Out of Class, On the Job

Warren County High School juniors and seniors are out of the classroom Monday while WCHS hosts the regional cross country meet.

The reason students are not at school is mainly because of parking. Part of the cross country course goes through the teachers’ parking lot, so teachers are not able to park in their normal spots during the meet.

Instead, teachers are parking in the section of the student parking lot normally used by juniors and seniors. To make room, upperclassmen are spending the day away from campus.

However, it is not just a free day off from school.

Juniors and seniors were given three choices for what they could do Monday. Students can job shadow someone in a career they are interested in, complete a community service project or visit a college.

Each option gives students a chance to do something outside of a normal school day.

For students who choose to job shadow, the day is an opportunity to learn more about a possible career by seeing what that job is actually like.

I chose to spend the day job shadowing at Main Street Media, where I am getting a look at how a local media company works and getting the chance to write this story for the Main Street Journal.

“I think job shadowing is a good way to spend the day because it gives us a chance to see what a real workplace is like instead of just hearing about different careers in class,” I said. “Being at Main Street Media has also given me the chance to actually take part in the work by writing this story.”

Community service is another option for students. They can spend the day volunteering and helping local organizations while getting more involved in the community.

Students can also use the day to tour a college. This can be especially useful for juniors and seniors who are beginning to think more seriously about what they want to do after high school.

For seniors, graduation is only a few months away, and many are already making decisions about college, technical school or entering the workforce. Juniors also are beginning to look at colleges and think about what they may want to do after graduation.

The schedule change also makes it possible for Warren County High School to host the regional cross country meet.

Cross country is different from many other school sports because runners need a course that covers a large area. At WCHS, part of that course takes competitors through the teachers’ parking lot. With runners using that area, cars cannot be parked there as they would be on a normal school day.

Moving teachers to the upperclassman parking area gives them a place to park while also keeping vehicles away from the race course.

Freshmen and sophomores are still attending school on their regular schedule on Monday.

While juniors and seniors may not be sitting in their normal classrooms, they still have something to accomplish during the day. Whether they are visiting a college, helping in the community, or learning more about a possible career, the day gives students a chance to do something different while WCHS hosts the regional meet.

For me, that means spending the day at Main Street Media and getting to see firsthand what goes into producing local news, including writing the story about why my classmates and I are not in school today.