Dress for Success SW Florida Launches Women Empowered Through Employment Series

Local program highlights mentorship and community partnerships

Dress for Success SW Florida is pleased to announce its new Women Empowered Through Employment Series (WETES). This original program provides mentors for women and builds awareness in the community, and strives to create partnerships with other nonprofits. The six week program begins August 16 and will be held each following Wednesday from 9 a.m. to noon at the Dress for Success SW Florida location in Fort Myers at 12995 S. Cleveland Ave., Suite 153. WETES is open to eligible women in Southwest Florida at no cost.

WETES is an employer-driven program designed by Dress for Success SW Florida for unemployed and under-employed women seeking jobs and new careers. The program aims to educate women through a variety of targeted career growth sessions including dressing for success, interview skills, and resume writing. Courses are led by area employers to share real world experience. Participating businesses include: Chico’s FAS, Inc., FGCU, First Florida Integrity Bank, Hertz, Lee Health, Shell Point Retirement Community, and Walmart. Karen Anderson, President of the Board of Directors for Dress for Success of SW Florida, is the chairwoman for this exciting program.

Barbara Dell, CEO of Dress for Success SW Florida, said, “We designed this program specifically to meet the needs of unemployed and under-employed women in the community. We want them to work towards employment with expert guidance from local business leaders. This is also a great opportunity for employers seeking to hire new talent.”

Graduates completing the six-week program will leave with several benefits including an interview outfit, a resume, cover letter ready to customize to each employer, a personalized elevator speech for selling their strengths and abilities, effective job search tools, a social media profile, thank you note template, financial literacy training and budgeting plan. Each participant will also complete a practice interview with the participating employers and receive ongoing job search support through Dress for Success SW Florida.

WETES is being co-sponsored by Chico’s FAS, Inc. and The Women’s Giving Circle of Southwest Florida, a fund of the Community Foundation of Collier County. The program is also supported by Walmart, Rotary Club of Fort Myers South, and Zonta Club of Sanibel and Captiva.

Christine Sherlock will kick-off the program on August 16 with “First Impressions–Putting Your Best Face Forward,” a session about the importance of having the proper image for an interview. Sherlock is the founder and Chief Image Officer at Image Matters.
 
Other sessions are as follows:

Session #2 “Selling Your Strengths” August 23, 2017
Session #3 “Using Social Media to Connect” August 30, 2017
Session #4 “Building a Network that Works” September 6, 2017
Session #5 “Interviewing Practice with Employers” September 13, 2017
Session #6 “Career Advice Panel of Experts” September 20, 2017

To register, contact Nickole Hendra at 239.689.4992 or visit www.dfsswflorida.org

About Dress for Success SW Florida
Founded by Barbara Dell in 2010, Dress for Success SW Florida is headquartered in Fort Myers. The mission of Dress for Success SW Florida is to promote the independence of disadvantaged women by providing professional attire, a network of support, and career development tools to help them thrive in work and in life. The non-profit helps women achieve health and wellness as well as self-defined financial and professional success. Dress for Success SW Florida serves job-ready women by referral only. For more information visit www.dfsswflorida.org or call 239-689-4992. Dress for Success SW Florida is located at 12995 S. Cleveland Ave., Fort Myers, FL 33907.