Titans get close-up look at local career opportunities

A new job shadowing program at Tri-City United High School has students spending time in area businesses, learning about careers in which they’ve shown interest.

Forty-three students signed up to participate in the program that Corrie Odland, TCU’s Workforce Development Coordinator, is overseeing with help from TCU teachers.

“Job shadowing is definitely one important step in the career development of students,” Odland stated. “The more opportunities like this we can find for students to learn about and experience careers, the more informed they will be in deciding about their next step after high school.”

In past years, TCU Agricultural and Technology teacher Barry Schmidt has organized job shadowing opportunities for his students, but this is the first time the opportunity is being offered on a larger scale, including the school’s business department.

“I have been doing job shadows on and off for more than 15 years,” Schmidt explained. “It is a nice way for students to see career opportunities from a first hand view. Not only does it bring careers to the students outside of the classroom it helps build partnerships between the businesses and the school.”

More than 20 businesses in the area have stepped forward to provide job shadowing experiences for the students. Each student is required to spend at least seven hours at the job site.

“The students have come back excited about experiencing a job field they were interested in,” stated TCU Business teacher Stacy Lindblom. “For 9th and 10th grades, it has been also an opportunity to learn how to communicate to strangers. This is more challenging for them compared to the upperclassman.”

Three students spent their day at....

To see more on this story pick up the November 28, 2019 print edition of the Montgomery Messenger.