For the 2nd year in a row, the Jobing Foundation is proud to present Experience Your Future Day in Phoenix, Arizona on Thursday, April 22nd at the University of Phoenix Stadium.  At this year’s event we’ll bring together more than 8,000 8th graders along with more than 120 local employers and education providers to learn about what the future of work.  And we all need a good shot in the arm of looking into the future.

It’s been a tough 18 months for this country.  Probably the most difficult in my lifetime, especially since I didn’t have to live through the Great Depression.  That was ancient history in my mind.  But life changes.  It’s natural for us to live through ebbs and flows.  And the last year of Experience Your Future Day planning has given me the opportunity to feel hope all over again.

8th graders are in the prime of their K through 12 learning experience.  They are still mostly young enough to be open to change.  Open to new ideas.  Open to exploration…. oftentimes without the heaviness of the peer pressure that comes with high school.  Did you know that after 8th grade, each year the drop out rate doubles.  Across the country, 1/3 of our students drop out before reaching their senior year.

So why is talking to these 8th graders good for our economy?  Some employers and educators have the idea that “I’m not recruiting 8th graders so it’s a waste of my time.”  In my viewpoint, that’s taking the short sighted approach.  Here’s why I believe it’s so important for us all to take the time and the resources to help guide these students:

  • First and foremost… while we’re not recruiting 8th graders, the time between 8th and 12th grade is not that far of a leap.  Like America, the American economy will not stay down.  It will rebound.  It will bounce back and in a few years, we’re going to be back to competing for great talent.  Why not help develop some of that great talent?
  • Did you know that 6 out of 10 of the highest growth positions over the next decade will require a post secondary education.  With 1/3 of our students dropping out before graduation, the labor shortage of ‘qualified’ workers will pick up right where it left off in early 2007.  As a nation, we’re falling behind in especially those careers requiring a STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) education. 
  • 8th grade is a time when a potential future employer has a particular effect on whether or not that student can make it through to matriculation.  Students that are starting to lose faith in why they should put forth the effort of their education will be lost.  They are the ones most in need of our help.  As an employer, I’m sure you’ve experienced those employees who have “quit but just haven’t left yet.”  Those that stay on long beyond the point they are still engaged.  This is also the case with high school students.  This is our chance as employers and educators to help reignite that flame.  That last push to help them see the the light at the end of the tunnel.
  • An investment of a day is a huge return on investment in your business both for TODAY and tomorrow.  The families of these 8,000 students will also be affected by this event.  Your company will be branded into those 8,000 homes as not only a company that cares about its community, but also the feeling that its a great place to work.  Those 8,000 local families are more likely to spend from companies that are a part of their communities.

Experience Your Future Day is a small investment of local employers’ time and resources to have big returns.  It’s an investment in the sustainability of your business.  It’s an investment in the future workforce.  And it’s an investment in the local economy.  If your company is not able to exhibit this year, at least volunteer!  We need more than 60 volunteers to help the students through this monumental learning experience.

It’s not philanthropy.  It’s good business.

Register online to sponsor, exhibit or volunteer at Experience Your Future.org.