This year, for the first time ever, PCC PAVTEC partnered with the Hillsboro Chamber of Commerce to put on two high school Career Days focused on careers that are nontraditional by gender.On October 25th nearly 70 young women from area high schools came to PCC's Willow Creek campus for Girls' Day Out. Pioneering female sports broadcaster Ann Schatz kicked things off with an inspiring speech, and for the rest of the day the students rotated through hands-on activities and Q&A sessions with professionals currently working in nontraditional fields such as engineering, manufacturing, and electronic technology.
All the professionals donated their time to attend the event and based on feedback from students, the day was a huge success. The vast majority of young women who attended expressed interest in learning more about working in a nontraditional field.
On November 1st it was time for Guys' Day Out. Fifty high school boys gathered at the Tuality Health Education Center for a full day of career exploration activities focused on early childhood education and nursing careers. They spent time in a second grade classroom helping kids with their reading lessons, toured the preschool at HilHi, spoke to a child and family studies graduatehad candid Q&A sessions with nurses and other medical professionals.
These two career days were an eye-opening experience, and one thing's for sure: this lucky group of will definitely have a different perspective about what constitutes a "traditional career" from now on.
