For well over a decade, Engage NJ has been leading the way in building public, cross-sector recognition for the economic value of service and volunteerism to the state of New Jersey. Graduating students with civic skills leads directly to a skilled and thriving workforce for the state – an emerging workforce filled with employees and entrepreneurs who understand how to apply complex thinking and problem-solving to ever-changing situations. This is good for jobs. This is good for democracy.

 

Indeed, with our national partners, we are building “public recognition that, just as civic learning is a core purpose for postsecondary education, it also builds essential workforce skills. Teamwork, communication, problem-solving, critical thinking, and engagement across differences are the real-world skills that build both better democracies and creative economies. Investing in democracy learning expands economic opportunity as well.”

-          From the national Civic Learning and Democratic Engagement (CLDE) Coalition, for which Engage NJ is a partner and signatory

 

We invite leaders from New Jersey’s employment sectors, from large and small size businesses, from state and local government, from higher education and from nonprofits, to engage with us and provide opportunities for this army of competent and engaged graduates. Here are some ways to get started, whether you have 1 hour a year, or one hour a week, to connect with and nurture these talents:

• Give a virtual talk or workshop on your experiences with one or more of the following areas of benefit:\

  • Your pathway to your current position

  •  The value of building a wide array of experiences outside of the classroom

  • The value of building a professional network, and how

  • How to showcase skills in your recruitment materials

• Engage with students at the THRIVE Student Conference & Opportunity Fair

• Pitch your business at our Opportunity Fair’s Career Café – jobs, internships, or other experiences

• Mentor one or more of Kesselman Student Fellows for the Advancement of Democracy

• Add incentives to our Student Opportunities for Success (SOS) database

• Recruit from our talent pool of Thrivers, Fellows, and more

• Serve on our Student Success Series Steering Group

• Serve on the Engage NJ Board of Directors