On Monday, January 3, a day when students were still on winter break, a team of Xcel Energy professionals were in a teaching mode and their students were school counselors, teachers and administrators.

The Xcel Energy team supported the educator’s efforts to let students know about the many career opportunities available to them across multiple divisions of the company.

The team represented decades of experience in gas, electric, product development, engineering and information technology. Each member provided information regarding entry-level job opportunities and promotion pathways.

“Xcel Energy has such a wide range of careers and through events like this we can better connect with our communities and plant the seeds for future employees,” said Craig Miller, Director of Contracting at Xcel Energy.

They also discussed requirements for employment, internships and apprenticeships offered by Xcel Energy and described the path they took to their current jobs. The team took questions from teachers and school counselors and provided specific day-in-the-life testimony about a “service to community mindset” Xcel Energy personnel demonstrate every day. 

WPS staff learned about the wide spectrum of current work Xcel Energy is engaged in to support more environmentally friendly energy production as well as the central role Xcel Energy plays in the development of new communities and the important role the company played in the Central 70 project.

“We are so grateful to Xcel Energy for making the time to work with our educators,” said Sandy Steiner, Director, Postsecondary and Workforce Readiness. “The more we know about the real-world needs and opportunities from employers, the better we can help our students.”

In WPS, that career planning assistance starts with students in the fifth grade and continues through graduation. The district’s Future Center and Individual Career and Academic Plan (ICAP) has been widely recognized for its efforts to prepare students for the day after graduation.