Success Stories

Three years ago, L. moved to Milwaukee from California to be closer to her parents and brother. Her father’s health was deteriorating from being diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease and diabetes, and Lesly wanted to help her mother and brother with his increasing health care needs. She found a job at Best Buy’s Geek Squad as a Customer Service Representative making $13/hr.

L. soon found out that her lack of IT technical skills was holding her back from moving ahead in her chosen career. Her brother saw a posting on Facebook for Employ Milwaukee’s Fresh Coast Tech Up bootcamp and shared it with L., who immediately applied to the program. She was accepted into the 16-week accelerated training that started in January 2022, funded through EMI’s Skillful Transitions (Worker Advancement Initiative) grant. Within a month of successfully graduating from the Tech Up training, Lesly was promoted to Geek Squad Department Manager with a pay raise to $20/hr.

Employ Milwaukee partners with Milwaukee Area Technical College (MATC) to provide the IT training. Graduates receive 12 credits, an IT Service Center Technician certificate, and preparation to take the CompTIA A+ exam. Lesly remarked, "The training was three hours a day online in our virtual classroom, but there was a good amount of studying and homework in order for me to keep up. And I was still working part-time at Best Buy and helping to take care of my dad. It was a lot for those four months!"

MATC’s Tech Up Instructor said, "L. was a great student who, like a lot of our students, had a lot of things on her plate when she started -- like a job and family. So, adding a 16-week IT bootcamp on top of that really showed her determination to succeed." L. shared that her family was extremely proud of her graduation and her quick promotion. She remarked, "It was hard, but Joe kept me motivated and encouraged me to continue and graduate. I plan to continue studying at MATC to get my Associates Degree. The funding for this training changed my life and my family’s life. I am so grateful!"

When the COVID-19 pandemic arrived in Milwaukee and the rest of the world, health departments and community health organizations were hit especially hard, lacking personnel and other resources to help families and vulnerable populations navigate the pandemic’s impact in their communities. The Milwaukee Consortium for Hmong Health (MCHH) was one of those organizations that provided vital information, education and screening for Milwaukee’s Hmong and Southeast Asian community. MCHH was in dire need of Community Health Workers who were fluent in a number of languages such as Burmese and Rohingya. MHCC’s Executive Director, reached out to Employ Milwaukee for assistance and found out how the Skillful Transitions (Worker Advancement Initiative) grant could help through its funding of Paid Work Experiences.

While spending time at the MCHH, J. discovered the Bilingual Community Health Worker job opening that was funded through the WAI grant. J. is fluent in Burmese, and along with her warm personality, she was a perfect fit for the job. She started in December of 2021 and was recently hired full-time as Community Health Worker at MCHH. Programs Manager for MHCC stated, "Our Community Health Workers literally save lives in our community. Without them, we would not have been able to get information and resources out during the pandemic, and later, when vaccines became available. Now that vaccines are available for children, our Community Health Workers are still out educating and working with the Hmong community with great success because the help is coming from someone they know and trust."

J. shared, "During COVID, I was laid off from my job as a cook and was not sure what else I could do. I decided to apply for the community outreach job because it is such important work. My short-term job [through Paid Work Experiences] turned into a stable full-time job. I have a new career and I can help my community at the same time!"

May 5, 2022 marked the return of Career Venture after a 2 year break due to Covid restrictions. This year’s occasion turned out to be one of the best attended and most successful in the event’s history. Held at the Eau Claire Indoor Sports Center, Career Venture hosted over 2,400 students from 29 schools in West Central Wisconsin. These students and educators had the opportunity to engage with more than 65 highly-interactive career exhibits designed to stimulate young minds about the endless career opportunities that exist right here in West Central Wisconsin. 

Upon their arrival at Career Venture, students were greeted by a Bus Ambassador who provided them an introduction to what their Career Venture experience would be like.  Students received a career BINGO card as an activity to guide them through the event and assist them with finding out more information about careers.

Career Venture is organized as an interactive experience, so exhibitors are encouraged to bring tools, equipment and other materials used in the careers that they represent.  The event is designed to represent all 16 Career Clusters, which allows students the opportunity to explore a variety of careers with hands-on activities. Examples of exhibits include: welding, website design, firefighting obstacle course, hair styling, blood pressure checks, cash counting, semi-tractor truck tours, photo booth, therapeutic massage, and robotics. 

The event will return to the Eau Claire Indoor Sports Center in 2023 on the first Thursday of May - We look forward to an even bigger and better Career Venture at that time.