Excellence by Design Education Center offers a summer college and job readiness summer workshop series. The workshop series is an eight-week workshop series that prepares students to enter college or the job market. The seminar provides students with information for planning and graduating from high school. EDEC collaborates with colleges and businesses to bring real-world experience through speakers, job fairs, college tours, and internships. The workshops are interactive and require participation. The program serves disadvantaged and underserved youth in the Dallas Metroplex area.
The goal of the seminar is to provide youth with information on planning and graduating from high school.
Workshops includes:
- Identifying long-term career and vocational interests and pathways
- Learning employability and self-management skills for the workplace
- Seeking and gaining employment and/or admission to college, vocational/technical institutions, or the military.
Workshop topics include:
- Setting Career Goals
- Understanding the Workplace
- Getting and Keeping a Job
- Job Search Techniques
- Essential Soft Skills
The workshops are participatory and hands-on. Participants will take a career interest inventory, develop a career plan, resume, cover letter, and complete job applications. Participants will also participate in a mock interview.
The Summer Workshop Series is a bridge program for the Connect the Dots Program offered from September through May. EDEC collaborates with colleges and businesses to bring real-world experience through speakers, job fairs, college tours, and internships.
Connect The Dots
Excellence by Design Education Center (EDEC) Connect the Dots Program is a college and career readiness program that provides youth a successful transition between high school and college/vocational school or a work career. The program provides the knowledge, skills, and expertise needed for postsecondary success. EDEC integrates college and career readiness into in-school/out-of-school time through program activities, partnerships, and family involvement. EDEC works closely with schools and communities to provide experiential, real-world opportunities for K-12 students to explore and pursue their future career goals.
The Connect the Dots is an interactive program allowing youth to learn the business and economic concepts, investigate career interests, and develop work-readiness skills. Youth experience a variety of real-life simulations throughout the program. This program is customizable for a semester-long in-school setting. A workshop series is offered during the summer months and after school.
Experiential learning allows youth to understand how what they learn in school helps them participate in society and the global economy.
The program gives youth the knowledge and skills needed to obtain and keep a job in high-growth careers.
The program focuses on:
- Four essential skills employers are looking for: communication, critical thinking, collaboration, and creativity
- Setting work priorities
- STEAM and high growth careers
- Job search tools
- 21st-century skills
- Resume writing and development, including cover letters
- Interviewing
- Using digital media
Youth will have the opportunity to explore afterschool and summer internships (age-appropriate).
JOB READINESS PROGRAM
Excellence By Design Education provides job readiness to job seekers. The program offers resume writing, job search techniques, digital literacy, electronic portfolio building, interviewing skills, completing applications and more. Participants participate in mock interviews, job shadowing and internships. Participants also receive assistance in registering/enrolling in skills based training.
