Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Workforce Development topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
USM tells trustees its Career & Employment Hub is expanding internships and on‑campus jobs
Summary
USM presenters told the Board of Trustees about a networked career hub with peer career guides, a job‑shadow program and paid internships that they say are increasing student employment and retention.
University of Southern Maine staff and students presented the Career & Employment Hub to the University of Maine System Board of Trustees, describing a network of services aimed at placing students in college‑level work and launching career pathways.
President Edmonson introduced Vice President Natalie Jones, who explained that the hub coordinates on‑campus employment (about 750 student hires annually across more than 1,000 jobs), peer career‑guide appointments and an internship pipeline that is co‑funded with employers. Dr. Andy Osherov, director of the Hub’s peer program, described nearly 100% net‑promoter feedback for peer appointments in the recent semester and said the program has greatly increased student engagement.
Student presenters including Alex Curtis and Rya Lard described hands‑on services such as résumé review, job‑shadow opportunities (74 students and 57 employers in one program) and a new professional onboarding course. Trustees pressed presenters on evaluation metrics; hub staff said first‑destination data and an expanded first‑destination survey are helping demonstrate gains in internships and job offers for participating students.
The presentation tied career services to broader system goals in UMS Transforms — retention, gateway course improvement and pathways to careers — and trustees encouraged continued data collection and closer faculty engagement to scale promising practices across the system.
