By DONNA KENNY KIRWAN

PAWTUCKET — What do you want to be when you grow up? While some high school students can answer that question easily, many others head off to college or jobs without a clue as to what career path they really want to pursue.

In an effort to help students zero-in on the right post-secondary experience, the Pawtucket School Department has instituted Career Academies and Career Pathways programs at Shea High School and Tolman High School. By all accounts, the effort has been a success—so much so that Shea’s Government and Public Administration Academy, offered in conjunction with Roger Williams University, has been singled out as a national model by the U.S. Department of Education.
Michael Connolly, Coordinator of Applied Learning for the Pawtucket School Department, said the programs’ most important benefit is that it allows students to make a connection between the high school and the college learning environment. He said the programs also offer students workplace experience and career exploration, and provide “applied learning” opportunities by extending the school “beyond its walls.”
Connolly said the programs sprang from the federal “No Child Left Behind” initiative that holds that by 2014, all children will graduate from high school ready for college (should they choose it). Educators are required to create more streamlined programs of study for students based on 16 “career clusters” as outlined in a model established by the U.S. Department of Education.
With the Career Academies, students are expected to complete a program of study with required courses and suggested electives. Participation in internships and work experiences is also part of the program, which students take part in during their senior year.
Academy certification is available in many of the program areas, and some of the courses may be taken for college credit.
At Shea High School, Academy offerings include Government and Public Administration, and Travel and Tourism, run in conjunction with Johnson and Wales University. At Tolman High School, the Academy choices are in Early Childhood Education, Finance, and Law and Public Safety, offered in conjunction with Roger Williams University.
The addition of a Design and Engineering Academy is also in development that will be coordinated with the University of Rhode Island and Rhode Island Department of Transportation.
There are other proposals being discussed for academies in the fields of allied health and communications, Connolly added.
Realizing that some students will not be choosing college, the Career Pathways program is available to students at both Shea and Tolman. The most important piece is a Ready-to-Work pathway that includes a career applications course that gives students the opportunity to earn a credential upon graduation. This credential “certifies” that the student possesses entry-level skills in writing, mathematics and technology.
There are also career pathways in liberal arts for students who wish to pursue a professional career or attend a four-year college, a management pathway for those with an interest in business management, and a technology pathway for those thinking of the computer technology field. In addition, there are some arts-related programs that have been added or are in the works for students attending the Jacqueline M. Walsh School for the Performing Arts, Connolly said.
Connolly said the programs are funded in part by the regular school operating budget, with some extra costs associated with the academy and the internship programs being covered by federal Perkins Grants. The extra costs associated with the Ready-to-Work program are paid for by the Rhode Island Foundation, he said.
Participation in a career academy or pathway is open to all students. “We have some special needs and ESL students involved, as well as those who are college bound,” noted Connolly. Most students are involved in a core curriculum in grades 9 and 10, so enrollment in a career academy or pathway takes place in junior year. The internships are only done by students in their senior year.
The internships are arranged through partnerships with the Rhode Island State Internship program, as well as other business and professional organizations, such as the Northern Rhode Island Chamber of Commerce. The seniors attend classes as usual three days a week, and then have an early release two days a week to go to their internships.
In addition to the internships and resume-building career experience, the academy and pathways students have been involved in several community projects, including helping to register new voters and working at the polls during the last election for the city’s Board of Canvassers and helping collect U.S. census data, said Connolly.
Pawtucket Schools Supt. Hans Dellith said the academies and pathways programs, while new to Pawtucket, have been used by other school districts throughout the nation for many years. He said he first became involved with a similar program years ago while working in a New Jersey school district.
“The programs have been very successful and they absolutely should be expanded,” said Dellith. “Pathways was designed to help kids get hands-on experience by going out into the field. I can’t think of a better teacher than that.”
Connolly, former head of the Social Studies department at Shea, said that the first academy, Government and Public Administration, was established in 2004. The focus is on careers related to the execution pf governmental functions that include governance, security, planning, regulation, management and administration at the local, state and federal levels.
Ed Kostka, a social studies teacher at Shea, runs the Public Administration internship class. He said he thinks the program is of great value to students because it allows them to create a resume based on their projected career paths—something that will stand out on college applications. He added that the class as a whole is involved in several community projects, including an initiative with the Board of Canvassers to register new voters at the high schools and helping with a career conference that is being planned at Roger Williams University.
A group of Shea students from Kostka’s class spoke enthusiastically of their internships, which have just gotten underway. All agreed that the experience will be helpful in defining their college majors and career paths, as well as being a positive addition to school transcripts.
Dan Matuszek said he thinks his internship with the Rhode Island Department of Health’s Food Safety Division is a good fit for his interest in the medical field, as does classmate Anthony Stone, who wants to be a chemical engineer.
Bridget Duah, interested in interior design, is helping out at The Gamm Theatre, while Kristen Potter, who is considering becoming an accountant, has been matched with Alliance Credit Union.
Other internship pairings placed Djelisa Duarte, who has an interest in law, at the Rhode Island Legal Department and aspiring nurse Bella Koudriavtseva at a local health care facility.
Over at Tolman, Social Studies department chairman Christopher Souza is the lead teacher in the Law and Public Safety Academy. “The internship program helps the students to build their resumes as well as to gain real-world exposure,” he stated. He noted that within the Academy programs, there are many different areas in which students can explore career choices and obtain professional certification. Certificates are available pertaining to EMT, CPR and other safety training, the Pawtucket Police Citizens Police Academy, in Microsoft Office proficiency, or in child care.
Souza added that, through the partnership with Roger William University, some of the academy courses available through the high school can be taken for college credit. For the students who become involved in the Academy program, “There is nothing to lose and everything to gain,” he said.
Amanda Geary, interested in a career in the field of law, said the Academy “is a great way to broaden your horizons at such an early age.”
Victoria Cabral, an aspiring lawyer who works part-time in an attorney’s office now, said she thinks her upcoming internship “will help me narrow my interest between criminal law and civil law.”
Alexandra Jarl, who said she wants to pursue a job in the area of law enforcement, said that internships allowing someone to work as a paralegal or job shadow someone in the Attorney General’s Office “help you see if you want that kind of track and help you establish what you want to do.”