n October, the Virginia Talent & Opportunity Partnership, a public-private partnership formed between the Virginia Chamber Foundation and the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia (SCHEV), was officially unveiled as part of the 2020 Virginia Education and Workforce Conference.

Virginia TOP is tasked with creating greater connectivity between students, institutions of higher education, and the employer community to expand paid and credit-bearing internship and other work-based learning opportunities.

Today, the Virginia Talent & Opportunity Partnership is pleased to release the Virginia Employer Readiness Toolkit – a blueprint to develop quality internship opportunities for Virginia’s talent pipeline.

Virginia has long been recognized for its robust talent supply pipeline, world-class higher education infrastructure, and strong business community comprised of some of the nation’s leading industries. Through the Employer Readiness Toolkit, it is our hope to foster greater connectivity between the education institutions, the student and parent population, and employers throughout the Commonwealth. Helping more students experience business as an educational pathway to a career will help position Virginia to continue to lead the nation in talent and workforce development.

We would like to express our gratitude to the many organizations and individuals who provided their insights for the development of the Employer Readiness Toolkit. Specifically, we would like to recognize the Virginia Chamber Foundation’s Work-Based Learning Task Force and the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia’s working groups for their leading efforts to build these recommendations.

Below, you will find the direct link to the Virginia Employer Readiness Toolkit and Virginia Talent and Opportunity website.

Funded through the Commonwealth Innovative Internship Fund and Program, Virginia TOP, is currently in the first stage of a multi-year rollout. Virginia TOP will continue to develop resources focused on building and retaining a talented workforce with the skills needed to fill in-demand jobs across Virginia.

We look forward to continuing these collaborative efforts in 2021 as part of the development of Virginia’s next statewide strategic plan for economic development, Blueprint Virginia 2030.