Cuyahoga Heights Middle School eighth graders continued to explore careers with Cuyahoga Valley Career Center Specialist Julie Regula. This new round of hands-on activities focusing on Hospitality and Tourism; Human Resources; Information Technology; STEM; and Transportation, Logistics, and Distribution.
This initiative was a continuation of earlier career exploration activities designed to help students gain an understanding of the wide range of options available to them. In this latest round of activities, students had the opportunity to learn about roles in the following career areas:
Hospitality and Tourism. Career explored included that of Athlete, Sports Arena Worker, Food Industry, Tourism, Flight Attendant, Tour Guide, Travel Agent, Hotel Worker, and Event Planner. One of the activities in the Event Planner role included preparing for a special event in which students had to set a table for a guest. This included locating the table on a room diagram, creating a place card, and using a table-setting diagram to set our plates, classes, and cutlery, including folding a napkin.
Human Services. These careers included Mental Health Counselor, Social Worker, Preschool Teacher, Exercise Trainer, Clergy, Personal Care Aide, Barber, Massage Therapist, Funeral Director, and Cosmetologist. In exploring the Cosmetologist role, students created a fresh new hairstyle for a client.
Information Technology. Students learned about the roles of Computer Engineer, Video Game Designer, Web Administrator, Software Developer, Information Security, Computer Analyst, and Programmer. One of the activities in this area included robotics coding where the students created code to teach a robot to follow commands.
Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM). Students studied the role of Design Engineer, Mathematician, Data Scientist, Microbiologist, Statician, Sociologist Physicist, Geneticist, Aerospace Engineer. In learning about the job of a Data Analyst, students had to “crack” a code (areas of illumination on a screen called “pixels”) to discover hidden images.
Transportation, Distribution and Logistics. Students explored the jobs of a Logistic Engineer, Parking Attendant, Cargo Agent, Bus Driver, Train Engineer, Warehouse Worker, Pilot, Auto Mechanic, Captain, and Valet. As a Valet, students had to locate an important client's car in the hopes of getting a big tip!
Law, Public Safety, Corrections, and Security. These careers included that of Probation Officer, Emergency Medical Technician, Firefighter, Police Officer, Animal Control, Forensic Scientist, Judge, Lawyer, Security Guard.
Manufacturing. This area included that of Machinist, Tool and Die Maker, Inspector, Operator, Line Technician, Assembler, Welder, Scheduler, Plant Manager, and Mold Maker.
Marketing. These roles included Public Relations Manager, Advertising Manager, Model, Telemarketer, Cashier, Sales Representatives, Real Estate Agents, and Merchandiser.
“Discussions filled the room, with many students sharing their likes and dislikes about each experience, while reflecting on which skills they enjoyed using, giving them a clearer understanding of future career possibilities,” noted Regula.
“As they discover their areas of interest, they’ll be able to dive deeper into these fields, helping them refine their career choices,” added Regula. “This will enable students to make more informed decisions when choosing classes in high school and preparing for a career after graduation.”