Miami Herald: Program connects learning and careers
Dec 7, 2009
The Miami Herald published this story on December 7, 2002
BY EILEEN SOLER
Special to The Miami Herald
The students’ career dreams were part of a program sponsored by Kids and the Power of Work. KAPOW is a national network of business and elementary school partnerships that shows students how their class work connects to real workplace skills.
“First, we have to learn math, reading and even science,” said Maniyah Brown, 7, who hopes to be a fashion model when she grows up. “No matter what we do in careers, we have to be able to do business.”
Maniyah is one of 95 children in five classes at Lloyd Estates participating in KAPOW, said John Casbarro, the program’s local director.
Casbarro heads KAPOW partnerships at 10 Broward and 53 Miami-Dade elementary schools.
“The volunteers relate, reinforce and connect learning that goes on in school to how it is applied in careers — in other words, subjects like reading and writing are super important,” Casbarro said.
Lloyd Estates’ partner is Patriot Risk Management Inc. of Fort Lauderdale. The company provides other businesses with workers’ compensation insurance programs and services.
On a recent Friday in Gilliam’s class, Patriot’s human resources manager Jamie O’Connor and O’Connor’s assistant, Debbie Gorson, talked to the children about their career interests — and then discussed what skills they needed to get the job done.
Later, O’Connor and Gorson led the class in puppet-making. Each puppet, fashioned from a brown paper lunch bag, was colored in crayon by the children to depict what they would look like in their careers.
George Rich, 7, drew a strong man dressed in camouflage clothing. He wants to be in the U.S. Army.
Jennifer Acceus, 7, drew a pretty woman with a perfect upturned hairdo, long eyelashes and cherry-colored cheeks. Jennifer said she hopes to work in a beauty spa as a nail technician.
Jhoodson Charles, 9, drew a picture of himself as a firefighter.
“Every child at this age picks jobs that they idolize,” O’Connor said. “It’s up to us to help them identify what they like, what they are passionate about and to support them to stay in school and work hard.”
Other area business and school partners include the city of Miramar with Silver Shores Elementary; the city of Pembroke Pines and Pembroke Pines/FSU Charter; Smith Barney and Mirror Lake Elementary in Plantation; and Royal Caribbean and Celebrity Cruises with Lauderhill Paul Turner Elementary.
Casbarro said business partners typically provide six educational classroom lessons at assigned schools then cap the experience by hosting the students at their location.
There, kids get a chance to see their mentors in action and, possibly, lend a hand during the busy workday.
In Miramar and Pembroke Pines, the children will get a peek at public service careers like being a police officer, a firefighter, a water sewage manager and even mayor.
Gilliam said most of her students, like many second-graders, wanted to be teachers at the beginning of the school year. Now, after one set of classroom visits and loads of discussion from Patriot Risk Management volunteers, the children are enthusiastic about new goals.
“Basically, kids aspire when they are inspired,” Gilliam said.
For more about Kids and the Power of Work, visit www.kapow.org.