When your alarm went off this morning, that was the starting gun to once again run the race we all run every day – the "rat race", otherwise known as "the Game of Life". And everything we do is a move on that gameboard. What job we get. The car we buy. The insurance we buy. The food we eat. Everything.
And any education that aims to really prepare teens for the realities of "adulting" which are just around the corner for them, has to teach them the rules of the Game of Life. Which is why the exercise was back again this year at the Iowa Central Career Academy here in Eagle Grove. There, juniors and seniors from local area high schools were given a lesson in real life that will hopefully help prepare them for the real thing.
Braxton Steil, an Eagle Grove High School Senior and 2nd year student at the Academy, explained that "this event prepares you for some of the life challenges and the things you didn't even know about. And it gets you well prepared."
"It's a great experience for all students," said MaKenzie Hawley, a work based learning specialist at Iowa Central who organized the event. "I definitely wish I'd had this in High school!"
Students can enroll for a full school year and choose from seven different career paths, including business, computer science, engineering, health sciences, liberal arts, manufacturing, and teaching. Upon completion of their chosen course, students can earn up to 21 college credits without having to pay for tuition, textbooks, materials, or other expenses that most college students are responsible for.
The Career Academy, located in the former Eagle Grove Armory complex, opened in the fall of 2014 and boasts numerous amenities, including classrooms with video conferencing capabilities, a science lab, a CNA lab, a computer lab, and a manufacturing shop fully equipped with industrial tools and equipment, such as drill presses, welding booths, lathes, and mills. With all of these resources available, students have everything they need to train for entering the workforce in several different fields.
Students from Clarion Goldfield-Dows, Eagle Grove, Fort Dodge, Humboldt, and Webster City Community School Districts are all welcome to attend the Career Academy, which allows them to share resources and instructors. This arrangement provides students with more educational opportunities and a greater likelihood of securing a well-paying job in the future.
Some of the 2nd year students who helped to run the event took the opportunity to share their experience with the academy. "I've earned 36 college credits for free," said Trent Sorensen, a Senior at Eagle Grove High School. "And it has helped me decide on a career path," Sorensen added.
"Well, they set me up with a job," Jayden Gump, also an Eagle Grove High School senior and 2nd year Academy student, said of his experience. The job, he explained, is part of a special program on work based learning experiences. "It pays pretty well," Gump said, noting that he works from 6 am to 11 am, then goes to school for the rest of the regular school day. "It's taught me a lot about what my working life will be like. How to do taxes. What my spending will be like," Gump said. "I recommend it."
