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Calling all ambitious young Black individuals! Are you ready to elevate your career prospects and skillset? The BlackNorth Initiative presents the ADaPT (Advanced Digital and Professional Training) for Black Youth program, designed specifically to propel Black youth toward success in today’s digital world. With our specialized program, you’ll gain access to: • Tailored Mentorship: Get personalized guidance to navigate your career path. • Skill-Building Workshops: Enhance your digital and professional capabilities with in-demand skills like data analytics, SEO, Excel, and more! • Networking Events: Connect with industry leaders and peers to expand your professional network. • Community Engagement: Make meaningful contributions and grow within a supportive community. Why ADaPT for Black Youth? • 🎓 Over 1300 participants trained since 2014. • 🌟 90% placement rate* into meaningful employment, including full-time roles and contracts. • 💡 Access up to $7,000 in Student Work Placement Program wage subsidy by hiring an ADaPTer. • 🛠️ Develop in-demand digital and professional skills: Data Analytics, SEO & Google Analytics, Communication, and more! Embark on a journey to not only enhance your skills but also secure exciting job opportunities. The BlackNorth Initiative encourages you to sign up today and unlock a world of opportunities. Your future starts now! Discover more and sign up here: https://lnkd.in/g2YTYyFW The BlackNorth Initiative encourages sign-up and building a future where your talent and determination define your career path. #SkillsForFuture #BlackExcellence #ADaPTForBlackYouth

IT organizations and technology companies are taking steps to create a more diverse workforce by partnering with Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) to recruit Black IT professionals. This intentional effort is aimed at building a more inclusive talent pipeline and addressing the underrepresentation of Black professionals in the industry. By actively seeking out and investing in diverse talent, IT organizations and tech companies are taking a crucial step towards building a more equitable and representative workforce. Let's continue to support these efforts and work towards a more diverse and inclusive tech industry. #diversityintech #HBCUs #blackprofessionals

“We want to create a more diverse workforce, it is just out of our hands.” I was in my 20s meeting a Director for a final stage interview. My question was how we make the workforce in Higher Education more representative. “Despite our own personal backgrounds (privately educated), we want to inspire & empower, and we think we are able to do that effectively”. “What about lived experience?” *Thinks to self, I should have worded that more effectively, feels like a jab. *Shifts in seat… “I think when you gain a platform and become more knowledgeable in the sector it’ll be interesting to see how you use it” *Stands and goes to shake hand This is Joana P., History 2nd year and employability ambassador. In all honesty, she has more potential than me, she has a higher glass ceiling. I am okay with that, she is brilliant to work with. Funny, kind and insightful. · I had the opportunity to select some students to work with the Civil Service – we picked Jo · We employed student ambassadors – we picked Jo. · Scheduled to meet diplomats – we picked Jo. · Impromptu lecture employability talk – Jo covered · Had an employer & academic session to discuss curriculum developments – Jo was there, constructively framing the student’s view. · She impressed at a networking session and got work shadowing experience. What I can do is use my platform to highlight people like her. After graduation students will have a steep learning curve. The standouts absorb information like sponges and ask questions. She asked me last week how I keep my motivation so high… The same day she stayed behind an extra hour to help with some students applying for a role she was interested in. That’s the type of person she is. So, if you are looking at diversity, if you work on elevating Black talent. Connect with her. If you don’t, check her out in 10 years. See what you missed out on. Good luck on your year aboard in the US. Can’t wait to get you back! Special mention to Alex Deadman, who I have learnt a lot from in terms of creating spaces for diversity.

We will be there next week with an Innospace stand. If you want to find out more about our programmes, please come and have a chat. We will also be hand to act as a sounding board so you can bounce ideas around with us, talk about your business and ask any question and ask about how we can help you scale your business. Idea or no idea, it doesn't matter! Please come and have a chat with us if you would like to be your own boss, want to start a business, side hustle or start freelancing. It would be great to meet you. #idea #develop #startup #business #mentor #mentoring #sidehustle #freelance #freelancing

YOUNG ONES 2024 CALL FOR ENTRIES Young Ones is The One Club for Creativity 's competition for students and recent graduates across creative disciplines. Young Ones is home to four unique competitions — Young Ones ADC, One Show, Portfolio, and TDC. For countless creatives worldwide, winning a One Show Pencil or ADC Cube is a dream come true. But dreams have to start somewhere, and for that, we have the Young Ones Student Awards. This global creative competition challenges students in creative studies to put their best foot forward in hopes of winning one of the first honors of their burgeoning careers. REGULAR ENTRY DEADLINE March 1 | $55 Entry Fee EXTENDED ENTRY DEADLINE March 13 | $65 Entry Fee WANT TO SAVE 10% ON YOUR ENTRIES? Student and Faculty members of The One Club for Creativity and TDC save 10% on all entries during the Early Entry and Regular Entry Deadlines. PLUS, REGIONAL DISCOUNTS! To make Young Ones more accessible for international entrants, automatic discounts will be applied to entries from specific countries and regions to account for an unfair disadvantage from the value of their local currency in comparison to the US Dollar. For more information, visit youngones.org!

I was recently reflecting on how it feels when our dreams and goals don't come to pass. But do you know what sometimes feels worse than not achieving a goal? Others not believing that your goal is achievable in the first place. When I was at school, I had dreams of becoming a social worker. I remember excitedly speaking to my form tutor about it - eager to hear what steps I may be able to take to bring it to fruition. I was instead told that I'd be better off looking at a local factory, where I would MAYBE be able to get a role in one of the offices there. I can still remember how I felt during the conversation. For me, it wasn't that getting a role in an office in the local factory would have been a problem. It was that I had a vision, and a goal, and someone I entrusted with that goal didn't believe in me enough to give it the time of day. Maybe it was my race (I'm pretty sure it was), maybe it was a combination of factors. But the impact was the same - it made me second-guess myself. Many of us have young people in our lives, mentees, cousins, children, colleagues and I can't stress how important it is that we listen to them! To their goals, their dreams, their plans. Once they trust us enough to share, it's our responsibility to ensure they feel seen, heard and empowered as that may be the pivotal moment that propels them forward. So, check in with a young person in your life today, see what goals they're currently working towards and how they're feeling about it. For anyone seeking someone new to mentor and journey with, drop a comment below or DM me. I'd love to put you in touch with one of our amazing youth judges from the Black Talent Awards 🖤

On Friday, Sept. 8, I attended the MSU Black Summit 2023! This event focused on discussing and developing recommendations for the University to achieve Black Equity by 2030. The goal is aligned with the University’s Strategic Plan (“Empowering Excellence, Advancing Equity, and Expanding Impact”). This Summit brought Black faculty, alumni and students of MSU together to accomplish the mission of achieving equity, while finding the solutions to make sure black students feel supported and have needs fulfilled in order for them to graduate and be successful. It is the goal that by 2030, the 7% of black population that reside on campus will increase. Overall this was a great event that focused on Black excellence and empowerment of Black people. Furthermore, I had the privilege of conducting a recap on this event for my new internship with the DEI office of ComArtSci. Below is the first slide of the recap but if you would like to see the rest, you will have to check us out on instagram @comartscidei to obtain the two remain slides of the recap, that consist of the summit goals and takeaways :) ! #comartscidei

Fear and rejection held me back. Year one passed by without engaging in many extracurricular activities. I saw comfort as my safest option. How could I fail? Failure meant I had lost. Failure meant that I couldn’t try again. Failure meant that I had reached my limit, and couldn’t advance beyond the ‘glass ceiling’ holding me back. So, what changed? Well, I would say that I took a step back, and began challenging these thoughts. Professionals call it ‘Socratic thinking’ – a way to objectively evaluate the evidence and reasoning behind one’s beliefs. You’d think that as a history student who comes across evidence everyday, I’d be an expert, but I was not. In my mind, I didn’t belong here. I stood out as a black student in a predominately white cohort. But why? I had received an offer to study here. I received an acceptance letter from Sheffield. I passed the entry requirements. So why did I think I didn’t belong here? This method of thinking made me realise that I did belong here. I was determined to maximise my time, and gain experiences that I wouldn’t regret later in life – so I became proactive. I spoke to Gavin Simpson-Smillie (A&H Faculty Employability Lead), James Zeller (HE Skills and Employability Consultant) and Tom Jones (A&H Employability and External Relationships Officer) about completing a placement year or year abroad, all of which helped me decide on the latter. I secured a two-week internship with the Civil Service at the DfE through Gavin Simpson-Smillie, where I researched, studied, and presented about the importance of HTQs, all under the insightful guidance and support of Corinne Austin (Higher Technical Education Strategy Advisor). I attended a roundtable discussion with Mems Ayinla (current Director of Student Influence, and former Parliamentary Clerk at the House of Commons) as the speaker and asked her a question about the “gap in the market”, regarding the lack of racial representation in spaces and how we can address this issue. I connected with Lavinya Stennett FRSA, founder and CEO of The Black Curriculum, who has inspired me to create my newsletter and piece of public history around important topics within history and the black community. I networked with Rachel Lane, Senior Service Designer at the Ministry of Justice, at a civil service event, where we had enlightening conversations about diversity within the public sector. So what changed between year one and two? I did something. I had questions, and went about finding answers. I intentionally connected with people who would pour into me and share their kindness, time, and knowledge. But to do this, I had to make myself uncomfortable. I had to take a leap of faith, embracing the changes that would make me feel temporarily uncomfortable in favour of long-term success. 

🚀🚀Bridging the gap between Black Youth seeking of opportunities and Black-led startups in need of skilled talent. In February during our inaugural "Power of Community" event, I moderated a “Talent and Mentorship” panel where we shared so much insight on how to bridge the skills gap and equip our community with the right tools to compete in the workforce. As a Founder of a talent acquisition firm, Okwera Recruitment and Okwera Academy (a dynamic organization focused on equipping youths of African descent with the career-launching skills hrough interactive skills workshops, mentorship programs, upskilling courses/ certifications, project-based learning, networking events, industry talks, many more), this topic is close to my heart! ❤️So months following this discussion, we turned those insights and ideas into actionable solutions that will truly make a difference in our community! I'm proud and honoured to have been taking the lead at Black Founders Network in our inaugural Black Career Advancement Program funded by Ontario’s Ministry of Citizenship & Multiculturalism and their Black Youth Action Plan (BYAP) which works towards eliminating systemic, race-based disparities by increasing opportunities for Black youth across the province. 🌟 What's the Program All About? 🌟 This program is designed to offer tailored employment readiness support to empower Black youth with the skills and knowledge they need to navigate diverse career pathways. At the same time, we're working hard to fill the talent gaps that Black-led companies in our ecosystem have been facing. But that's not all! We're not just connecting Black youth to opportunities; we're also putting money where our mouth is by providing crucial financial support. How? By creating up to 20 work placements for Black youths, and we're doing this by subsidizing talent acquisition costs for 20 Black founders within the BFN community. That's 20 incredible chances for our young talents to kickstart their careers, right here in our vibrant community!👏🏽👏🏽 📣 Connect to Exciting Opportunities! 📣 Over the next few weeks, we'll be unveiling a series of job opportunities by the founders. Many of these are entry-level positions, ideal for those who are just starting out on their career journey across various industries. 💼💼Join the talent network here so you don’t miss out on these opportunities: https://lnkd.in/gMeQjAWz 🔎🔎You can also explore the latest opportunities on our BFN Job Board: https://lnkd.in/gvf2zaKU 🚀🚀For founders, you can register to add your company to our job board here: https://lnkd.in/gR-favjq #skillsdevelopment #byap #BFNCommunity #blackentrepreneurs #inclusivehiring

According to The State of the Tech Workforce 2023 report from CompTIA, professionals identifying as Black or African American make up only 8% of US tech occupations. In this article, CIO Online explains how many IT organizations and tech companies are partnering with HBCUs to improve that number. #technology #diversity #techtalent #relationships #representation #benefits #innovation #opportunities #hbcus