(Seguin) — Local high school juniors and seniors will be trading a day in the classroom for a day in the office.
A total of 25 students will be shadowing local business professionals and will be experiencing various careers and occupations during the fourth annual Seguin Job Shadow Day.
Josh Schneuker, the executive director for the Seguin Economic Development Corporation, says today’s provided experience is a collaborative effort among the Seguin EDC, the Seguin Area Chamber of Commerce, the Seguin ISD, the Navarro ISD and the Marion ISD.
Schneuker says job shadowing is a career exploration activity that offers students a chance to spend time with a professional currently working in their career field of interest.
“Some of these students are getting ready to graduate. They might be going on to college or they might be entering the workforce immediately. We just really want to highlight the career pathways here in Seguin and really try to deliver the message that there are opportunities for you here in Seguin,” said Schneuker.
Schneuker says the groups are especially thankful to all the participating employers who are allowing for this special experience.
“We are really excited. We are finally starting to get back into some of these in-person events that with COVID, have really kind of taken a little bit of a hit and there’s nothing really that you can do to kind of replicate those in-person events like with job-shadow day. So, we are pretty excited about it and this is a long term plan to continue to work on developing and strengthening our talent pipeline within the community so we are just really grateful for the school districts for participating and of course that the companies are opening their door and taking the time to allow these kids to shadow their workers for a day,” said Schneuker.
Participating businesses include but are not limited to the city of Seguin, Goetz Funeral Home, Golden Locks Salon, Guadalupe County Adult Detention Center, Marion ISD, Oil Tea Company, the Seguin Fire Department, the Seguin Police Department, Tackett Chiropractic, Tier One Dental, and Vitesco Technologies.
Schneuker says hopefully, one day on the job will help provide students with a better idea of their own future.
“We’ve got a variety of companies really representing all the different industries that exist in Seguin and we are trying to provide students with an opportunity to kind of see the careers that are in their own backyards here in Seguin and really kind of give them that personal experience of what it might be like in a day working with the city or at the fire department or at one of our manufacturers like United Alloy or at a dental office. This really provides that one on one interaction so that those students can really see and feel what goes on during that 8 to 5 or whatever that shift might be,” said Schneuker.
Chester Jenke, president of the Seguin Area Chamber of Commerce, is also excited about the opportunity and says students will be able to experience first-hand what it’s actually like working in specific jobs in this community — a community that is always ready to embrace them.
The Seguin Job Shadow Day is being held in conjunction with Career and Technical Education (CTE) Month, a public awareness campaign that takes place each February to celebrate the value of CTE, as well as the achievements and accomplishments of CTE programs across the country. CTE is designed to prepare students for high-wage, high-demand careers that cover many different fields, including but not limited to health care, information technology, advanced manufacturing, hospitality and management.
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