Bartholomew Consolidated School Corp.’s C4 program is connecting students as young as 14 years old with real-world experiences before they’re even old enough to drive.
On Thursday, several hundred freshmen from Columbus North High School got a behind-the-scenes glimpse of what life looks like in various industries. On Nov. 26, nearly 200 Columbus East High School students will have the same opportunity.
Columbus Area Career Connection, most commonly referred to as C4, incorporates work-based learning into a student’s traditional curriculum. Every year, C4 takes nearly 1,000 freshmen on tours of several major industry sectors, including health care, construction technology, manufacturing, public safety and information technology.
Students gained insights into the industries with visits to Columbus Regional Hospital, Taylor Brothers Construction Co., Cummins Inc., Lindal Group, Faurecia, NTN Driveshaft Inc. Toyota, the Columbus Police Department and more.
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C4 integration specialist Autumne Streeval said students are not able to choose where they visit but are instead randomly assigned to different groups that each visit four different industries.
“If a student says, ‘I really want to be a police officer, but I didn’t know that I’m really good at doing electrical work,’ the point is to expose them to things that they may not think about,” Streeval said.
Not only do students benefit from seeing the career possibilities, but Streeval said local community partners also get a chance to see the talent pipeline coming out of the local high schools.
Studies reveal the push to complete a four-year degree from a college or university is more apparent than ever before, and high-paid jobs that require shorter and less expensive training are going unfilled.
According to the National Center for Education Statistics, traditional-college enrollment rates in the United States have increased by 28 percent between 2000 and 2016. The number of young construction workers declined by nearly 30 percent nationwide between 2005 and 2016, according to U.S. Census data. The demand for these jobs, however, is outpacing the growth of qualified employees.
But despite the availability of skilled-trade careers, negative attitudes toward vocational jobs persist. Streeval said the tours are meant to scrap those preconceived notions of trade careers.
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About Columbus Area Career Connection
The decades-old career-preparation program connects students from eight different school districts with real-world experiences through work-based learning.
C4 offers courses in nine different clusters, or career areas, including construction engineering technology, communications and human services. After being introduced to the program, students can embed themselves in experiences such as building a house, styling hair in a real beauty salon or producing a live newscast.
Students come from Bartholomew Consolidated School Corp., Edinburgh, Flat Rock-Hawcreek, Greensburg, Crothersville, Seymour, Brown County and Decatur County schools to participate.
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