn and Johnson Counties that host job shadows and internships for 11th and 12th grade students in the careers identified by the Health Care Sector Board by June 2019.

Outcome: Three new businesses hosted internships or job shadows in 2018-2019 academic year, one new business signed on to host an internship in the 2019-2020 academic year and two employers are supporting businesses who are seeing ways to begin implementing job shadows or internships in the future.

Goal: Develop a working relationship with Iowa WORKS staff that increases staff awareness of industry occupation demands and connects job seekers to job opportunities or training.

Outcome:

  • Businesses representatives met with Iowa WORKS staff to provide an overview Career Pathway maps that they can use as a tool with IowaWorks customers and highlighted in-demand jobs.
  • The Health Care Sector Partnership is collaborating with Iowa Works in piloting a work-based intermediary service that helps the available workforce population explore career opportunities in the industry. Group job shadows will be piloted with six local employers between July – September 2019.

Upcoming Events

N/A

Resources

Statewide career pathway mapping
Iowa Health Science Work-based Learning Toolkit

Business Leadership/Executive Committee

Board Chair: Paul Nus, Folience
Vice Chair: Todd Chamberlain, MedBlox, Inc.

Past Chair: Steve Davis

Facilitator

To learn more about the work of the sector partnership or to become involved, please contact:

Gary Vogt, Gary.Vogt@kirkwood.edu, (319) 398-4485

Data

Labor Shed Report
EMSI Report

Goals/Strategies/Accomplishments

Goal: Increase number of teachers taking Professional Development in computational thinking and computer sciences.

  1. Strategy #1: Work with the network of computational thinking/computer science professional development providers to identify opportunities available for educators.
  2. Strategy #2: Work with Grant Wood Area Education Agency (GWAEA) and area school districts to communicate professional development opportunities to students.

Goal: Increase universal exposure to computational thinking and computer science to students in the region.

  1. Strategy #1: Identify and be a resource in sharing IT awareness outreach opportunities in the region for IT Industry professionals.
  2. Strategy #2: Work with IT Industry professionals to develop a variety of easy to use presentations surrounding IT awareness including (Coding, Networking, Security….)

Upcoming Events

N/A

Upcoming Events

Statewide career pathway mapping
YouTube Page

Business Leadership/Executive Committee

Board Chair: Rayanna Bockenstedt, Thompson Truck & Trailer
Vice Chair: Jr. Garcia, JM Swank, LLC
Past Chair: Chris Hummer, Don Hummer Trucking
Treasurer: Doug Blanchard, Suburban Lumber Company

Facilitator

To learn more about the work of the sector partnership or to become involved, please contact:

Ashley Grimm, Ashley.Grimm@kirkwood.edu, (319)398-7130

Data

Labor Shed Report
EMSI Report

Goals/Strategies/Accomplishments

Goal: Increase awareness about the transportation and logistics industry, highlighting the diversity of occupations/ careers within it.

Strategy 1: Host an Annual Rollin’ Rally event in conjunction with the Freedom Festival providing hands on activities promoting careers in transportation and logistics.

Outcome: There were over 30 companies represented at the event with 40 vehicles on display. 472 individuals attended the event.

Strategy 2: Developed a video to share with K-12 and the public.

Outcome: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1vDXbmtfzlePXTHrVh7cRVaLuwCOXcJUd/view?usp=sharing

Strategy 3: Develop a system that increases awareness of the industry and enhances students’ and the available workforce’s exploration of viable careers offered through employers in the region.

Outcome: Local companies have sponsored the development of a website that supports students and the available workforce in completing an interest assessment and exploring careers in transportation that align with their personality type. To learn more, go to: https://explore-transportation.org/

Upcoming Events

N/A