A solution for success
Work-based learning is a framework of various pathways, or solutions, which include practical experiences to help individuals gain an understanding of an occupation with on-the-job learning. It ranges from career awareness to career training. Work-based learning programs get their momentum, power, and energy from an alliance of educators, employers, and state-agency support.
Idaho’s work-based learning program, The LEADER Initiative, helps connect Idahoans who are at career crossroads with employers offering work-based learning opportunities across the state. Opportunities to connect are categorized into three types or phases of work-based learning: learning about work, learning through work, and learning at work. Within each phase there are multiple ways for businesses of all sizes and from any industry to connect with potential new employees.
How it works
Connecting Idaho Businesses to a Skilled Workforce
The work-based learning continuum is a set of work-based learning experiences that progress in specificity and employer involvement including: Career Awareness, Career Exploration, Career Preparation, and Career Training.
LEADERS can use the continuum to better understand how to structure experiences and to communicate their interests to prospective partner organizations. Typically, employers will select their level of involvement based on resources available and key objectives for participating. Armed with just this basic information, LEADERS can connect with schools, industry trade associations, or state agencies to plan their experiences. Idaho LEADER Initiative can help facilitate these connections and provide the resources necessary to ensure that all participants meet their goals for the experience
FAQ's
Find answers to questions like:
- “Does Idaho allow people under 18 on a manufacturing floor?”
- “Are internships only for college students?”
- “How do I present to a class of 3rd graders?”
How it works
FAQ's
Connecting Idaho Businesses to a Skilled Workforce
The work-based learning continuum is a set of work-based learning experiences that progress in specificity and employer involvement including: Career Awareness, Career Exploration, Career Preparation, and Career Training.
LEADERS can use the continuum to better understand how to structure experiences and to communicate their interests to prospective partner organizations. Typically, employers will select their level of involvement based on resources available and key objectives for participating. Armed with just this basic information, LEADERS can connect with schools, industry trade associations, or state agencies to plan their experiences. Idaho LEADER Initiative can help facilitate these connections and provide the resources necessary to ensure that all participants meet their goals for the experience
Find answers to questions like:
- “Does Idaho allow people under 18 on a manufacturing floor?”
- “Are internships only for college students?”
- “How do I present to a class of 3rd graders?”
CONNECT
Raise Your Hand
Join the LEADER Initiative today to signify your commitment and to begin to connect with your future workforce. As a bonus, we’ll send you the Employer Toolkit for Idaho LEADERS to help you plan your course of action.
SUCCESS STORY
From Art to Auto Body
Meet Samantha Spencer, a Kuna High School Senior whose creative interests in design led her to explore Auto Body Collision Repair at the Dennis Technical Education Center (DTEC) in Boise. Upon arrival, Samantha was a little starstruck and, as her teacher tells us, “She was all energy and no experience.” But all of that changed as soon as Samantha was introduced to the collision repair curriculum. Through a combination of classroom instruction, virtual training and hands on experiences Samantha is quickly working her way toward earning an I-CAR certification which will set her up for an easier entry into professional auto body work.
What began as an aesthetic interest in cars has developed into a passion for auto body painting. Her instructor tells us that Samantha can now take a car from “ground zero to a finished product, perfectly.” The Dennis Technical Education Center is a state-of-the-art, nationally-recognized facility in Boise that offers industry training in a variety of professional/technical fields such as automotive technology, graphic design, health professions, heavy duty diesel, information technology, and residential construction.
Samantha Spencer
Auto Body Collision Repair