Thank you to all your Pickster mentors for taking the time to mentor and show a day in the life of your work to high school students.
The Press-Enterprise Nearly 70 students in the John W. North High School Education and Human Services Academy spent Friday morning learning what it takes to be an attorney, educator, business owner, nonprofit professional or government official during the annual Job Shadow Day.
The annual event gave students a chance to see what life is really like for people working in different professions. Job Shadow Day also reinforces to students the importance of setting goals and working hard to achieve those goals, no matter what they might be.
North junior Marla Loeza, 17, toured the Riverside Unified School District office. According to organizers of the event, the student is now interested in pursuing a career as a special education teacher because it will allow her to combine her interest in helping people with an interest in teaching.
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Special to The Press-Enterprise
North High students listen to Gale Bjelland, a visual and performing arts specialist, describing her job during a job-shadowing day by Riverside students.
Student Brianna Martinez, 16, hopes to become a coroner, but still enjoyed visiting the district office to learn about the many career opportunities in education.
Meanwhile, after touring Riverside’s historic courthouse and meeting Superior Court Judge Sharon J. Waters, 15 students came to Best Best & Krieger in downtown Riverside.
“Every day is different. Issues arise that you don’t anticipate but that’s what makes the job challenging and fun,” said attorney Rahsaan Tilford, who works in the firm’s Ontario office.
Attorney Paeter Garcia urged the group to go to college no matter what career path they choose.
“You don’t have to know what you want to do — just go,” he said.
Students visited their mentors at Riverside Unified School District’s main administrative office, maintenance and operations division, nutrition services and purchasing offices; Longfellow, Patricia Beatty and Woodcrest elementary schools and North High School; Best Best & Krieger law firm; Watermaster Support Systems; Riverside City Hall; California Baptist University; Riverside Community College; Riverside County Office of Education and the Arc of Riverside County’s Nine Zero Project.