Alternative Spring Breakers reel in jobs for 2-1-1 On the Go!
| By Unknown user - Mar 16, 2009 11:40:33 AM ET |
| Also listed in: 2-1-1 On the Go! | Alternative Spring Break Detroit 2009 |
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Categories: Income, Basic Needs, Volunteerism, Advocacy, Giving, The LiveUnitedSEM Network, Alternative Spring Break Detroit 2009
Categories: Income, Basic Needs, Volunteerism, Advocacy, Giving, The LiveUnitedSEM Network, Alternative Spring Break Detroit 2009
Last Friday United Way for Southeastern Michigan (UWSEM) hosted yet another successful Alternative Spring Break. Here, college students came from all over to participate in a week of service projects in Detroit in lieu of other Spring Break plans. Nick, our program leader, and I had the pleasure of presenting 2-1-1 On the Go! to the students on their last day. It was a groggy bunch, them having been up slumber partying well into the morning, but they managed to respond to our mission with excitement (thanks to a little inspiration from UWSEM's Volunteer Coordinator, Kira Putt's cheerleading demonstration, and Nick's and my impeccable sense of humor).
Nick and I, as well as few other UWSEM staff members, led the students in going out into different communities in the Greater Detroit area, to find employers interested in hiring our clients. We sent teams to Dearborn, Midtown, Ferndale, and Hamtramck to scour the local businesses (avoiding national chains, with the exception of fast food restaurants) talking to employers about the needs of our clients. The teams went out equipped with an understanding of 2-1-1 and 2-1-1 On the Go!, and how to pitch the ask to employers for full-time jobs.
They must've done something right because we ended the day with 51 employers interested in varying degrees in helping out in some way with our mission. Not all of those employers will have jobs to offer, but at least they are willing to learn about our program and keep us in their back pocket if jobs do open up. Hopefully some will take to the mission and spread the word to other employers in their networks.
Nick has organized all the contacts into one spreadsheet (a task I avoid at all costs), and we will begin following up with the employers on Monday. We hope to get some jobs out of this, but more important is the experience that the ASBers were able to gain in being a unique voice for our clients. Hopefully they learned that you don't have to be on staff with 2-1-1 On the Go! to be a vital part of our ongoing mission, and they will continue to work on reeling in employers for us as they go about their lives.
This was a fun bunch to work with, and I am privileged to have met some pretty rad folks willing to give their time and energy for the betterment of people's lives.
Nick and I, as well as few other UWSEM staff members, led the students in going out into different communities in the Greater Detroit area, to find employers interested in hiring our clients. We sent teams to Dearborn, Midtown, Ferndale, and Hamtramck to scour the local businesses (avoiding national chains, with the exception of fast food restaurants) talking to employers about the needs of our clients. The teams went out equipped with an understanding of 2-1-1 and 2-1-1 On the Go!, and how to pitch the ask to employers for full-time jobs.
They must've done something right because we ended the day with 51 employers interested in varying degrees in helping out in some way with our mission. Not all of those employers will have jobs to offer, but at least they are willing to learn about our program and keep us in their back pocket if jobs do open up. Hopefully some will take to the mission and spread the word to other employers in their networks.
Nick has organized all the contacts into one spreadsheet (a task I avoid at all costs), and we will begin following up with the employers on Monday. We hope to get some jobs out of this, but more important is the experience that the ASBers were able to gain in being a unique voice for our clients. Hopefully they learned that you don't have to be on staff with 2-1-1 On the Go! to be a vital part of our ongoing mission, and they will continue to work on reeling in employers for us as they go about their lives.
This was a fun bunch to work with, and I am privileged to have met some pretty rad folks willing to give their time and energy for the betterment of people's lives.
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