Students explore career options at summer camp

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Neighbors | Sarah Foor .Programming teacher Steve Bennett (right) gathered with his class of computer wizards for a class photo, which also helped the tech-savvy gang get a chance to stretch out their legs. The classroom includes students from Jackson-Milton, South Range, Canfield, Boardman, Austintown, Western Reserve, and Poland.

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Neighbors | Sarah Foor .Cosmetology camp students Tabitha Gatrell (left) and Jacqueline Vega showed off the mannequin heads where they practiced styling skills during their week of career exploration. Gatrell hails from the Western Reserve school district, while Vega attends Jackson-Milton.

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Neighbors | Sarah Foor .Programming teacher Steve Bennett (left) worked hard to break down the complex programming process into simple computer commands. Student Brendan Gage (right), a Poland native, listened closely for help in fixing his zombie video game.

By SARAH FOOR sfoor@vindy.com

From June 20 to 24, the Mahoning County Career and Technical Center offered area middle-schoolers the chance to explore the possibilities for future careers.

With MCCTC students gone for the summer, the technical center was opened for exploration for the fourth annual MCCTC Summer Career Camp.

Jacqueline Kuffel, MCCTC career development supervisor, said the camp offers intensive career exploration early for students in seventh, eighth and ninth grade.

“Our aim is to show the choices and career pathways that the students can explore in their field of interest,” Kuffel noted.

“My favorite part of the camp is seeing the kids excited to explore their passion, and they’re finding that they really love it when they explore it deeply,” she added.

The courses available vary by year due to enrollment. This year, summer camp students explored careers in computer programming and cosmetology.

During a week in programming courses, instructor Steve Bennett had each student create a game with JAVA programming.

“I’m teaching about programming, but we also stop often to explore important theories. We play games to get up from our computers every now and again, but also to explore what makes a good game and how we can translate that experience digitally,” Bennett said. In his classroom, Bennett hosted students from Jackson-Milton, South Range, Canfield, Boardman, Austintown, Western Reserve and Poland.

Poland native Mark Stein created a game where a giant chicken faced off with an approaching zombie.

“It’s cool, because in a game you need to create both sides of the story. You need to be considering everything, which is a good quality to have in life, too,” Stein said of his experience.

Instructor Darlene Caswell taught cosmetology basics to Western Reserve student Tabitha Gatrell and Jackson-Milton student Jacqueline Vega. During their week of exploration, they learned about makeup, manicures, pedicures, hear care, and general cleanliness.

“It’s been a very cool experience,” Gatrell said. “I did things this week I never thought I’d be able to.”