Next year, seniors will have the ability to join career prep, a class that allows students to work their jobs off campus during designated class times, while also learning necessary skills that apply to the workforce. 

“It’s a great class that can fit the needs of a lot of our students,” college and career transition coordinator Christina Wallace said. “It’s a chance to apply problem-solving skills and people skills [outside the classroom].”

Students get three credits for taking two career prep work periods where they can work off campus, along with one on-campus instructional period. 

“There are so many people who could benefit from the class,” junior Zeke Osborn said. “Anybody that has a job right now or is looking to have a job soon would benefit from the class.”

In addition to in-class assignments, students will also be graded on a work evaluation form filled out by their manager given to them by the teacher. It is required that students work at least 15 hours a week, and if they stop working for any reason, they will be removed from the class. 

“I expect things like learning how to make a resume, what to look for, how to make sure I know what all my benefits are and how to use them,” Osborn said. “I also want to have more time to figure out what exactly I want to do [in the future].”

The class aims to build skills such as critical thinking, problem-solving, teamwork and collaboration.

“[They will be] learning things on the job that you don’t learn in a classroom,” Wallace said. “It’s a really great class and I’m excited that we’re bringing it back.”