Nineteen young customers, from the KRA/SCWorks One-Stop Career Center in the Lower Savannah Region of South Carolina, accompanied Jahkesha Abraham, KRA Program Manager, and Evelyn Stanley, KRA Career Agent, to a Youth Symposium, hosted by staff of the Lower Savannah Workforce Development Board (LSWDB); the LSWDB Youth Council; and Voorhees College, Symposium site. On Friday and Saturday, March 15th and 16th, transported by bus service supplied by the Williams Chapel AME Church of Orangeburg, the group arrived in Denmark in time for the start of each day’s workshops, enjoyed lunch and comraderie, and returned to the KRA/SCWorks’ Orangeburg office a little after 2:00pm.
According to Abraham, “ Friday’s workshops really gave the students something to think about! All of the presenters were dynamic, informative, and representative of very diverse careers. Why Should We Hire You?, presented by Brooks Harper, was right on target, as was Social Media Etiquette—Do’s and Don’ts of Facebook, presented by Jason Broughton, Workforce Development Trainer at the State Library of South Carolina. Scholarships and Grants was presented by Elizabeth Caulder, Professor of Introduction to Criminal Justice and Criminal Law at Midlands Technical College. Other eye-opening speakers included Felicia Chandler, a graduate student at Grand Canyon University; Dave Olson, President and Project Manager of Savannah River Remediation; and Lessie Price, Manager of Government Affairs, Public Affairs Office,United Research Services (URS) Corporation.
Abraham continued, “Lewis Jackson, Jr. really impressed our students with his multi-faceted talents and career choices. He’s a Poet, a Master Barber, and he works at the Savannah River Site (SRS), a nuclear reservation site built in the ‘50s to refine materials for deployment in nuclear weapons. Managed and operated by a team of companies led by URS Corporation, today SRS’ focus is cleanup, related to work done in the past for the nation’s nuclear buildup. Obviously, none of the reactors on-site are currently operating!”
Stanley added, “On Saturday, there were three more very diverse motivational speakers that the students really enjoyed hearing from, especially the Q&A sessions with each presenter. The first speaker was Dr. Maurice Lee, a successful Orangeburg, SC, Pharmacist, and Pharmacy Manager with Walgreens. Another highlight was hearing from Rosaline Rock…Chris Rock’s mother…who after working many years as a Teacher and Social Worker, is now enjoying her new career: writing. Her most-recent book is 5 Minute Time Out: Mama Rock. The last speaker was Jeff Archie, Senior Vice President and Chief Nuclear Officer with South Carolina Electric & Gas.
The Youth Symposium is an annual event and this was the second year that KRA/SCWorks participated. In addition to KRA Corporation, other Symposium exhibitors included Aiken Technical College, Claflin University, Lower Savannah Workforce Investment Board, Orangeburg Technical College, Paxen Learning Corporation, Voorhees College, et al.
Dr. Boone’s 20+ years’ experience in the industry is extensive and her expertise in private-, public-, and non-profit sector workforce-services organizations is unparalleled, particularly in the Baltimore–Washington Metropolitan area.
