Call it a road map, a game plan, or a snap shot. Windsor
Central High School freshmen are putting their vision of what their lives and
careers may become on paper.
“To me, being future-ready is having a general idea of how you want to be successful. We’re young kids. A lot can change, but it’s good to have a general idea,” said 9th grader Regan Conrad.
Members of WCHS’s Guidance Office are having each freshman create a future-ready board, showing what their professional goals are and how they plan to reach them.
“We spent three days talking to them about what future-ready means. We talked about what is success and how that is different for everybody,” said Career Counselor Heather Noyd.
Conrad’s idea of success is entering law enforcement.
“I’ve known for a while I want to go into law enforcement. My family is in law enforcement,” said Conrad.
But, this exercise made him focus – not just on what he wanted to do, but what would make him happy doing it.
“I love being outdoors and love law enforcement. As I researched, I learned being a Fish and Game Warden combined those perfectly,” said Conrad.
As students created their boards, guidance counselors encouraged
them to keep in mind what local internships or job shadowing opportunities are
available. Some students are already utilizing the resources available in the District
to help shape their career path.
“I did this in Windsor Strong (summer program) last year and I wanted to be a police officer. But, I’ve worked with kids during study halls and now I want to be a special education teacher in Windsor. Mrs. Herringshaw told me I could take the Intro to Ed class in 12th grade, then I could substitute teach here during college,” said 9th grader Amara Keefer.
As some students explored potential careers, they realized they weren’t just looking for a job, but how that job fit into the rest of their lives.
“I’ve always been conscious of what I want to do in the future, but what this did was, instead of focusing on getting the highest-paying job, made me think about a balance between my job and being happy,” said 9th grader Ayden Smith, who will pursue being an auto mechanic.
“I was impressed by students who talked about other facets of their lives,” said Noyd.
The rest of the 9th-grade student body will
present their future-ready boards on Thursday.