“It has been successful each year and continues to grow both in the students that apply and the companies that participate,” Tyler said.
Governor Mike DeWine’s office and the Ohio Department of Education have pushed in recent years to get more career exploration in Ohio’s schools, so kids are learning about possible career paths at earlier ages. Local schools, career tech centers and groups like the Springfield Partnership have taken the idea and run with it.
This year, 67 students were accepted into the program, representing 11 local high schools — Springfield High School, School of Innovation, Cliff Park, Shawnee, Northwestern, Northeastern, Greenon, Global Impact STEM Academy, Springfield-Clark CTC, Emmanuel Christian Academy and Catholic Central, plus one homeschool student.
Amy Donahoe, the GSP’s director of workforce development, said Tuesday’s event prepared students for the actual interview day for the internships next month.
“That way the students feel like they have all the resources they need and they can positively and confidently walk into an interview with an employer and put their best foot forward,” she said.
During the day, students attended sessions focused on time management and communication, financial literacy, working on resumes, mock interviews, and going over their YouScience results.
YouScience is an aptitude career assessment used to guide students toward potential careers. Students take two types of assessments — one in middle school and one in high school — through several brain games that help provide information on their skill sets, strengths, weaknesses, career paths and more.
Tyler sits down with each student during the day to go over their YouScience results and help match them with companies that fit their aptitude and interest. Students will then attend interviews on May 1 with up to three companies that match their results.
Donahoe explained since many students don’t have a lot of work experience, but have life experience, they try to help students understand how they can translate some of their skills onto their resume. This can be things such as babysitting, helping out family members, school clubs or leadership programs.
“We don’t want them to go in blindly and not understand the process, because everyone is actually interviewing (but) nobody’s guaranteed a spot. ... We don’t have (over 60) spots, unfortunately,” she said.
However, they are looking for other options for students who don’t get placed, such as helping them with general employment or opportunities for additional training.
The amount of students in the program has increased over the years, Donahoe said. This year, they have 23 students from Springfield City Schools.
Junior Rihanna Antoine said she’s doing this program to help her when she goes to college.
Senior Peri Hillerfreund wants job experience. “I’m kind of just looking for hands-on experience in my career field. I’m hoping it’ll give me a bit of experience in that field before I go to college.”
Sophomore Jeremy Blum said he’s still exploring his interests.
“The reason I decided to do this program is because I saw a potential opportunity to expand my work experience and get an insight into what career fields I’m interested in ... such as law or public administration,” he said.
All hiring decisions are up the employer, and students start their eight- to 12-week internships beginning in June. Donahoe said they’ve seen positive outcomes from both students and employers, with a retention rate that’s above 90%.
“These are students that many have not had jobs before, and so for them, it’s to complete an eight- to 10-week program and learn to show up on time and learn to work in an environment with other people and teamwork,” she said.
“It’s just a stepping stone to what they’re going to do later in life,” Donahoe said. “It doesn’t matter if they’re going to go onto college or if they’re going to enter the workforce right out of high school, at some point they’re going to be working. Having this as an experience and a process, I think it will just really, really help them.”
The companies participating this year include: Springfield Promise Neighborhood, Springfield Gentle Dental, Springfield Small Business Development Center, Clerk of Courts, Springfield City School District, Greater Springfield Partnership, Sheehan Brothers Vending, Clark Shawnee Local Schools, Kiwanis Club, Cyclotherapy, Night Dispatch, ProStratus, Myers Market, The Yost Superior Co., Littleton & Rue Funeral Home, Woeber Mustard Company, United Way of Clark, Champaign and Madison Counties, and Springfield Masonic Community.
Students can apply for the program starting in January. It’s open to all students who attend a Clark County school and are at least 16 years old. The application process consists of submitting an application, transcript, up to three references and a resume.
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