UK Gatton College of Business and Economic initiative receives economic development award
The University of Kentucky Economic Development Collaborative (EDC) and the Graham Office are proud to announce being named the 2024 University Economic Development Association (UEDA) Award of Excellence winner for the Talent category. This prestigious recognition was presented at the 2024 UEDA Summit held from October 7-9 in South Bend, Indiana.
The UEDA Awards of Excellence program celebrates initiatives, research, or accomplishments that represent outstanding economic development impact. This is the third UEDA Award of Excellence won by the University of Kentucky, marking the eighth time the University has been named a national finalist. The award highlights the University's ongoing efforts to proactively grow economic prosperity in Kentucky in the areas of talent, innovation, place, partnership, and economic engagement.
The Graham Office of Career Management received the award for its innovative program, "#WhatsYourStartDate: A Career Center’s Strategic Scaling Strategies to Take Gen-Z from Backpack to Briefcase." This program reflects the office's dedication to connecting students with job opportunities in Kentucky, supporting the economic growth of the state.
“We began by taking a fresh slant in how we marketed ourselves, coining a tagline-meets-mission-statement that anchored our work along three objectives that both challenge and equip students to get into purposeful career alignment: Learn who you are you. Plan where you’ll go. Get where you’re going. Next, we established a tri-fold approach to scale our efforts across three differentiated channels: Graham in the Office, Graham in the Classroom, and Graham, Virtually. These strategic investments have had very solid returns, as our four-year data now shows,” Josh Taylor Said.
The Gatton College has experienced a remarkable enrollment growth of 59% over the last four years, and Graham’s multipronged approach to reaching students in different ways (career-coaching sessions with a counselor, career fairs, for-credit career development courses, online resources) has allowed the Office’s reach to expand alongside the College’s growth.
(Graham in the Office) 65% increase of students meeting Graham’s counselors in person.
(Classroom) 380% increase in career development course enrollment
(Graham Virtually) 2,000 unique users each month.
The Graham Office also has partnered with the UK Economic Development Collaborative (EDC), which facilitates and supports the University’s economic development efforts, and Commerce Lexington to create new ways for students to engage with local job opportunities. The talent subcommittee of the EDC, chaired by Josh Taylor, has worked with Handshake, a career search platform designed for college students, to create new job filters. The filters, “Launch Local” and “Careers in the Commonwealth” streamline the job search process, making it easier for students to identify and apply for positions that align with their career aspirations and keep talent within the state. These collections will further enhance the resources available to students seeking to launch their careers in the Bluegrass region. This partnership is particularly significant given Commerce Lexington's focus on job and talent retention as part of a regional economic development strategy, which aims to attract recent graduates and alumni back to the Greater Lexington area to live and work.
By continuing to connect talented graduates with promising career opportunities within the state, the Graham Office of Career Management is playing a vital role in shaping a brighter future for Kentucky and its residents.
Since its founding in 2012, the Graham Office of Career Management at the Gatton College of Business and Economics has been committed to helping students excel in their chosen career paths. Led today by Josh Taylor, a seasoned professional with two decades of experience in higher education, communications, and marketing, the Graham Office continues to wholeheartedly embrace its mission: to prepare Gatton students to achieve employment success as knowledgeable, world-ready leaders. At the heart of this mission lies a central goal: to foster meaningful connections with students from their first day on campus, offering them support and guidance throughout their college-to-career journey.
The University of Kentucky Economic Development Collaborative (EDC) is a network of campus and community stakeholders who oversee UK’s economic development and business engagement activities. The mission of the EDC is to proactively grow economic prosperity in the Commonwealth of Kentucky in the areas of talent, innovation, place, partnership, and economic engagement.