JAG CT Wins Second Place in National Employability Skills

John Drew, a senior at East Hartford High School, won Second Place in a national employability contest this weekend at the JAG National Student Leadership Academy in Washington, DC.

John is a participant in Jobs for America’s Graduates (JAG) CT program, and he travelled to NSLA with four other students from Manchester, New Britain and New Haven. All the students attending took part in extensive Leadership Training sessions, with groups that included other JAG students from around the country, and each student will be making a presentation to their classmates and school administrators upon their return. Other students attending were Myleisha Ortiz of New Britain High, Michael Scotchman of the New Britain High School Satellite Careers Academy, Thalia Longo of Manchester High, and Jairo Clas of Hillhouse High School in New Haven. Thalia Longo also competed, in Public Speaking.

The Employability Skills event involved developing a letter of application and a resume for a simulated job opening. Candidates then took part in a simulated interview. Contestants were rated on neatness, spelling and grammar, content and completeness, and personal presentation.

John went an extra mile and also delivered a hand-written thank-you note after his interview.

“JAG has made me realize the definition of hard work,” John said.  “It’s made me realize that when you put 100 percent effort into everything you do, good outcomes will result…Before I was that one kid in the back of the class who would do nothing and cause disruptions…JAG is what unlocked that special part of my brain and made me realize that good things aren’t going to just come to me. If I want to pursue a successful future, the beginning of that road starts now.”

JAG CT is a program of the Hartford Consortium for Higher Education, and is funded with a contract with the state of Connecticut Department of Labor with support from the Court Support Services Division and Departments of Education, Social Services, Children and Families, Correction, and Economic Development. JAG is a state-based national program which for more than 35 years has helped young people graduate from high school and continue to postsecondary success and quality jobs and careers. JAG serves students in 32 states, and in CT is offered in in six schools in East Hartford, Manchester, New Britain and New Haven.