Align4edu

Alignment Collaborative for Education - ACE

Career Education

Alignment to Host U-46 Senior Job Fair, April 27 and 28, 2022

Alignment will host a senior job fair for students planning to graduate in May enrolled in career and technical education (CTE) courses to include automotive, business, culinary, education, health care, manufacturing and welding. South Elgin High School will host on April 27th employers interested in talking with seniors about employment in the following specific industries: automotive, education, health care, and manufacturing. On April 28th, Elgin High School will host employers from the business, culinary and welding industries. The fairs will be visited by seniors from all of U-46’s high schools from 9:00 am to 1:00 pm each day. 

For more information about exhibit and recruitment opportunities, please contact the Alignment Collaborative for Education at ace@align4edu.org.

Alignment hosts HBCU Admissions Panel on Thursday, February 24, 6:30 pm

Alignment Collaborative for Education - HBCU Admissions Panel

Visit with Howard, Morehouse, Spelman and Tuskegee

Alignment and U-46 are excited to announce their first HBCU College and University panel scheduled for Thursday, February 24, from 6:30 to 8:00 pm. The panel will feature students, alumni, and admissions representatives from Howard University, Morehouse College, Spelman College, and Tuskegee University.  Students will learn more about HBCU admissions, course offerings and college life as they visit with representatives from these four post-secondary institutions.

Download the Flyer

Elgin Area School District U-46 High School Counselors Tour Local Businesses

Alignment -U-46 High School Counselors Tour Local Businesses
Elgin Area School District U-46 high school counselors tour the Automotive Lab at South Elgin High School, in addition to the tech lab at Elgin High School, Elgin Sweeper in Elgin, and Hoffer Plastics in South Elgin. The event was sponsored by the Alignment Collaborative for Education in partnership with U-46. Courtesy of Alignment Collaborative for Education.

Experience will better assist students in career opportunities.

Over 30 counselors from all five Elgin Area School District U-46 high schools experienced their own career exploration day at two local businesses, Elgin Sweeper in Elgin and Hoffer Plastics in South Elgin, and the career and technical education labs at Elgin and South Elgin high schools on Friday, Jan. 28.

The goal of the event, which was sponsored by Elgin’s Alignment Collaborative for Education in partnership with U-46, was to bridge the gap between the career and technical education programs offered at the high schools and available careers in the automotive, engineering, welding, and manufacturing industries.

Alexa Charsha-Hahn, lead counselor at U-46, endorsed the day highlighting that “counselors from this experience will be better equipped to guide students toward courses preparing them for highly technical professions.”
In touring Elgin Sweeper, a leader in the sweeper industry for more than 100 years, and Hoffer Plastics, a family-owned business and leader in the custom plastic injection molding industry, the counselors learned about future job projections, skills required and opportunities for career advancement.

Leadership from both businesses welcomed the opportunity.

“Alignment and U-46 are championing the easiest and most impactful ways we can give back to our local community,” said Lisa Baran, director of human resources, Elgin Sweeper. “We are excited and humbled to showcase Elgin Sweeper to the next generation of manufacturing talent.”

Hoffer Plastics, a founding partner of Alignment Collaborative for Education, was honored to host representatives from U-46 and Alignment.

“We’re excited about sharing the many wonderful career opportunities manufacturing offers young people, whose high-tech skills, entrepreneurial spirit, and desire to give back could not be more welcomed or needed than they are today,” said Charlotte Hoffer-Canning, Chief Culture Officer, Hoffer Plastics.

“This opportunity for high school counselors helps strengthen their understanding that careers in manufacturing and technical education can begin and flourish while students are completing their high school experience,” said Nancy Coleman, executive director, Alignment Collaborative for Education.

The Alignment Collaborative for Education (ACE) mission is to align community resources and collaborate with organizations in support of public school strategies to raise student achievement; create responsible, productive, and contributing members of our society; and advance the economic and social well-being of communities served by Elgin Area School District U-46 in Illinois.

For more information, visit www.align4edu.org.

Original article Daily Herald, 2/4/2022 11:38 PM
Submitted by Pat Szpekowski

Career Showcase for High School Freshmen Set for Oct. 27, 2021

By Mike Danahey
Elgin Courier-News | Oct 22, 2021 at 7:01 PM
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The Northern Kane County Regional Vocational System and the Alignment Collaborative for Education will host a Freshmen Curriculum to Career Showcase online from 6 to 8 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 27.

The free event is open to any freshmen who is attending high schools in School District U-46, Burlington Central District 303, St. Charles District 303 and Dundee District 300. Parents and guardians are also encouraged to attend.

The showcase will provide course information for students who will be sophomores next year and explain how course selections might align with possible college or career options after high school graduation, a news release said.

Sessions will be provided on such professions as automotive technician; business and IT; digital arts; education and early childhood; engineering; health care; manufacturing; veterinary science; and welding. Students can register for sessions related to two fields.

To register, go to docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeeZQN6lXrlPOBnxAb6Znej-y9W6_IvvNQKcUiFKad1o0bg-Q/viewform.

For more information, go to northernkanepathways.com and www.align4edu.org or call 224-227-7534.

Explore Engages More Than 100 Business and Community Career Professionals

On October 7th, 2,572 students from U-46’s eight middle schools visited with more than 100 business and career professionals at Alignment’s annual EXPLORE event.  Students selected up to 18 careers for exploration in this all-day event.  Careers were grouped to align with U-46’s five educational pathways to include:

  • Arts and Communications
  • Finance, Business, Information Technology, and Hospitality
  • Heath Sciences, Human Services, Public Services, and Education
  • Liberal Arts
  • Manufacturing, Engineering, Technology, and Trades

Students as part of the exploration process studied specific careers in a Q&A format gaining valuable information about the types of jobs available; the education and training required to qualify for those jobs, and the advice from business professionals about related high school course preparation and work-based learning opportunities.

Thank you to all of our volunteers for once again making Explore a showcase event, and a special thanks to our event sponsors: Advocate Aurora Health, Bear Family Restaurants, Blackhawk Bank, City of Elgin, Elgin Area Chamber of Commerce, Elgin Community College, Elgin Sweeper, Gail Borden Public Library, Harting USA, HLR Engineering, Hoffer Plastics, KCT Credit Union, Nicor, NTN Bearing, and Streamwood Behavioral Healthcare System.

EXPLORE Fall 2021 – 48 Hours Away

The Alignment Collaborative for Education and School District U-46 will host over 2,700 8th graders and 100 plus business and community professionals to introduce students to more than 75 careers on October 7th.  Thank you to our career professionals and our sponsoring organizations for offering this opportunity to our U-46 students.