New program prepares Southwest Missouri kids for careers after high school

JOPLIN, Mo. — The Boys and Girls Club of Southwest Missouri is providing kids with more than something to do after school.

Next year the organization is launching a new program to help prepare kids for their future.

What do the Boys and Girls Club of Southwest Missouri and a Schuber Mitchell construction site have in common? Hopefully, jobs for club members after they leave high school.

"Our goal yes, is to take them onto some of those places that would potentially hire them in the future, those, Schuber Mitchell is a great example, they have lots of different trades from plumbing to concrete, roofing, all of that, so those kids are going to be exposed to those different trades," said Sarah McMullen, C.E.O., Boys and Girls Club of Southwest Missouri.

"So having the ability to see people coming in, realizing they can have a career in plumbing, H-VAC, framing, man there's a whole lot of things coming up in the future where they'll have incredible opportunities for a great career," said Tony Nobis, Schuber Mitchell Homes, Senior Purchasing Manager.

This new program will begin in the new year.

It will also help young people make their own resumes and even do mock interviews so they can ace the job interview. But the benefits of the "work readiness" program don't end once they land their first job.

"When these kids start collecting their first paychecks, they need to know what to do with them and how to make their dollar go as far as it possibly can and so we've partnered with banks like SMB and Pinnacle to teach our kids about banking and setting up savings accounts and investing in their futures as well financially," said McMullen.