U-46 grads look to impress employers

With many people still out of work, it can be difficult for a recent high school graduate to distinguish herself in the job market.

Four years ago, to give Elgin-area high school graduates an advantage over other job seekers, a coalition of education and business groups launched the National Career Readiness Certification program.

Through the program, high school seniors in Elgin Area School District U-46 can obtain certificates that demonstrate to employers that they have the skills to be successful in many entry-level jobs.

The first year, about 40 students earned certificates. Since then, the program has grown dramatically, with 909 U-46 students obtaining a certificate this year.

“Although we continually prepare kids for college, we also need to prepare them for the workforce,” said Carol DePue, career and technical education coordinator for U-46.

U-46 leaders hope the record number of certificate holders is just a steppingstone. District leaders aim to get 75 percent of high school graduates in order to earn a “gold” level certificate by 2015 — an aggressive goal that’s part of the district’s five-year plan.

A gold certificate means the certificate holder is theoretically qualified to enter 90 percent of entry-level jobs in a database maintained by the ACT, which created the national program.

But local educators and business leaders say the certificate isn’t just a nice thing to put on your resume. Rather, they are trying to get businesses to recognize the certificate in hopes that certificate holders at least get their foot in the door.

“It takes the guesswork out of determining the applicants’ hard skills,” said Leo Nelson, president of the Elgin Area Chamber of Commerce, which has promoted the certificate program heavily. “They get to go to the top of the list in terms of an interview.”

U-46 and the chamber don’t have any data yet on how many certificate holders have landed jobs after graduating, but they say about 70 employers in the area have agreed to recognize the certificate. At least a few of the certificate holders have landed jobs at local firms such as Hoffer Plastics in South Elgin and Fabric Images in Elgin.

The U-46 effort isn’t limited to high school seniors. Elgin Community College, in partnership with the chamber, offers free training and testing to unemployed adults trying for a career readiness certificate.

Some education and business groups in the state believe the certificate is important enough that high school juniors in Illinois should be required to take the qualifying test.

That wouldn’t be especially burdensome: two of the three tests required to earn the certificate are already mandated on the Prairie State Achievement Exam — a standardized test for high school juniors.