Diamond deal: Signet Jewelers to invest 2,000 mentorship hours, support to Akron students
Students at North High School will soon be in the jewelry business.
Akron Public Schools on Friday announced it will add Signet Jewelers as an academy partner for North, a significant commitment to mentoring, job shadows and other access to industry professionals.
The academy and its pathways have existed at North but without a named partner, which greatly increases students' opportunities for hands-on learning. The Signet Jewelers Academy of Global Technology and Business has pathways in entrepreneurship and marketing, HVAC/R, IT support and services, and programming and software development.
Becoming a named partner commits Signet, with headquarters in northwest Akron, to 2,000 hours of service to North over the next three years. North's other such partnership is with Akron Children's Hospital, with several health care-related pathways.
Signet Chief Information Office Howard Melnick said Signet values continuous learning.
“We are beyond excited to partner with the Akron Public Schools and the College and Career Academies of Akron to share this commitment to learning within Signet with our Akron-area high school students as they discover, grow and follow their passions and become tomorrow’s leaders," Melnick said.
The Signet agreement is a milestone for Akron schools, which has now fully built out its academy model to have a major named partner for every academy.
The district, with the help of United Way of Medina and Summit Counties, which works as a broker between the district and partners, has also formed agreements with universities and colleges at every high school but one, Buchtel Community Learning Center. Stark State College became the partner institution for East CLC last week.
"Our students have enriching experiences with local companies and also from Akron-based companies with a presence around the globe," Superintendent Christine Fowler Mack said in a release. "Just imagine the new possibilities Signet Jewelers will open for our students at North High School."
Along with Akron Children's, Signet joins Goodyear, FirstEnergy, Acme Fresh Market, Kent State University, Cuyahoga Valley National Park, Bridgestone, KeyBank, Huntington Bank and Summa Health as a named academy partner.
A few hundred smaller partnerships exist within the academies, with industry, business or community leaders committed to two events with students per month.
The district converted all of its high schools to a College and Career Academy model starting with North seven years ago. Each student takes their regular classes, but starting in sophomore year, takes an additional class with a career focus. Teachers in their more traditional academic classes are also trained to relate material to students in each academy to make learning more relevant.
Students can graduate with industry certifications and internships and job shadows on their resumes, while also learning soft skills like how to interview or interact with professionals in a workplace.
Contact education reporter Jennifer Pignolet at jpignolet@thebeaconjournal.com, at 330-996-3216 or on Twitter @JenPignolet.
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Signet Jewelers to offer job shadows, classroom supports to North High
