Employment Day: forty years of transitioning high school seniors into the workforce.

School counselors and career counselors have always viewed the transition of high school students into the workforce as a responsibility of high importance (American School Counselor Association [ASCA], 2003; Campbell & Dahir, 1997; Gibson & Mitchell, 2006; Myrick, 2003; Niles & Harris-Bowlsbey, 2005; Thompson, 2002). The teenager is on the verge of entering the adult world of work, and current decision making has an important impact on future career directions (Andersen & Vandehey, 2006). One third of the framework contained in the National Standards for School Counseling Programs of the American School Counselor Association (ASCA, 2000) consists of career development. State-level comprehensive developmental counseling program models should contain significant emphasis on the preparation of high school students for post-high school decision making. (Gysbers & Henderson, 2002). The New York State Comprehensive Model (New York State School Counselor Association, 2004), for example, follows the ASCA (2003) National Model closely and also folds into New York State's learning standards, especially the career development and occupational studies standards.

Embedded in this focus on career development is the structure to accommodate both "college-bound" and "work-bound" (Herr, 1995, p. 25) students. Anecdotally, school counselors have long since been accused of spending disproportionate amounts of time on the former students, to the detriment of the latter. Ideally, school counselors provide extensive career information opportunities for all students to learn what they need to know as they transition from high school. As Powell and Luzzo (1998) have noted, "counselors might want to consider the integration of career exploration and planning activities into courses required of all students for graduation" (p. 156). In a more strongly worded admonition, Mau, Hitchcock, and Calvert (1998) asserted, "Students who choose vocational tracks over college preparatory tracks should be assured that they are not inferior to college-bound students, and counselors should devote equivalent time and resources to college-bound and work-bound students" (p. 164).

The purpose of this article is to describe Employment Day, an annual career development event organized by a committee of the Western Suffolk Counselors' Association (WSCA), located in Suffolk County, Long Island, New York. This is a unique career development activity whose sole purpose has been to help graduating work-bound seniors to enter the workforce. Employment Day is in no sense a career fair, at which practitioners describe or explain their work to an audience, and it is much more than a job fair, at which random job seekers vie to be hired. Employment Day's uniqueness consists, first, in the careful preidentification of the student attendees; next, in the attention given to their preparation, from resume writing to interview techniques; then, in detailed coaching about their dress, appearance, and attitude; and, finally, in their familiarization with the employers whom they are to meet. Employment Day is a culminating career development experience for these seniors, leading to their gaining full-time employment upon, or shortly after, graduation.

Employment Day has endured for nearly 40 years. It seemed timely to explain it to a larger audience, with the hope that other professional counseling associations would replicate it as a best practice.

Background

Employment Day was created in the mid-1960s. Guidance and counseling services were expanding rapidly, along with the entire educational establishment on Long Island, New York. Spurred by a strong economy and a surge in population growth from the inner cities to the suburbs, school buildings were being constructed apace, and the need for teachers and counselors soared.

High school counselors' tasks then, as today, centered on scheduling students for classes, grade level by grade level, and assisting students in post-high school planning--specifically admission to college. A significant proportion of students were considered college bound; however, many students at the time were called work bound, that is, planning to enter the workforce right after high school.

The local counseling associations--WSCA and the neighboring Nassau Counselors' Association--were proactive in establishing support programs for college-bound students. They established a program of college fairs to provide information for students and parents about postsecondary educational opportunities. Two large fairs were offered in the fall and in the spring by each association, to which hundreds of local and nonlocal colleges were invited. Repeatedly, on a regular basis, representatives of about 300 institutions attended each fair. In addition, consortia of local high schools throughout the region organized smaller, in-school events, again for students and their parents, that coincided with the time frame around which the larger fairs were held, to reach individuals who might not be able to attend the larger fairs. No such events were developed to assist the vocational, or other work-bound, students.

In about 1966 or 1967, a small group of school counselors and work experience coordinators--business education teachers in high school who provide work experience for juniors and seniors, with credit earned toward a high school diploma--decided to develop an event that would help work-bound students. They concluded that such an event would be most powerful as students prepared for graduation from high school. Thus, Employment Day was born.

Development

Structure

WSCA constituents are 35 school districts within its geographical territory, all of which are automatically eligible to participate. In addition, selected school districts contiguous to WSCA's territory may be invited to participate. The Employment Day committee's leader is called the executive chairperson and is a member of WSCA's Executive Council. Several subcommittees carry out the actual work of arranging Employment Day: Business and Industry, Schools, Trade Schools and Military, Special Education, Publications, and Administrative Assistants.

The Business and Industry subcommittee recruits employers--the lifeblood of Employment Day. It works from a database of several hundred employers located in the Greater Long Island region and reaches out to new possible employer participants. The Schools subcommittee contacts the local high school counseling departments, registers them to participate each year, and assists districts in finding eligible seniors. The Trade Schools and Military subcommittee recruits participants from those specialties, given that some students may find these post-high school opportunities an avenue to employment. The Special Education subcommittee encourages high schools to send their eligible classified students and works with the Business and Industry subcommittee to find suitable employers. The Publications subcommittee produces the various informational materials that are distributed to schools, especially the all-important employer participant brochure, which briefly profiles each employer, the field of work in which the employer is engaged, and the job openings by title. Last, but by no means least, the Administrative Assistants subcommittee would, in other organizations, be titled the Hospitality subcommittee. The Administrative Assistants are the representatives of the host site who arrange for the use of the facility, including meeting spaces, breakfasts, lunch for the employers and counselors, public relations, advertising, and all the logistical details that go into making the event a success.

The committee meets monthly from October until Employment Day, usually held the last Wednesday in May of the school year. Specific tasks are scheduled to be accomplished during selected months. In January, invitations are sent to school districts; in February, invitational letters are mailed to businesses, trade schools, and the military; in March, public relations notices are sent to newspapers and other media, and print publications go to press; in April, recruitment begins and informational materials are distributed to schools, and then to teachers and students; and in May, employer participant brochures are distributed to counselors and students, and Employment Day takes place at the host facility.

The current Employment Day committee is composed of 28 members: 13 school counselors, 5 work experience coordinators, 6 representatives of the host site, an employer, a Department of Labor representative, a college representative, and a special education teacher.

Participants

Employment Day is a collaboration of players. Participants include school counselors; work experience coordinators; representatives of a host site; prospective employers; and, of course, students.

School counselors participate in two ways. First, counselor volunteers may work on one or more of the Employment Day subcommittees. They may be active counselors working in one of the participating districts or retired counselors. Second, active counselors who coordinate Employment Day in their local high schools are called liaison counselors. They either volunteer or are assigned to collaborate with the committee and promote recruitment of seniors within their schools. The Employment Day committee sends all correspondence to them, including the invitation and registration materials. The committee hosts 2 liaison counselor days for them: 1 in February, as a "welcome back" informational day, and 1 in late April or early May, during which the counselors receive the materials they need to take back to their schools for distribution to all concerned. The committee relies upon the liaison counselors to promote Employment Day by informing their students, communicating and collaborating with appropriate teachers, seeking the cooperation of the school administration, making transportation arrangements, and obtaining the commitment of a group of students to attend. The counselors also distribute the employer participant brochures to the students as they travel to Employment Day, check their appearance, and give them last-minute advice and tips on how to secure an actual job offer or the prospect of an interview sometime after Employment Day.

Work experience coordinators also participate in the Employment Day process in two important ways. First, they find employers. They are familiar with the employer requirements within the local job market as well as current market trends. Second, they communicate and collaborate with their active work experience colleagues in the schools, encouraging them to participate themselves, or at least work closely with the liaison counselors to identify students who would benefit most from the event. The partnership that Employment Day has fostered between the two groups--school counselors and work experience coordinators--has been the highlight of the event throughout its entire existence.

Employment Day depends upon the generosity of a host site for its existence: meeting spaces, breakfasts, parking, signs to be posted about the site, permissions and clearances to use a facility, and the list goes on. The Administrative Assistants provide employer lists for the Business and Industry subcommittee, breakfasts for the two liaison counselor meetings, a breakfast and a lunch for the employers on Employment Day, some printing services, public service announcements to the local print and television media, and so on. In short, Employment Day could not go on without them.

Who are the Employment Day employers? In general, they are companies, both small and large, that are looking for the kind of employees Employment Day can provide. They are willing to train high school graduates who seem to have good potential and who may fit the employer requirements. Employers include banks, technology companies, home health care service providers, retail stores and outlets, foundations, hotels, restaurants, day camps, day care centers, local civil service organizations, training schools, trade schools, and the U.S. military. They offer competitive starting salaries (some above minimum wage), regular salary increases, potential for promotion and advancement, health plans, and dental plans; a few offer tuition reimbursement for postsecondary education in a related field. Several seek the employment of classified students, because they have work that requires rote and repetition. Some are union employers, some not. All are reputable firms that are well known in the community.

Finally, a word should be said about the "ideal" student the committee wishes to see at Employment Day. He or she must be a high school senior whose intention it is to obtain a full-time job after successfully graduating from high school. The student should have some skills; in today's work environment, basic knowledge of computers is expected. Prior work experience while in high school is a plus, as is vocational-technical training, although neither is a requirement. A pleasant personality, or at least a good, positive attitude, goes a long way in influencing a potential employer who is meeting the student for the first time. Qualities such as dependability or a work ethic are difficult to assess of these students. However, the liaison counselors will have discussed these matters with the students prior to Employment Day. The Employment Day committee does encourage students who are classified to attend. Some employers are looking for workers who can perform repetitive tasks and who can function well in a structured work setting.

Settings

Employment Day is an event that has been sited in different locations. In the early years of the event, high schools in participating districts were the settings of choice. A volunteer high school would actually close for the day and make itself available for Employment Day. Alternatively, a district would permit its middle school to be the setting. Eventually, the Employment Day committee found itself searching for a new setting each year, and moving the event around became logistically difficult. In recent years, the pressures of testing to meet state and federal regulations have discouraged high schools as hosts. The committee has found local colleges to be more amenable to the task. Given the date of Employment Day--the last Wednesday in May--a college might close easily for the day, without real disruption to its routine. Only one building on the campus would be required for the event, resulting in minimal upset. For the past several years, Employment Day has been held at the same college campus. This has made the logistics of organizing Employment Day much easier, in that both the committee and the host's staff are familiar with the routine requirements for the event.

When Employment Day was sited in high schools or middle schools, classrooms were used to house the employers. Sometimes, two employers would share a classroom, and students would go to them to present their resumes and have a brief interview. If the employer were large enough and intended to interview numerous students, it would have its own classroom for the convenience of the setting. An Employment Day that hosted 40 employers would require a minimum of 20 classrooms, sometimes located on more than one floor of the building. This meant students had to travel throughout the hallways to locate their employers of choice. Nothing hindered their movement; there were no "class change" bells or other notices. Thus, students were able to move about freely and determined their own schedule of visits to employers. The liaison counselors were then enlisted to assist with traffic control and to generally keep track of the movements of their charges. This met with more or less success.

Now that Employment Day has moved to a college campus, logistical issues have eased. The college gymnasium has become the usual setting; employers are seated behind long rows of tables set close to one another, yet with enough space in between for a modicum of privacy. All students are in view all the time. Employers have adjusted their interview techniques to a few minutes of conversation with each student, unless the flow of participants is slow enough to permit more time with each one. Students are well trained to present a resume to each employer with whom they speak and are encouraged to come to Employment Day with a minimum of 10 well-prepared resumes and to leave empty-handed. That is the students' "outcome measure" of success.

Implications for Practice

Employment Day is a truly innovative career development event. First, it goes well beyond its more popular cousins--the career fair and the job fair--in sheer impact upon the lives of its participants. Hundreds, possibly thousands, of young people have found their first jobs while attending Employment Day over the many years of its existence. At the least, its participants have experienced the process of the job search in real time, in an environment that is safe, supportive, rich in learning, and irreplaceable. Second, Employment Day is a true collaboration of school professionals and the larger community for the direct benefit of young adults. School counselors and work experience coordinators, joined by volunteers from the business community and higher education, all focus on organizing a job search event for a somewhat overlooked population. For nearly 40 years, it has become a successful career development formula. Third, Employment Day can be described as a winning situation for all: High school seniors find employment, and local employers fill their current workforce requirements with a preidentified labor pool of applicants. Finally, Employment Day is a multicultural experience. It includes seniors of every ability level and ethnicity; it has adapted to the changing ethnic and racial demographic of the Greater Long Island community, with respect to both students and employers, during its existence.

Some school districts in the WSCA constituency have consistently resisted participating in Employment Day. On the one hand, some school districts are not interested in participating because they claim nearly 100% college attendance rates; others have indicated that they run a similar event in house. Finally, some schools districts have said that the expense of registration fees and transportation are prohibitive, whereas others just do not like the event. The Employment Day committee has countered by preparing a 10-minute video, using DVD technology, of the live 2004 Employment Day as a promotional tool. This is used each year to show prospective students about its importance and value. It has had a positive impact.

In summary, Employment Day is a unique career development event that is well worth replicating by all professional counseling associations.

References

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American School Counselor Association. (2003). The ASCA National Model: A framework for school counseling programs. Alexandria, VA: Author.

Andersen, P., & Vandehey, M. (2006). Career counseling and development in a global economy. Boston: Lahaska Press.

Campbell, C. A., & Dahir, C. A. (1997). The national standards for school counseling programs. Alexandria, VA: American School Counselor Association.

Gibson, R. L., & Mitchell, M. H. (2006). Introduction to career counseling for the 21st century. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education.

Gysbers, N. C., & Henderson, P. (2002). Implementing comprehensive school guidance programs: Critical leadership issues and successful responses. Greensboro, NC: CAPS Press.

Herr, E. L. (1995). Counseling employment-bound youth. Greensboro, NC: ERIC/Counseling and Student Services Clearinghouse.

Mau, W., Hitchcock, R., & Calvert, C. (1998). High school students' career plans: The influence of others' expectations. Professional School Counseling, 2, 161-166.

Myrick, R. D. (2003). Accountability: Counselors count. Professional School Counseling, 6, 180-184.

New York State School Counselor Association. (2004). The New York State Comprehensive Model. Albany, NY: Author.

Niles, S. G., & Harris-Bowlsbey, J. (2005). Career development interventions in the 21st century (2nd ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education.

Powell, D. F., & Luzzo, D. A. (1998). Evaluating factors associated with the career maturity of students. The Career Development Quarterly, 47, 145-158.

Thompson, R. A. (2002). School counseling best practices for working in the schools (2nd ed.). New York: Brunner-Routledge.

Joseph A. Despres, Department of Counseling and Development, Long Island University. Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Joseph A. Despres, Department of Counseling and Development, Long Island University, C. W. Post Campus, 720 Northern Boulevard, Brookville, NY 11548 (e-mail: jdespres@liu.edu).