Madison, Wisconsin January 30-February 1, 2011
As economic and workforce challenges continue in our country, many adults and students will continue to seek assistance with job retraining, lifelong career development skills, continuing education and the development of 21st Century skills that will make them valuable assets in our high skills workforce. The Careers Conference, hosted by the Center on Education and Work at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, will provide a place for career professionals to become reinvigorated through listening to keynote speakers, attending 100+ concurrent sessions, and networking with colleagues from across the nation and beyond.

The conference program is designed to help participants approach these challenges with greater energy, enthusiasm, and information. The featured speakers scheduled throughout the conference focus on cutting edge topics for those beginning in the field and also for those with more advanced credentials. This year our featured speakers will address the following topics: labor market updates, writing accomplishment-rich resumes, addressing cultural competencies, using intuition to make career connections, and the impact of Gen Y on the workplace.

Opening this year’s conference on January 31st will be keynote speaker, Christian Moore. He is an internationally renowned author that created the WhyTry Program, an initiative that has proven to be one of the most effective ways to teach critical social and emotional skills that determine the success and happiness for individuals facing life’s challenges. The WhyTry Program is used in thousands of schools, correctional facilities, and mental health agencies in the United States, Canada, and Australia. Moore will be sharing the tools and inspirational messages he uses to encourage and enable people to overcome their most severe challenges. This is an opportunity to discover successful activities and principles that could essentially build hope and change lives.

John D. Krumboltz will be the keynote speaker on February 1st. He will be sharing his understanding of planned and unplanned experiences that begin at birth and continue throughout our lifetime. As career specialists and educators, we can contribute to these learning processes and activities that generate unexpected events that improve an individual’s level of career satisfaction.

Whether you are starting out or advanced in your field, there is something for you at this conference. For more details on conference sessions, speakers, and registration, visit the Careers Conference website at http://www.cew.wisc.edu/careersConf/Default.aspx; or contact Carol Edds at cedds@education.wisc.edu, 608/263-4779.