In the month of November all juniors and seniors had the opportunity to explore future careers by attending a career pathway panel of their choice during  ACP. The five available career pathways were Health Sciences, Human Services, Trades and Manufacturing, Business/Marketing/Finance, and Arts/Video/Communications.

The fields of study were determined by the Xello data report. “This shows that these areas are the most popular for the most number of juniors and seniors.  Not coincidentally, they match the local market labor data, in that, there are the most number of jobs in SE WI in those five areas,” Consortium and Youth Apprenticeship Coordinator Thomas Hermann said.

During the sessions specialists from each category spoke to students about their field.  “We wanted students to hear as much information as we can in a short amount of time and be able to ask questions afterward in a 1-on-1 setting.  Between those connections and others made with the help of GHS staff, we are able to get a diverse group of panelists,” Hermann said.

The first session was Health Services and senior Stefan Vekic attended this session. “I chose this session because I want to go into something in the health/medical field and I wanted to expand my knowledge about what types of careers are out there,” he said. “I liked how they went through their education paths and also how they explained how to make connections in their field.”

Senior Corey Lamb attended the Human Services career pathway because she is very interested in having a CSI type job when she is older. “Something that stood out to me was that you can get a job straight out of high school and they’ll help you with your education along the way,” she said. “This is beneficial because I found more about the different training and ways this job pathway helps people in the community.” 

Senior Carly Fritz also attended the Human Services panel as well.  “I chose to attend this session because I am thinking of becoming a social worker and my drive and passion is to help people,” she said. “I found the session very helpful because I got to talk to one of the presenters who is a social worker at Children’s Hospital so I asked her questions and she gave me advice on how to get my career path started.”

The next session was on Nov. 15 was the Trades and Manufacturing career pathway. Junior Antonio Acevedo attended this panel and he found everything very interesting. “I chose trades and manufacturing because I like the idea of fixing things myself and not having other people do it for me,” he said. “What stood out to me the most was how many interactions they have every day,” he said.

Junio Bailee Johnson attended the Business Career Pathway. “I picked the business pathway because that’s the path that I am going to take after high school so I wanted to learn more about it since I’m very interested,” she said. She found many different things interesting. “All three people didn’t go to school for a specific job and just working in the business field opens up tons of other opportunities,” she said.

The final session was the Communications pathway and senior Kayla Patterson attended, she is interested in being an ASL interpreter. “My mind is more artistic and creative-oriented. I would rather do something where I can see the effects I have on people while getting hands-on experience with ASL,” she said. 

After the sessions happened the administrators really hoped that the pathways were beneficial for the students. “We know that experiences are what help our Panthers determine their individual career paths, so things like field trips, guest speakers, Youth Apprenticeships are offered at Greendale High School to all students.  Career Panels are just one more way for students to begin to define their futures,” Herman said.