Education

The Youth Leadership Cleveland program seeks to develop young leaders who will have a positive impact on the growth and development of the Cleveland/Bradley community, their schools, and beyond. This 8-month program gives local high school juniors and seniors a front row seat to local services, businesses, and resources vital to a thriving community, while shaping and expanding personal and civic development. Acceptance into this program is highly competitive, although any local high school junior or senior is able to apply. Participants are selected by a volunteer committee through an application process.

High school seniors are taught how to prepare a resume, fill out an application and practice interviewing skills. Then they are interviewed by a business professional and provided with feedback. Not only do these simulated interviews help prepare our soon-to-be graduates for real life experience and potential workforce opportunities available to them, but they also provide a low stress environment for seniors to boost their interviewing confidence and receive constructive feedback on how to improve moving forward.

Local high school juniors are given the opportunity to spend half a day with a professional in their desired future career field. With 60 options to choose from, students are able to use this experience to make more informed decisions about their future as they enter their senior year.

Each fall, Cleveland Associated Industries and local high school CTE classes are partnered for manufacturing month. Students from classes such as robotics, welding, and mechatronics, work with local industries towards a solution to a real-time problem. Students end manufacturing month with a presentation of their solution to their partner industry’s leadership team and a tour of their facility.

We also engage graduate or certificate level students to work with three middle school STEM classes on custom tailored projects to coincide with National Manufacturing Month.