Recruit HIPPO

“How do we continue to build our economy by keeping the talent we have on the South Coast? I believe it’s about education, which is why industry tours and job shadows and work experiences are so important. I believe 100% that it's not just the students but also the parents and educators who might not understand the opportunities that are actually available in their backyard. That education process is really one of the most important things Recruit HIPPO does.”

—Natasha Garrison, Business Services and Recruit HIPPO Manager, Southern Oregon Workforce Investment Board

In 2019, the Southern Oregon Workforce Investment Board launched Recruit HIPPO (Helping Individuals Pursue Professional Opportunities) to guide regional high school juniors and seniors toward work readiness and a viable career. Offering personal assessments and mentoring as well as practical experience, HIPPO gives at-risk high school students in Gold Beach, Pacific, Bandon, Powers, Myrtle Point, Coquille and Winter Lakes a chance to explore career options and prepare themselves to succeed in the workplace.

“We noticed a lot of young people coming in who had resumes with no experience or who had a large resume of very small jobs,” says Natasha Garrison, the program’s manager. “They were struggling to find jobs because businesses didn't want to hire somebody with no experience after graduation, or with 10 jobs after that. When we started evaluating what we could do to support these young people, we realized we might need to start in the high schools.”

The program placed youth employment advisors at high schools in Coos, Curry and Douglas counties. Although early efforts were hampered by COVID-19, Recruit HIPPO was still able to give roughly 4,000 students opportunities for practical work experience, personalized one-on-one mentoring, job shadowing and industry tours.

“Our focus was on students who didn't know what direction they wanted to go after high school,” Natasha explains. “Especially in really rural areas, some students aren't quite ready to go to college. We wanted to put them on a pathway where they could earn a livable wage while working for an industry or a business that was going to help move them forward.”

Regional businesses have been essential partners, helping students can get a feel for the skills a specific career path requires. “Businesses were just waiting to figure out how they could be a part of assisting their community,” Natasha says. “And this is a really easy part

for them, because it's something they do on a regular basis when they bring in a new employee. It's been really fantastic to see the response we're getting from them.”

Natasha gives an example of how transformative this support was for a disadvantaged student in rural Douglas County: “One of our youth employment advisors worked with a student who was homeless; he was couch surfing for the most part, just staying with friends as he could. Our advisor got him into a more stable situation where he was able to focus a little bit more. And he decided he was interested in culinary work; he was able to get some experience through a restaurant, and he discovered that this was a love of his. Our youth employment advisor was able to connect him to some great scholarships, and he recently graduated from the culinary program at UCC.”

With support from BDCF and other donors, Recruit HIPPO was able to hire a new full-time advisor to serve remote rural schools in northern Curry and southern Coos counties. “If you incorporate drive time and the number of schools they were having to hit, advisors didn't get to spend a lot of time in each school,” Natasha says. “With Bandon Dunes’ contribution, we were able to create a position that hit those really rural schools on the South Coast.” Thanks to this new employee, HIPPO was able to connect with 178 new students who might otherwise have fallen through the cracks — an increase of 258%.

Natasha looks forward to new opportunities in the coming years, including building the regional workforce in crucial areas like maritime and health care professions: “A lot of what we're doing is just allowing them to have the confidence to move forward with the things they're really interested in. We’re giving them the space to dream big and then giving them the tools to actually move forward with that dream.”