July marked the one year anniversary of York County Alliance for Learning’s (YCAL) affiliation with the York County Economic Development Corporation Office of Workforce Development (OWD). YCAL works with businesses and schools to provide career education, relevant academic experiences and work-based experience for K-12 students in York County. The affiliation furthers the YorkCounts recommendation that the OWD sustain initiatives that would systematically build a pipeline of entry level workers and more directly affect the youth population.
While the mission of the OWD touches many populations/groups throughout York County, this recommendation directly affects the youth population. The affiliation connects YCAL’s strong relationships with the education community and YCEDC’s strong relationships in the business community together to improve the implementation of programs, ultimately improving the quality and quantity of opportunities for youth.
YCAL programs have had great success and touched many in York County over the past year. Since the affiliation, YCAL has impacted 8,272 students, 391 educators and 117 employers through its events and programming. One such YCAL event was the Career Opportunities Day held at HACC-York Campus. At the event, 195 high school juniors and seniors learned about the knowledge and skills needed for careers in the 16 National Career Clusters. Another important program offered by YCAL is the student mentoring program with local companies. This past school year, YCAL held nine mentoring programs, impacting over 130 students. YCAL also hosted events offering continuing education credits for educators, such as the Career Education and Work Standards Symposium with over 170 York County educators in attendance.
To learn more about other events and programs offered by the York County Alliance for Learning, visit www.ycal.us.
Caitlyn Meyer is the business development coordinator for the York County Economic Development Corp. She coordinates YCEDC activities related to the York County Economic Development Plan, seeks to work with local governments through the Municipal Outreach Program and works on business retention. Caitlyn earned her bachelor’s degree in history from York College of Pennsylvania in 2009 and has been with YCEDC since that time. Caitlyn lives and works in York City. She can be reached at cmeyer@ycedc.org or 717-846-8879, ext. 3053.
