Junior Achievement and Accenture Offer an Updated Work and Career-Readiness Resource for Students and Educators

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo., Feb. 10, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Junior Achievement and Accenture today announced the release of JA Connect, an updated work and career readiness resource for middle and high school students. JA Connect is a free online resource for teens and educators that helps students explore the world of work and how interests and education relate to work and career pathways. The current release of JA Connect is a significant update from the initial release of the platform in the fall of 2020 and includes enhanced activities to engage today's learners. JA Connect is available at connect.JA.org.

"The future of work is already here, and it's critical we help today's young people better understand the connection between education and work and careers," said Jack E. Kosakowski, President and CEO of Junior Achievement USA. "Accenture has been an invaluable partner in conceptualizing and developing JA Connect as a resource that students and educators can use to create plans or future academic and career success."

"At Accenture, we care deeply about the impact we have with our partners and communities," said Cesar Villalta, Global Technology Security Leadership, Accenture. "Partnering with JA in this way allows us to deliver on the promise of technology and human ingenuity to accelerate equality for all students, equipping them for future career success."

JA Connect is Junior Achievement's first self-guided student experience, featuring a flexible, modular repository of activities related to work and career readiness. The content is relevant to JA programs in the Work and Career Readiness Pathway and extends or enhances classroom content. The activities can also be used independently.

All activities on JA Connect are bite-sized, averaging 5-10 minutes each. The JA Connect includes:

• Basic, intermediate, and advanced content that allows student navigation through increasing
  levels of complexity
• Highly interactive, media-rich, scenario-based learning
• Work and Career Readiness content focused in four areas that high school students identified of primary interest:
• What's Work Like?
• Plan Your Path
• Working with Others
• On the Job

Educators interested in learning more about JA Connect or JA learning experiences in general are encouraged to contact the JA office in their community at www.JA.org/Locations.

About Junior Achievement USA^® (JA)
Junior Achievement is the world's largest organization dedicated to giving young people the knowledge and skills they need to own their economic success, plan for their future, and make smart academic and economic choices. JA programs are delivered by corporate and community volunteers and provide relevant, hands-on experiences that give students from kindergarten through high school knowledge and skills in financial literacy, work readiness, and entrepreneurship. Today, JA reaches nearly 2.5 million students per year in 103 markets across the United States, with an additional 5.2 million students served by operations in 100 other countries worldwide. Junior Achievement USA is a member of JA Worldwide. Visit www.JA.org for more information.

About Accenture
Accenture is a global professional services company with leading capabilities in digital, cloud and security. Combining unmatched experience and specialized skills across more than 40 industries, we offer Strategy and Consulting, Interactive, Technology and Operations services — all powered by the world's largest network of Advanced Technology and Intelligent Operations centers. Our 674,000 people deliver on the promise of technology and human ingenuity every day, serving clients in more than 120 countries. We embrace the power of change to create value and shared success for our clients, people, shareholders, partners and communities. Visit us at accenture.com.

SOURCE Junior Achievement USA