Contributed by Tate Cain | Grayson County DECA, KY
Grayson County, Kentucky, might be one small town, but the impact this town has on the world is enormous. The Grayson County DECA chapter is just one of the reasons that this statement rings true. This year, the Grayson County DECA chapter has established a career development campaign called “Kickstart.” Kickstart strives to increase leadership skills, knowledge of careers and innovative thought through workshops incorporating rigorous, project-based activities and enhancing critical thinking, public speaking skills, professional development and similar essential soft skills.
Tate Cain, the Vice President of Activities for Grayson County DECA and the Project Director of Kickstart, has been working enormously since March of 2023 to build business partnerships and create workshops that cover topics ranging from résumé development, public speaking, digital software operation, career exploration and interview etiquette, among other curriculum covered. But they’re just getting started! Kickstart is hosting workshops and planning to build career curriculum guides for teachers across Kentucky, provide résumé portfolios for local students, host a job shadowing day, a career fair and more!
“I’m proud to see this campaign’s impact on the community and students across Grayson County. Not only do we host events with high school students but also middle and elementary school students as well, and the results are amazing! This project is about more than just career development, it is about building a community of young people across our county who provide comfort to each other as they take their next life steps and show students, even as young as five years old, that they too can have an impact through their careers, without being famous or having a huge platform.” - Cain
Kickstart recognizes that most students in Grayson County are economically disadvantaged and believes there is a way for us to change that statistic by investing thorough time and energy into each student's future. So far, Kickstart has reached nearly 4,000 people on Instagram, hosted multiple guest speakers, developed multiple business liaisons and taught over 100 students. If you would like to stay up to date on the work of this campaign, please follow @the.kickstart.project on Instagram!
Follow Grayson County DECA on Instagram @gchsdeca.
