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Chesterfield County Public Schools

Ready, Set, HIRE!

ChamberRVA

Dr. David Eshelman, Director of Career and Technical Education

9900 Krause Road Chesterfield, Virginia 23832

804-748-1405

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Chesterfield County Public Schools

Dr. James F. Lane, Superintendent

Superintendent@ccpsnet.net 804-748-1405

1. What were the processes employed and the desired outcomes and strategies of this

project/program in your division? (300 words)

Processes:

Chamber RVA has provided business professionals for mock interviews at the Chesterfield Career and

Technical Center in a program titled Ready. Set. Hire. for the past four years. This year’s program is

scheduled to take place February 23, 2018. This annual event brings together business professionals,

students, and teachers to contribute to the preparation of career and technical education students.

Students’ preparation for the event includes the development of a professional resume as well as

instruction and practice in interview techniques.

This is a collaborative event between the Chamber RVA, the Chesterfield County Public Schools’ CTE

director and the administration, teachers, and students at the Chesterfield Career and Technical Center.

Both campuses of the technical center participate in this event.

The Chamber recruits business professionals that will conduct mock interviews of students. The

Chamber, in collaboration with the Tech Center administration, identify the programs that will

participate in the event. For the past two years, and again in 2018, our Information Technology

programs have participated. This year we will add several medical career programs to the event.

Once the targeted programs are identified, the related instructors begin preparing students for

interviews. They assist them in the development of a resume. They also prepare them for the actual

interview.

This year, Chamber RVA is adding a presentation from the human resource departments of two large

area employers. They will talk to the students about navigating the 21st century hiring processes.

Dominion Energy will provide one of these presentations.

We typically will have approximately 40 professionals to conduct the interviews and approximately 70

students will receive up to three interviews.

Desired Outcome:

Students will gain an awareness of the process involved in obtaining a job in their industry. They will

learn how to communicate their technical knowledge in a very short, succinct setting.

Business professionals aligned with the chosen CTE programs will strengthen their business partnership

with the Chesterfield Career and Technical Center.

2. In what specific ways does the project/program help to prepare students to be workforce ready?

(500 words)

The professional interaction of business experts with students raises the rigor of the students’

educational experience and provides students a realistic goal of attaining access to competitive industry

careers. This adds a real-world relevance to the students’ learning experience. The formal and informal

interaction between the students and the business professionals provides the opportunity for students

to gain industry specific career guidance. In some cases, this experience leads to a student receiving an

actual interview and a job offer.

The experience for the students includes a critique of their resumes, professional attire and their written

and verbal communication skills. In addition, students are provided exposure to industry-specific

interview questions. Teachers are provided with a professional rubric to use while preparing students

for their interviews.

In order to be prepared for the interviews, students have to have knowledge of the intellectual aspects

of their industry as well as the real-world skills. Some students are exposed to a panel interview, thus

providing a higher level of rigor and real-world experience.

Students gain content understanding and skills required of their program that they will demonstrate in

their interview responses. For example, students in the CISCO networking program will learn configuring

and hardening of Cisco Routers and Switches as well as designing, securing, and subnetting networks

and hardening PCs. They will also practice application of cybersecurity measures.

Students are provided exposure to every aspect of the industry relevant to their program. The IT

programs at the Tech Center are centered on a Project Based Learning environment where students

must be able to operate in a collaborative environment to produce a project that incorporates multiple

elements from their curriculum. The business partnerships developed through this event provide judges

for these projects.

Participation in the event contributes to a student’s confidence level when they have the opportunity

for actual interviews. In addition, this experience strengthens their workplace professional skills. They

receive feedback from their teachers through individual discussions as well as a comprehensive

overview of the results.

3. How was your school board engaged in this project/program and what other entities collaborated

with this effort? (300 words)

Chesterfield County School Board members are invited to the event. At least one member will

attend and participate in the opening program. Board members that attend typically remain

through the event to observe and talk with students.

Chamber RVA is the major partner in the planning and execution of the event.

Through the Chamber RVA, over 40 businesses will participate in the event.

John Tyler Community College, through the Chamber, is very active in this program.

Dominion Energy, as a Chamber RVA member, will be providing one of the hiring presentations.

Chesterfield Career and Technical Center Culinary students prepare and serve the business

professionals in a real-world application of their program.

Chesterfield County Public Schools central office members are also very involved in the event.

The superintendent speaks to the business partners. The Director of CTE and his staff assist with

the operation of the event. The administration and staff of both campuses of the Chesterfield

Career and Technical Center collaborate to ensure a successful, meaningful experience for

students.

4. How has the division demonstrated the effectiveness of meeting the desired outcomes of your

project/program? (300 words)

While we don’t have specific data to demonstrate how many jobs students obtain as a direct result of

Ready.Set.Hire, this program contributes to the overall preparation of our students in terms of their

ability to move on to post graduate education and/or employment. Many of these students will obtain

credentials that include Microsoft Technical Associate certifications, Comp/TIA A+, Net+, and Security+;

Cisco CCENT, and Cisco CCNA. These credentials will strengthen their resumes as they compete for

future jobs.

Testimonials from our students reflect the contribution the Ready.Set.Hire event made to their overall

real world preparation. Students indicate that it makes them more aware of the type of structure and

questions they will encounter in future interviews. Many of the students in our IT programs will go to

work in the IT field straight out of high school due to the skills they obtained at the tech center,

including strong interview preparation.

5. Why does this project/program deserve recognition? (500 words)

The Virginia Board of Education has developed a “Profile of a Virginia Graduate” that describes the

attributes, skills and experiences a student should attain to be life-ready. According to this profile, a

Virginia graduate must:

Achieve and apply appropriate academic and technical knowledge (content knowledge);

Demonstrate productive workplace skills, qualities, and behaviors (workplace skills);

Build connections and value interactions with others as a responsible and responsive citizen

(community engagement and civic responsibility); and

Align knowledge, skills and personal interests with career opportunities (career exploration).

The Ready.Set.Hire. program supports several of the components of the profile. Students must be

prepared to demonstrate their content knowledge during the interview. Their response should reflect

an understanding of the workplace qualities employers are seeking. Finally, the debriefings provided by

the employers provide students with more insight into what employers are looking for during an

interview.

Students participating in the program gain essential knowledge of the complex hiring process they may

encounter when they seek to enter the workforce.

This program also provides a conduit to the development of business partnerships. The contributions

the partnerships provide the related Career and Technical Education programs include:

Providing updates to instructors on current trends in the career pathway,

Providing opportunities for job shadowing,

Providing internships,

Sponsoring Career Trips,

Contributing to class activities as guest speakers, project judges, mentors, and consultants.

Many of the businesses that participate in Ready. Set. Hire. are already business partners of the

programs participating in the event. The Information Technology programs at the Chesterfield Career

and Technical Center have over 16 companies serving as advisors to their program. Many of these

companies regularly participate in the Ready.Set.Hire. program.

For example, the Computer Systems Technology and CISCO Networking programs have a very strong

relationship with Northrop Grumman, a global aerospace and defense technology company. Northrop

Grumman has participated each year in the Ready.Set.Hire. event. This company supports our

CyberPatriot teams by providing space at their Chester, Virginia data center for competitions.

This event provides a networking opportunity for participating businesses. This networking not only benefits the businesses but it often results in more businesses become partners as they began to realize how supporting our programs actually benefit their companies.