What career options are out there for you?

Guest speaker Christine Dove Reed, faculty member at Illinois Valley Community College, talks with students at Logan Junior High about their career options. The presentation was part of a week-long career focus developed by Logan teacher Julie Andris. (BCR photo/Donna Barker)

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PRINCETON — Junior high is the perfect time to start thinking about a career.

Last week, Logan Junior High teacher Julie Andris led a week-long session for her eighth-graders in which they explored career options.

Students heard from a variety of guest speakers, including Christine Dove Reed, professor at Illinois Valley Community College; Carol Baness with the Starved Rock Associates for Vocational and Technical Education; and officers from the Princeton Police and Bureau County Sheriff’s departments.

The eighth-graders also took career assessment surveys and signed up to get information from various colleges.

“Junior high is a perfect age to talk with students about developing career goals, especially when they start picking out classes for high school,” Andris said. “I think it’s of great importance for students to set goals, even if those goals change along the way.”

Eighth-graders Jade Atkinson, Alizabeth Fiorini, Lauren Denault, Trevor Ryan, Maggie Siebert and Marissa Mencos met Friday morning to discuss the week-long career emphasis. The surveys were fun and beneficial, the group agreed.

Jade said she was surprised at all the different options given each student. There were about 40 career listings, with lots of jobs she hadn’t thought about before, she said.

Marissa, who wants to be a cosmetologist, said the survey confirmed that cosmetology would be a good choice for her.

Through the survey, the students were challenged to look outside the career box of obvious choices.

For Alizabeth, choreography was listed as one of her career options. Right now she wants to teach kindergarten. Trevor said his survey showed him he might want to be the driver of a tow truck. He hadn't considered that before.

Lauren said she hadn’t considered being a funeral director before, but the survey said that could be an option for her.

One of Maggie’s options was to be a comedian. She does have a good sense of humor, she said.

“I think the idea was to open our eyes to more possibilities than what we realized were out there,” Maggie said.

Lauren said she’s glad they went through the career study.

“I think it’s cool to get all this information this young,” Lauren said. “It helps us to look ahead.”

As a teacher, Andris said parents can help their children in setting career goals by encouraging them to be creative.

“We need to expand our knowledge and to let our kids experiment with different ideas and options for their lives,” Andris said. “We also need to let them know it’s OK to make a mistake.”

In the end, the goal is to become a better person, to be productive, and to have a dream, the teacher said.

“I tell my students they shouldn’t live anyone else’s dream,” Andris said. “Don’t be afraid to explore and to try something new. If one door closes, there will always be another one.”

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