Dr. Ben Churchill
Superintendent
Carlsbad Unified School District
Carlsbad Unified is excited to be a part of the development of an innovative avenue for students to explore future careers.
Investigating future careers is a truly daunting undertaking for a young person. But a new collaboration called the SOCAL Initiative — Student Opportunities for Career Awareness and Learning — is helping students with this important process. The group’s goal is to create a series of high-quality 3-minute videos that will introduce students to the local job market by highlighting local workers at their workplaces, demonstrating their work and discussing their careers. These videos will be shown in Career Technical Education (CTE) classrooms and also will be available in school counselors’ offices across the North County.
Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Bret Schanzenbach has always had an interest in providing real-world career Information for students as they make tough decisions about their futures. So in the past he supported activities such as guest speakers, field trips, and internships. As the pandemic made these experiences less feasible, he and his colleagues looked for new and sustainable ways to share information about the local job market with young people in the community. They came up with a plan to offer students virtual visits to local companies to observe the work of professionals and tradespeople via videos.
This community-based effort will focus on local job market needs, and will use local talent to expand knowledge of and interest in jobs available here in the North County. The career videos will specifically target a range of good jobs, from those requiring a community college certificate or vocational training program to those demanding college or advanced degrees. ViaSat, Solatube, TriCity Medical Center, and Erickson-Hall are just some of the local companies to be featured. Students watching the videos will be able to relate to the local North County scene, with views of recognizable landmarks such as the Carlsbad sign and the Oceanside pier.
SOCAL Initiative partners include the Carlsbad, Oceanside, and Vista Chambers of Commerce, the San Diego North Economic Development Council, and representatives from TriCity Medical Center, Carlsbad, Oceanside, and Vista Unified School Districts’ CTE programs, and the Carlsbad Educational Foundation. The Initiative has received a grant from San Diego County to fund the first phase of the project.
Phase I of the Initiative is building a web portal, due to roll out on Dec. 15, that will host 30 career videos. Each video will feature information about an in-demand career, and the essential skills and education that an applicant needs to get hired. It will be searchable by industry, company, or profession/job, and will also provide links that will guide interested students to high school and community college resources, and possible local internships. An additional 30 videos will be developed in Phase II.
The SOCAL Initiative is another powerful example of the support our schools receive from our local business and industry community. These videos will connect Carlsbad students with additional tools to help them navigate today’s workplace. And they will provide our students with valuable opportunities to learn about local careers.
VISIT THE SOCAL WEBSITE TODAY!