Yuma County students get workplace experience through United Way BizKids program

Fourth- and fifth-grade students in Yuma County spent 16 weeks learning how to write resumes, apply for jobs and handle mock interviews before stepping into local workplaces through United Way of Yuma County’s BizKidz program. The hands-on project is designed to introduce children to economic concepts, workplace skills and personal and business finances years before they enter the labor force.

The outing gave students a first look at how jobs connect inside the county’s own economy. BizKidz students visited local businesses that sponsored the event and saw different roles in action, turning classroom lessons into a practical lesson in how a workplace operates. United Way says the program is meant to help break the cycle of poverty by giving young people business fundamentals and life skills early enough to shape long-term choices.

The program’s classroom piece matters as much as the field visit. Before leaving school, students completed a 16-week curriculum that included resume building and interview practice with local volunteers. That approach gives children repeated exposure to the language and expectations of hiring, from filling out an application to answering questions in a professional setting. For many students, it is the first time those steps feel concrete rather than remote.

BizKidz also fits United Way of Yuma County’s broader mission, which centers on education, income and health. Executive Director Mallory Edgar said the goal is to help students stay local and contribute to Yuma County, a message that matches the region’s long-running workforce challenge of preparing young residents for jobs that can support them without leaving home.

The program has already shown staying power. United Way of Yuma County’s YouTube channel includes BizKidz material from 2024 and 2025, including videos tied to Alice Byrne Elementary School, a Title I K-5 campus in Yuma. That multi-year footprint suggests the effort is becoming part of the county’s early workforce-development pipeline rather than a one-time event.

For local employers and civic leaders, that kind of exposure matters because it links classrooms, businesses and community volunteers before students reach middle school. In a county where future job growth depends on developing a reliable local workforce, BizKidz gives children an early sense that work, money and opportunity are connected, and that Yuma County can be part of that path.