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SFU Enactus team mentors job-seekers

Courtesy photo Members of the Saint Francis University Enactus Uwork team include (from left): front row — Rebekah Finafrock, Alexis DeLullo, Morgan Flack and Anne-Marie Larkin; back row — Alex Kiepert, Kate Labriola, Brandon Leech and Hunter Longenecker.

LORETTO — Members of the Saint Francis Univer-sity Enactus team completed their pilot Uwork community development project.

Uwork (Workforce Opportunities through Resources and Knowledge) places SFU students in mentorship roles with area job-seekers through regional community outreach groups.

Several students provided training in career development knowledge areas such as responsible social networking, non-verbal/soft skills, self-esteem, resume and cover letter development and professional writing and composition.

They include Alex Kiepert of Ebensburg, Hunter Longenecker of East Freedom, Alison Anna of Hastings, Kenneth Brumbaugh of Hollidays-burg and Kaitlyn Farber of Altoona.

Community partners for this project include the Center for Community Action and the Altoona Area School District Adult Education Program.

Enactus is an international student business club with the mission to use the free market for the benefit of society as a whole.

The SFU Enactus Uwork team is co-led by freshmen Alex Kiepert and Morgan Flack with support from fellow freshmen Hunter Longenecker, Anne-Marie Larkin and Taylor Ponchione, juniors Ali Anna and Emily Pollack and senior Alexis DeLullo.

Also providing content for Uwork were SFU Associate Professor Kelly Rhodes, SFU Career Services staff Beth McGregor, Kate Labriola and Becky Cacciotti and SFU Enactus co-advisers Nicole Bauman and Assistant Professor Kent Tonkin.

Uwork’s pilot deployment was funded by a grant from BNY Mellon awarded at the Enactus National Competition in May 2018.

The SFU Enactus team spent the fall planning project deployment and lining up community partners before beginning deployment in February.

Since that time, the Enactus team has presented six training sessions between the CCA and AASD, reaching approximately 20 high-risk job seekers. Participants in the pilot received a certificate of completion and a small gift for attending.

AASD Adult Education Program Director Tina Swineford said the need for programs like Uwork in Central PA is great, calling such outreach “essential.”

“Even in a recovering national economy, there are plenty of adult job-seekers struggling for a way to re-enter the workforce,” she said. “Programs like Uwork showcase the value of public-private partnerships.”

The Uwork project team plans on expanding program offerings for the fall through existing and developing community partners and acquisition of additional funding.

The team is actively pursuing grants and alternative avenues.

The team acknowledged the support of their community partners, Shields School of Business Dean Randy Frye and Associate Dean John Miko, BNY Mellon, SFU Career Services, Kelly Rhodes, Enactus USA and the SFU community for support.

For more information, visit www.francis

.edu/uwork.

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