Photo by Columbus Chamber of Commerce

The Columbus Chamber of Commerce and the Educational Service Center of Central Ohio, ESCCO have completed a joint initiative of the Columbus Chamber of Commerce’s second Careers 2 Classrooms Educator Workforce Boot Camp graduating 48 teachers and administrators from 17 school districts.

Regarded as a growth between the Columbus Region’s education and business sectors, the Chamber of Commerce said it was “honored to have partnered with the Educational Service Center of Central Ohio (ESCCO) to provide this immersive experience to 48 teachers and administrators from 17 school districts.

“This initiative was made possible through the generous support of AT&T, Columbia Gas of Ohio, and the Ingram White Castle Foundation, facilitated by the Columbus Chamber of Commerce Foundation. Together, our goal was to increase local students’ access to information about rewarding career pathways that don’t require four-year degrees. Thank you to everyone involved in expanding our children’s horizons!”

About Careers 2 Classrooms 

This June, participants gathered as two cohorts at the first of the seven different employers they would visit throughout the week. Each employer represented a different growing sector in our region and shared their real-life industry expertise with educators about what jobs in their industry look like and what programs they have created to develop new talent. 

• Construction: Ohio Contractor’s Association 
• Energy: Columbia Gas of Ohio/NiSource 
• Healthcare: OSU Wexner Medical Center, OhioHealth 
• Modern Manufacturing: Columbus Steel, Engineered Profiles 
• Information Technology: CGI, Perry ProTech 
• Bioscience: Labcorp, Andelyn 
• Supply Chain & Logistics: G&J Pepsi, FST 
• Logistics Transportation: TRC, Ease Logistics 

Participants were then challenged to create a lesson plan or other project that they could use to expose students in their school to what they learned throughout the week. They presented their ideas to representatives from the companies they visited, administrators from their schools and community partners at COSI. Proposals ranged from further employer partnerships like tours and problem-based learning challenges to student-led marketing campaigns! Participants also earned continuing education credits for their work thanks to Ashland University. 

Why It Matters 

Without context, K-12 students make uninformed choices about what they are planning to do after they graduate. Teachers are credible and influential voices to our students, and, with help, they can feature opportunities that already exist in Ohio by being knowledgeable advocates of Ohio’s business community. They can help students connect with life-changing opportunities with employers and training programs. Raising this awareness among teachers requires us to proactively bridge the gap from a teacher’s current understanding of essential career skills and opportunities to what employers urgently need and how students can put their interests, talents, and passions to work. 

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