Over the last few weeks I've been talking to employers that currently employ my students and to other people in the community. I had a ton of interest and just didn't know if I could pull it off in time to coincide with our unit on preparing for jobs. My coworker, Tammy, who teaches a similar course for students 14-15 years old thought it would be a good thing for her students to do and she jumped on the bandwagon. Together, I think we pulled off an amazing event.
On Friday morning, during the 1st two periods of the day, about 40 students, most of them dressed professionally as required, began to sat at tables with representatives in the community. I had people from ConAir (of hairdryer fame who is one of Champaign County's largest employers), City of Urbana, Busey Bank, Carle Hospital, U of IL and more.
Some of my students now have internship and job leads for post-high school. Some of these students will graduate in January and others in June and will hopefully be able to snatch up these opportunities. Some of them impressed the "Interview Specialists" so much that I was told they interviewed better than some of the adults that come through the door for real interviews.
It was a very successful day and I can't wait to host the 2nd annual Interview Seminar next fall. It will be even bigger and better. Many of the people who wanted to be an "Interview Specialist' were hit by H1N1 at their office or had meetings that prevented them from coming in on Friday. Next year, I'll be able to plan this further in advance and make this a really, big deal.
I'm so happy this went well. Now if only I can get these kids to take their future's seriously. Some I think began to get how big an interview will be for their future. Some just did extra interviews to get the extra credit I was offering. With a recent study out last week stating that 1 in 4 18-19 year olds will not have a job, my biggest task is to make these kids employable and make them see that what I'm teaching them REALLY DOES apply to the real world.
Monday is on the horizon. The goal remains. The outcome is still unknown. This Tuesday marks 1/4 complete in the school year. 1st Quarter grades in and over with. I've probably lost that 25 percent of kids that won't get the job after high school. Honestly, I've got 4 F's and 1 D in my Coop classes. The ones that aren't coming to school and aren't turning things in. Not much more I can do there but keep calling parents and keep emphasizing work ethics. I've got 3/4 of a year to go to convince the other 3/4 of the kids in my classes that WILL get those jobs to work for it.
You think your Monday's are tough?
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