NEWS RELEASE
May 21, 2010
Missouri Connections Contract Award Announced, Services Expanding to Adult Job-Seekers
The popular online education and career planning resource for Missouri students will soon be available to adult job-seekers as well, at no cost, state officials announced today.
The MissouriConnections.org site provides a wide range of resources and tools to help users make informed career and education choices. Sponsorship from the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education has allowed Missouri students in grades 7-20 to use the site for free each year since 2003.
A new licensing contract will allow the state to continue serving students, plus expand use of the system to adults seeking services at Missouri Career Centers statewide.
An outreach Center in the College of Education at the University of Oregon, intoCareers, won the state’s competitive bid process this month to become the new host for the system effective July 1. The new platform will be powered by the University of Oregon’s Career Information System.
“Missouri’s workforce system is happy to join with DESE in making MissouriConnections available to all job seekers,” said the Division of Workforce Development Director Julie Gibson. “This innovative online resource will make a powerful complement to MissouriCareerSource.com in helping Missourians develop the skills for productive careers of the future.”
Missouri Connections is designed to guide users through the education and career planning process. It opens the door for career awareness, eases students into college and career exploration, and directs preparation for college and careers. The system is a key component of many school-based guidance programs across the state. It also provides parental resources to get parents and family members involved in the career planning process.
Commissioner of Education Chris L. Nicastro applauded the cooperation and support of agency representatives from education, workforce and economic development in making the selection.
“We are delighted to partner with the University of Oregon to continue to provide the valuable education and career planning resources our students, school counselors, and parents have come to expect with MissouriConnections.org,” said Nicastro. “Despite the state’s difficult budget situation, we are committed to providing this valuable resource to students to help them become college and career ready.”
Nicastro also is pleased with the new collaboration with the Division of Workforce Development to be able to extend services to the adult population, which will allow students who are transitioning to the workforce to maintain their résumés, portfolios and continue to build toward their career goals as life-long learners.
A highly valued feature of the comprehensive system is the ability for users to take online assessments to identify possible careers based on interests, skills and work values.
For students, another key feature is the ability to maintain a multi-year personal plan of study that helps them map out a path to their education and career goals.
One of the enhanced features in the new system is “Reality Check,” a robust budgeting tool to help users identify the lifestyle they hope to enjoy and the earning levels that can support that lifestyle.
DESE and the Division of Workforce Development staff are now working with the new vendor to assure a smooth transition for schools and current users, as well as to bring onboard the 43 Missouri Career Centers that expect to serve nearly 450,000 job-seekers statewide in the year ahead.
For more information, contact Tom Schlimpert at DESE, 573-751-6875, or Mike Waltman at DWD, 573-526-8267.