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When I grow up, I want to be a...
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Neighbors | Pam Jadue.Austintown Fire Chief Andy Frost checks in with seventh-grade students Logan Skolnick (left) and Shannon Calhoun. The seventh-graders worked as volunteers signing guests in at the door and escorting speakers through the school during the eighth-grade career day at Austintown Middle School. Frost spoke to a group of students about career options as a firefighter.
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Neighbors | Pam Jadue.Chef Tim King of the Upstairs Lounge in Austintown entertained AMS eighth-graders as he spoke of his career as a chef.
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Neighbors | Pam Jadue.Pet groomers Kari Carlson (second from left) and Amy Stadnik from Petsmart, along with their canine companions Mocha and Mojo, pose with Austintown Middle School students Nicole Granger (left) and Tabreasia Gowdy (right). .
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Neighbors | Pam Jadue.AMS student Devine Redding (left) and opening speaker Craig Olson have some fun discussing possible career options during the opening of career day at the middle school. Olson is president of Olfield Graphics in Austintown.
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Neighbors | Submitted.Austintown chiropractor Amy Toth Dahl (seated) gave a presentation to the AMS class as part of the career day Mar. 18. “This is such a great idea for students. It gets students excited to learn and motivates them to think about future goals," Dahl said.
By PAM JADUE
Doctors, lawyers, policeman, fireman, a chef and politicians were some of the visitors who helped Austintown Middle School students to consider their future possibilities during the 8th grade Career Day held at the school. The all-day event took place at the school on Mar. 18 with speakers from various careers highlighting their professions, giving students an opportunity to ask questions and consider a wide range of possibilities.
The day began with the entire 8th grade gathering in the all purpose-room to hear guest speaker Craig Olson and continued with students participating in various presentations in the classrooms.
“This is a great opportunity for the students to explore future career options,” said counselor John Hudson. “We want them to experience as many careers as possible with many different speakers available today.”
With close to 50 speakers on the schedule, the theme of the day seemed to be “remain open to the possibilities.”
Olson, president of Olfield Graphics, said “some people go through life doing jobs that they don’t enjoy doing, it should not just be about money. A career should include something you enjoy doing.”
He told the students that they don’t need to know what they will be in the future but that they should work toward being prepared for future opportunities. He emphasized, “You can do anything that you want to do.” Olson spoke of how his career ideas changed through out his life and how careers are changing today, “Some of your future careers may not have been invented yet. It’s important to stay open to the possibilities.”
During the day, familiar Austintown faces could be seen through out the school, including Fire Chief Andy Frost, State Representative Ron Gerberry, Trustee David Ditzler and Mahoning County Auditor Michael Scortino.
Eighth-grade math teacher Elaina Moore said her class enjoyed the day and she was impressed with the speakers. She described how Carla Ferree had the students completely engaged in her presentation on nursing.
Austintown police detectives Ray Holmes and Kathy Dina spoke to a class about careers in law enforcement. They pointed out the differences between their jobs and the TV jobs -- explaining that it takes a lot longer than an hour to solve a case. Dina explained that as a detective, it is her job to investigate a crime using witness statements. As part of the demonstration, Patrolman Chris Pasvanis interrupted the class and students were asked to provide an eyewitness account of what they saw. Students were amazed to see that many of the details of their own accounts differed from their classmates.
According to PTA member and event Chairperson Flecka Cochran, the day’s activities ended with a presentation by State Sen. Joe Schiavoni. The PTA provided a breakfast and lunch for guest speakers with help from the Austintown Wal-Mart.