St. Louis Mosaic Project

Empowering New Beginnings! 🌟 Last night, Betsy Cohen and I had the privilege of leading our first of three workshops at Delmar DivINe about how to explore and prepare for the job search process in St. Louis for 45 refugees who are participating in "Empower: Career Success for Refugees" program at School of Continuing & Professional Studies at Washington University in St. Louis. After their 26-week next-level English instruction, students are "ready" to find work in the fields of health care and other high-demand industries in St. Louis. These are professionals who were doctors, engineers, robotics specialists, dentists, teachers and more in their home countries. Our focus is guiding them through their next steps and helping them understand how to navigate the daunting task of starting over. We talked to them about the basic--resumes, cover letters, the importance of networking and how to initiate conversations to start building relationships. And to be patient with the U.S. job search process which, no pun intended, is foreign to them. If you or your company are interested in hiring these talented and motivated individuals, or if you'd like to learn more about how you can support their career journeys, please let me know! Many thanks to Katie Blackburn Brown, André Mayers, and Jodie Vice Lloyd for leading this incredible program and necessary work! Lisa Weingarth, Kristin Lappin, Andy Teague, Jorge Riopedre, Greater St. Louis, Inc., Elizabeth Eisele, Doug Moore, Sam Page, Gilberto Pinela, MA, Tishaura Jones, Arrey Obenson #empoweringrefugees #globaltalent #newamericans #communitysupport

Proud to be part of the STLCO 2050 Planning Committee with many leaders from around the county. The County is very excited about developing this once-in-a-generation plan that will replace the current comprehensive plan developed over four decades ago (1980)! STLCO 2050 will be data-driven, grounded in a firm understanding of trends, current conditions, and best planning practices. Carlos Suarez, Rebecca Zoll, Dan Rosenthal, Summer J., Dorian Anderson, Sam Page, Kristin Lappin, Betsy Cohen, St. Louis County, Paul Weatherford, AICP, Jacob W. Trimble, AICP

We're happy to welcome PGAV Destinations as the St. Louis Mosaic Project's 55th Ambassador Company! https://bit.ly/4czLIi6 As an Ambassador Company, the brilliant minds working with clients such as the St. Louis Aquarium, St. Louis Cardinals Hall of Fame & Museum, National Geographic, seek to be at the forefront of innovation by diversifying their workforce and will engage our network of global talent for recruitment opportunities to expand their talent pool. Thanks to the committed PGAV team for making this happen: Venita Davidson, Karen Baker, Dawn Jasper-Waymire There is no cost to become an Ambassador Company and the benefits include 1:1 support from our team to explore ways your company or organization can connect with New Americans and global talent. Reach out to learn more. Betsy Cohen, St. Louis Economic Development Partnership, Andy Teague, Susan Spitz, Tim Nowak, Kristin Lappin #workforcedevelopment #globaltalent

Tune in at noon today to hear St. Louis on the Air host, Elaine Cha, talk to Sherley Moran, Christina Mayadas Lawrence, Laura Wilson and me about one of St. Louis Mosaic Project's signature programs - the International Mentoring Program, co-founded by Annie Schlafly and Susan Dealis Gobbo. Since 2017 IMP has been making thoughtful 1:1 mentee/mentor connections between foreign-born women and local women. It's a unique initiative that provides friendship, camaraderie and general information about living, working and playing in St. Louis. The best part is the testimonials from the mentor/mentee pairs whose lives have been positively changed through their meaningful connection. Many of the foreign-born women go on to find work and volunteer opportunities as a result of the incredible network created. And best of all....they say that before they found IMP, they didn't like St. Louis and wanted to return to their home countries; now....they love living here because they have a commUNITY and feel like they #belong. Today, there are nearly 400 women who are part of the program. Executive Director, Laura Wilson and the indefatigable Susan Dealis Gobbo keep all the balls in the air and connected! St. Louis Mosaic Project is in the business of welcoming foreign-born newcomers to the region and this is one stellar example of what that looks and sounds like. Hope you tune in at noon today! Betsy Cohen, Hannah N., Andy Teague, Annie Jacqueline Mbale, MBA, Greater St. Louis, Inc.