Joseph DeLarm initially became interested in mechanics in high school where he was able to take a body shop class. DeLarm decided to continue learning about a career in mechanics by taking a Kirkwood Community College Automotive Technology Academy course while still in high school. The academy courses really allowed DeLarm to get a head start learning about

Luke Carson pursued a career in CAD/Mechanical Engineering Technology at Kirkwood Community College after taking a Project Lead The Way course in high school. “I used AutoCAD and other software in the class, I really enjoyed learning how to draw diagrams and prepare engineering drawings” said Carson “and I knew I wanted to pursue a

Chris Williams is not a teacher, but when students at Marion High School voiced interest in taking a welding course, the Hupp Electric Motors welder ventured out of his comfort zone and into the classroom. Williams had never taught before, or even thought about teaching, until an email from the Marion Economic Development Corp. to area businesses asked if

Did you know that Iowa has on average 4,000 open computing jobs and only 459 computer science students graduated in 2017? In the United States, there are more than half a million unfilled jobs in computing and technology. Additionally, these jobs are the top source of new wages in our country, which are projected to grow at twice the rate of all others.

MercyCare Business Health Solutions provides total health management for corporate wellness programs to support the health and wellbeing of employees. Molly McWilliam, a Senior Wellness Coach at MercyCare, supports the wellness program at Mercy Medical Center. Wellness coaching includes the mind, body and spiritual wellness of employees. Coaches help to

Kelsey Hewitt knew at a young age that she was interested in engineering. As many students do, she stumbled upon this career field in middle school during a career speaker day. “I had a big interest in math, science and problem solving,” Hewitt says. Hewitt went on to obtain an internship through Kirkwood Workplace Learning Connection at

The staff and volunteers at Indian Creek Nature Center (ICNC) are champions of nature. They strive to connect people to nature and create a passion for the outdoors. Indian Creek Nature Center is an amazing resource we have right in our backyard. While many roles are needed to make things run smoothly day to day, one of the more sought-after positions at

This year, Iowa has been expanding work-based learning to better prepare students for careers in high demand job markets. The state goal is for 70% of Iowa’s workforce to have education or training beyond high school. While this is a nice goal for the state to have, such a goal requires action from the communities to achieve it. Community Promise is