Enactus Continues Career-Readiness Initiatives for Residents

Career prepMount Mercy Enactus, a local chapter of a worldwide student entrepreneurship club, has renewed and expanded their partnership with the Transtional Housing Program (THP) at the Catherine McAuley Center (CMC) through a series of workshops on employment skills for residents . Enactus has been building relationships over the course of several years with the women of THP, who come to CMC in need of a stable environment in which they can overcome the barriers like mental health and substance abuse that led to their homelessness. This year these career-readiness initiatives have been funded by a grant from Wal-Mart.

Earlier this year, Enactus members worked with residents to develop  résumés they can use as they apply for jobs. Each resident was given a flash drive on which they can store their résumé for future updates. Most recently, Macy Demeulenaere and Kelsey Kuester, two Enactus students, accompanied the women of THP on a shopping trip to Kohl’s in search of professional clothing.

Shopping

A resident of the Transitional Housing Program prepares to check out at Kohls with her new professional attire

Each woman was given a budget of $100 to spend on clothing that would be appropriate for a future interview or current job. “Our goal was to help the women find something that they would feel confident in. Feeling good about your appearance is an important part of the interview process, and we want the ladies to be confident and prepared,” said Kelsey. The Enactus team gave guidance on outfits that would be appropriate for each resident’s career goals and helped the women to find great deals. “Whether they needed new jeans, shoes, socks, or blouses, we wanted to be sure they could purchase anything they needed to be successful,” explained Macy.

The women will don their new clothing in a mock-interview seminar Enactus will host in January. Residents will dress the part in their new professional attire as they participate in a mock-interview with an Enactus member targeted toward her unique career goals. Jennifer Tibbetts, THP Manager, explains that the Enactus students are uniquely positioned to work with the women in such a capacity. “Enactus students have a skill set that allows them to critique performance to help prepare the women, but to communicate non-judgmentally.”

The compassion the Enactus students have for the women of the Transitional Housing Program and the wider community is evident as they share about the Enactus-CMC partnership. “Everything we do with CMC… has helped us get in touch with the community,” said Macy. Of her hopes for the women for the remainder of this year’s partnership Kelsey remarked, “I want them to enjoy going to work and to do something that they love.” The Catherine McAuley Center extends our deepest thanks to Mount Mercy Enactus for their long-time support of the Transitional Housing Program as a whole and for the care they have shown to each individual resident!

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