CEDAR RAPIDS - Every summer, hundreds of student interns and newly hired graduates come to the Cedar Rapids area to work for Rockwell Collins, AEGON USA, Alliant Energy and dozens of other employers in our community. What these young professionals experience during their short stay often determines whether or not they decide to make the Corridor their permanent home. Cedar Rapids employers expect to hire over 700 interns during 2010.
To ensure that interns and new hires experience all the Corridor has to offer, Priority One is launching a new program this summer. Called MySummerNow, the program is designed to engage students and recent grads and help them get connected to our community.
“It is important to provide students and young people with positive experiences in the Corridor community,” said Kari Lammer, director of workforce services at Priority One. “Their experience during an internship or their first full-time job out of college will be what they communicate to their peers on college campuses and in other cities across the nation."
The program will kick off Thursday, June 3, with lunch at CSPS in downtown Cedar Rapids. The event will feature the popular workforce presentation ‘Conquer the Corridor’, a 45-minute interactive program about the Corridor community, upcoming events and networking opportunities. Starting the next week and continuing through the second week of August, free weekly social activities will be offered to encourage networking and educate interns on all the events and attractions available in our area.
“We are excited about the launch of MySummerNow. Our interns are constantly seeking ways to connect with other young people in the Corridor and this program provides them with free, fun opportunities to do just that,” said Sarah Jenck, internship coordinator at AEGON USA. “Priority One’s evolving workforce programs have benefited our company’s recruiting efforts; it definitely saves us time and money. We are appreciative of Priority One’s ongoing initiatives – they have a genuine interest to educate and engage young professionals on the various opportunities throughout the Corridor.”
“At Rockwell Collins, we recognize that our job is to not only sell interns on our company, but our communities as well. The right company and engaging work will bring young professionals to our area. An exciting community is what will keep them here,” said Crystal Gray, recruiting specialists for student programs at Rockwell Collins. “We are discovering that Generation Y not only recognizes the importance of networking, they are hungry for it! MySummerNow will not only give our co-ops and interns the opportunity to network with other Rockwell Collins student employees, but student employees within different companies and fields of work.”
Anyone interested in participating in the program should RSVP to Kari Lammer by June 1 at 319-730-1427 or klammer@cedarrapids.org.