From left are Joelle Washer, Jamestown Noon Rotary Club president; Becky Robbins, Sarah Tranum, Beth Starks and Dr. Kirk Young.

At a recent meeting, the Noon Rotary Club of Jamestown welcomed the Dr. Kirk Young, vice president of enrollment management and institutional advancement at Jamestown Community College.

Young, a Rotarian, was asked to speak about the JCC Leadership Academy. Beth Starks, JCC coordinator of early childhood education, and Sarah Tranum, JCC academic fieldwork coordinator, also joined Young as speakers.

The goal of the JCC Leadership Academy is to reach out to the community at large to begin a network of educational institutions and businesses to search and seek the untapped reservoir of human talent in the area.

According to the academy, many high school teachers want to know if what they are teaching is relevant. High schools and colleges give students a lot of hard skills, but there also needs to be a focus on soft skill development as well, such as teamwork, working with people, directing others, leadership and empathy.