Washington Hospital Services is hosting a webinar on Wednesday, August 19 from 12:00-1:00 p.m. to introduce the Washington State Opportunity Scholarship’s (WSOS) mentoring program. WSOS is looking for mentors to support mentees who are in their third year of college this upcoming school year. Mentees are from underrepresented backgrounds and pursuing STEM and health care degrees in Washington (70 percent of Opportunity Scholars are first-generation college students and identify as persons of color and 60 percent are women). WSOS’ virtual mentorship program focuses on career development and is just a 6-8 hour commitment for the entire school year. While Opportunity Scholars are highly motivated to make a strong contribution to future employers, many lack the coaching or connections that are pivotal to landing a job. This is where mentors come in. This webinar will provide an overview of WSOS’ work in solving the talent gap and share how health care employees across the state can play a part in supporting Scholars. Please register for this webinar online.
WSOS was created in 2011 to solve Washington state’s talent gap: there are more trade, health care and STEM jobs than we can fill, yet only 40 percent of Washington high school students earn a postsecondary credential that’s needed to fill these jobs. WSOS is a public-private partnership that launches Washington students into high-demand Washington jobs by providing financial support to college students as well as mentorship along the way; more than 20,000 Scholars will be supported by 2025.