Boosting Youth Workforce Readiness

Panelists

Kate Aubin (she/hers) has more than a decade of experience working with youth as an educator (both formally and informally), an advisor, a supervisor, a tutor, a mentor, and an advocate. She is the head of youth services at Providence (RI) Public Library, where she develops curriculum, plans programs, and delivers education and workforce development programming for youth. Aubin received the Rhode Island Afterschool Educator of the Year award in 2019.

Janelle Duray has over ten years of experience in education and workforce development consulting and nonprofit management. She serves as the executive vice president of Jobs for America’s Graduates (JAG), a national nonprofit that has served 1.5 million youth since its inception forty years ago, and currently serves 75,000 youth across 1,450 communities. Janelle works closely with JAG’s president and the JAG national board of directors members to support JAG affiliates in program implementation. Duray collaborates with the state’s leaders, including governors, chief state school officers, and commissioners of workforce development and labor, to provide critical services to youth and young adults through the JAG Model program. She also oversees JAG’s national partnerships, working to develop strategic relationships that expand beyond financial development to fully engage JAG students and employer partners for more meaningful impact and engagement at the programmatic, local level.

Marquita Friday currently serves as the director of career programs for the Division of Career and College Readiness at the Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE) where she has held progressively responsible positions since 1998. She holds a master’s degree in adult education from the University of the District of Columbia and a bachelor’s degree in communication with a minor in journalism. Her responsibilities at MSDE include providing leadership to implement high-quality career and technical education programs for secondary and postsecondary learners in the following career cluster areas: arts, media, and communication; health and biosciences; information technology; and manufacturing, engineering, and technology. Friday also oversees the MSDE’s youth apprenticeship initiative through the development and statewide expansion of Apprenticeship Maryland. Additionally, she oversees the statewide implementation of three career and technical student organizations: FFA, Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA), and SkillsUSA, which together serve approximately 13,000 student members in all of Maryland’s twenty-four local school systems.

Jennifer Griffin currently serves as the career programs and apprenticeship specialist for the Division of Career and College Readiness at the Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE), where she has held progressively responsible positions since 2013. She holds a master’s degree in school administration from North Carolina State A & T University and a bachelor’s degree in hotel/restaurant management from Southern New Hampshire University. Her responsibilities at MSDE include providing support to implement high-quality career and technical education programs for secondary and postsecondary learners in the following career cluster areas: arts, media, and communication; and construction and development; as well as oversees Apprenticeship Maryland, career research and development, work-based learning, and financial literacy education.