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Celebrating work-integrated learning (WIL) month
By: Krista Henry (she/her)
United Way Waterloo Region Communities empowers students to make a difference. As the largest non-government funder of social service programs in Canada, United Way invests in community-wide solutions.
Throughout the year, students help United Way member organizations to solve challenges by offering input and fresh ideas.
In 2021, United Way Waterloo Region Communities (WRC) and the University of Waterloo partnered to create Co-op for Community.
The donor-funded program creates meaningful co-op jobs for Waterloo students, from all disciplines, to work at local non-profits who are affiliated with the United Way and need talent.
United Way’s CEO Joan Fisk (she/her) and Sharlene Erasmus (she/her), manager of human resources and the executive office, share their insights on how United Way WRC attracts and retains co-op students:
Fisk: Our talent strategy isn’t just about bringing eager students into the organization, but about extending our reach into the community. Our co-op students help us do that. We hope that by working in organizations in the communities we support, students will see the impact organizations like us create.
Non-profits are helping people who fall through the cracks and crevices that you don’t see. These students are really learning a lot about the impact of fundraising and about the communities in the area.
Erasmus: We focus on a few key things to help students have a meaningful co-op experience, including:
Fisk: Students learn about charities and non-profits. They may have been involved in an event in the past, but working with a non-profit is different. They talk to donors to help us get grants to help some people. They also get to see how every citizen deserves to have better opportunities and access.
While they may not come from wealthy families, most students have access to food and have never experienced homelessness. Because poverty is a big part of what we deal with, they start to see the other side of society.
We teach co-op students about how to help other folks and what it's like to work with others outside of your own peers, age group or gender. It's always interesting to see how students evolve. Even if they don’t work in non-profit when they leave us, they support our organizations more in a variety of ways.
When you hire co-op students, they come in with a completely fresh view. They ask insightful questions, which acts as a catalyst for us to generate new ideas and to think about something through a different lens.
- JOAN FISK, CEO OF UNITED WAY WRC
Michaela Jenkins-Moss (she/her) is a Global Business and Digital Arts co-op student that fell in love with the United Way WRC during her first work term. Jenkins-Moss started at the organization as a marketing and communications co-ordinator and was soon offered a part-time position as digital marketing specialist.
The first thing that attracted me to a co-op work term at United Way WRC was the fact that they were offering a position that would allow me to develop skills directly related to my program.
The position of marketing and communications co-ordinator would help me to gain real world experience in digital marketing as well as further expand my knowledge and passion for digital media design.
The interview process was very professional. The position I had applied for was thoroughly outlined, which I also greatly appreciated. I was even encouraged to share some of my past school projects that would be relevant to the work United Way does. Doing so made me feel that my perspective and skills were valued.
Throughout my communications with the team, I could sense that everyone had a deep passion for the work that they did, which made me eager to learn more.
I’ve had the opportunity to work on many different projects during my time at United Way WRC. I helped to plan community events, designed social media graphics, created campaign materials, learned how to use CRM software for email marketing, and managed social media accounts and the website. I have gained so much knowledge and experience.
The most beneficial thing about my co-op work term was the real-world experience and knowledge I gained from the people I worked with. Seeing their passion and dedication to the work that they do for our community was inspiring. I also learned so much about digital marketing that I would not have known otherwise.
This experience helped me to further my digital media and marketing skills and confirmed for me that this was the field I was meant to be in. I am continuously grateful for the opportunity to continue learning and working alongside the people at United Way WRC.
Stay tuned for next week’s WIL month feature!
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The University of Waterloo acknowledges that much of our work takes place on the traditional territory of the Neutral, Anishinaabeg and Haudenosaunee peoples. Our main campus is situated on the Haldimand Tract, the land granted to the Six Nations that includes six miles on each side of the Grand River. Our active work toward reconciliation takes place across our campuses through research, learning, teaching, and community building, and is co-ordinated within the Office of Indigenous Relations.