Casalena: An engaged, prepared workforce is Scottsdale’s future

I’ve had the privilege to be one of the founding board members of Business United for Scottsdale Schools (BUSS), and now proudly serve as the president.

As a native of Scottsdale and business owner, I am keenly interested in the importance of having great schools and great businesses in our Scottsdale community ... Further, when both are working in concert with one another, amazing improvements happen for our students and our businesses.

BUSS is a Scottsdale Area Chamber of Commerce Foundation business-to-education workforce development program helping orchestrate this concert. It provides opportunities for students and business leaders to interact with the goal to develop an informed and engaged incoming workforce.

We have coordinated numerous internships, mentorships, tutoring, job shadowing, business tours and more. Paramount to the success of this collaboration is for our Scottsdale schools to be strong partners in this collective effort. Having an engaged and ready workforce is arguably the most important ingredient for successfully moving Scottsdale forward.

The upcoming Scottsdale Unified School District override renewal is critical to maintaining our excelling public schools in Scottsdale.

This override funding supports programs like robotics, nursing, and culinary studies, which provide our students with skills that Scottsdale businesses desire. We believe a community that embraces education as a means to economic prosperity is central to the quality of life for all.

I encourage all voters in Scottsdale to support this override and join me in voting yes.

Editor’s Note: Chris Casalena is president of Business United for Scottsdale Schools.