Story Detail
PrimeWay’s “Lounge de Vida” and “Get a Job 101” Created a Buzz
Houston – PrimeWay’s Lounge de Vida and Get a Job 101 sessions created a buzz among students, parents and teachers at Career and Education Day, an event coordinated by the Houston Hispanic Forum. This year’s theme was “Higher Education, Higher Expectations.” And that is exactly the theme that PrimeWay concentrated on while creating a new strategy to teach finances to middle and high school students at the event. Governor Rick Perry said, “As a nation always looking toward the future, we are continuously challenged to ensure that young Americans are empowered with the skills, responsibility, and diligence necessary to succeed at the challenges before them.”
The Annual Houston Area Career and Education Day is for Houston and surrounding school district students. Seventy-three school districts were reported at last year’s event. More than 19,000 students attend the event each year and nearly 90% are Hispanic. It focuses on education and prospective careers. Representatives from universities, vocational schools, armed forces and many other organizations were on hand to speak to students about various career options. Career and Education Day also featured 150 panel sessions ranging from PrimeWay’s Get a Job 101, careers at NASA, and countdown to college. It is supported by the City of Houston and State of Texas officials.
PrimeWay accepted the challenge. Never one to do the expected, PrimeWay Federal Credit Union’s unique financial educational sessions proved to be the hip place to be during the Houston Hispanic Forum’s Career and Education Day. Sessions were so packed that the credit union was literally forced to ask students and their parents to come back to later sessions. PrimeWay featured the “Lounge de Vida” a lounge with a financial education spin. The ambiance was relaxed and perfectly suited for teens with love seats, sofa, stools, Brass Magazine (a financial education magazine), and music. Students were encouraged to visit the lounge and attend one of the chats. The chat topics discussed were “Stash Your Cash” (saving money) and “Cool Basics” (needs vs. wants). Chats were held every hour and chats were interactive requiring students to participate in the discussion in order to facilitate better understanding and retention. Students were encouraged to attend by the given possibility of winning some cash at the end of each chat. The response was tremendous.
Wondering what the big draw was? “The concept seems deceptively simple,” said Michelle Oshinski, PrimeWay’s VP of Marketing, “but it was a collaborative effort.” “Erica Plata, Marketing Specialist, created exactly the right look and feel when designing the “Lounge de Vida” a place where students would want to hang out. Then there is an enormous difference between imparting valuable information in a personal conversation or chat and giving a formal lecture. We spoke to students on a more personal level, in an environment they liked, about topics they were interested in,” Oshinski said.
PrimeWay also ran an educational panel, “Get a Job 101,” coordinated by Rodney James, Business Development Specialist, that it was an enormous success for the same reasons. PrimeWay went out of the box and didn’t concentrate on careers in the financial services industry. “Get a Job 101” was made fun with live models interacting with the crowd and a panel of knowledgeable HR executives from several industries. PrimeWay volunteers served as the live models focusing on how to dress for formal and casual job interviews. They also provided answers to questions students were interested in and then worked in a little more good to know information. Some of the models held cardboard signs, much like the ones you would see on a street corner, advertising the session creating a buzz that resulted in one of the best attended sessions of the day.
PrimeWay’s efforts to help students focus on “Higher Education, Higher Expectations” during the 21st Career and Education Day was an overwhelming success. As one parents stated, “What you are doing is great, we haven’t seen anything like it.” Turns out that the credit union way – know your potential members and treat them with care and respect is the key – no matter what the situation.
PrimeWay can help anyone who lives, works, worships, or goes to school in the City of Houston and Washington County. For more information regarding PrimeWay Federal Credit Union please call 713.799.6200 or visit PrimeWayFCU.com.