On behalf of the United Way Day of Caring Planning Team, we extend a special thank you to the staff and students for participating in this year’s Employment Thematic Unit and United Way Day of Caring. Both projects were a huge success.
Volunteers assisted our Adult Learners to prepare for employment by permitting them an opportunity to participate in a Mock Interview. Although most of our Adult learners have participated in interviews, most have never received specific feedback. Our goal was to provide that feedback in a caring, safe, and supporting way.
For those that may not be aware, we designed the day to simulate a real interview process. We created fictitious job descriptions and posted them on a job board and emailed them to our staff. Adult Learners interested in participating in an interview signed up for the company of their choice in our main office. Over the last two weeks, Adult Learners participated in an Employment Thematic Unit in which they discussed various aspects of employment including how to deal with stress during the interview, top qualities employers seek, how to research a company, and how to answer basic interview questions. Our Customer Service students gained secretarial experience by serving as our receptionist assisting students and interviewers with a multitude of administrative task. After a brief interview (15 minutes) our volunteers spend the remainder of their time talking to our students about how the interview went. Volunteers completed feedback sheets that will be shared with the interviewee’s teachers so that the employment preparation process continues.
The overall success of the day would not have been possible without the support of our planning team: Marie Brantis, Teresa Root, Terri Woodard, Dionne Brown, Annette Perticone, Ivin Pantos, and Alla Dewolf. We also would like to thank Deli Sandros, 1172 S Plymouth Ave, Rochester, NY 14611, for donating two sub trays. The sandwiches were delicious – go check them out! We also extend thanks to our 20 volunteers from Hillside Work-Scholarship Connections, RCSD, OACES, RIT, and the OACES Institutional Advisory Board and to the teachers of the 64 students that participated in Mock Interviews. Special thanks to Ms. Bedell’s Customer Service students. They were professional, attentive, helpful, and definitely, customer service oriented.
Again, Thank you everyone for making our 1st Day of Caring Mock Interviews a success.