|
Jena
Hardy, Staff Writer
10-07-2008
On November 21, 103
juniors at Pulaski County High School will get a taste of the local job world,
thanks to the Pulaski County Chamber of Commerce and it’s Youth Excel Program
(YEP).
YEP is a mentoring
program in which students will have the opportunity to shadow local
professionals throughout a full day of work, exposing the students to the
realities and requirements of jobs and careers they might be interested in.
This past Friday, a
kickoff assembly was held in the Little Theatre at PCHS to introduce the
approximate 170 11th grade students (all students who are enrolled in U.S.
History this semester) who will be eligible to participate in the YEP.
John Neel of Gay &
Neel, Inc., an engineering firm in Christiansburg, addressed the students
during the assembly, and said that what will be vital to the health of Pulaski County
is “keeping homegrown talent at home,” and one of the keys to doing that will
be showing students all the opportunities that are available in Pulaski County.
Chuck Swain, the human
resources manager at James Hardie, spoke to the students as well.
“I figured out there
are really two groups here,” he said. “There are those of you who are just
about to end the best days of your life. And then, there are those of you who
are about to begin the best days of your life. It’s up to you to decide which
group you fall in.”
Swain shared advice with
the students about planning for the future, determining which route they want
to take as far as college or entering the workplace, assessing and improving
their skills and strengths, taking advantage of available opportunities and
developing and using a network of family and friends.
As his main piece of
advice for future planning, Swain said, “No amount of money will ever make you
happy in a job that makes you miserable. You spend way too much time at work to
do something you don’t enjoy.”
Anthony Akers, Pulaski County community activities director and
a PCHS alum, also addressed the students about the importance of mentors.
“A mentor is a life coach
or a teacher,” he said. “I get to do what I want to do for a living, because I
listened to mentors and coaches.”
After he graduated from
college, Akers worked in a factory because he heard he could make more money
there, but he wasn’t happy, he said.
“Someone told me, Anthony,
your gift is working with children and teenagers and young people, and I
listened to them,” he said.
Akers also gave examples
of people within PCHS who could be great mentors to students, such as PCHS Principal
Rod Reedy, who was a coach and mentor to Akers, along with other coaches and
teachers.
If not for the
willingness of over 70 local businesses and government offices to donate their
time, knowledge and experience, YEP would not be possible.
Students will have a wide
variety of options to choose from, ranging from the office of Del. Anne B.
Crockett Stark to Pulaski
Community Hospital
to the Pulaski County Sheriff’s Office, and much more.
To participate,
students are required to fill out a registration form, including their three
top choices of professions to shadow, along with information about their work
experience, skills, accomplishments and future plans.
While only students
enrolled in U.S. History during the fall semester will have the opportunity to
participate, Chrissi Vest, 11th grade guidance counselor, said if the YEP went
well this semester, and she felt confident that it would, students in U.S.
History during the spring semester would have the opportunity to participate
then as well.
For more information
about YEP or the Pulaski County Chamber of Commerce, contact 674-1991.
adControl(document.getElementById("story-text").offsetHeight)
http://www.southwesttimes.com/news.php?id=2562
|
