TOWAMENCIN- According to the National Center for Education Statistics, about 80% of students will change their major in college at least once. For North Penn High School, that means in a graduating class of about 1,000 students, at least 800 of them are predicted to change their major upon their entrance into post-secondary education.

Aware of such a statistic, a team of educators at NPHS have been collaborating to present students with an opportunity to better prepare and inform them for the workforce and college after graduating from high school. Listed as an official course in the program of studies, NPHS now offers students the chance to enroll in the Career Apprenticeship Program for the summer of 2017, which will count as a half of a credit upon completion.

Mr. Dominic Calamia, a special education and math teacher and the coordinator of the Career Apprenticeship Program at NPHS, explained that any junior transitioning to senior year with enough credits to be considered a senior is eligible to participate.

“The program is basically [for] students who want a better look at a certain career. Maybe they can’t get that look in the classroom, through career study, or their class schedule is restricting them, so they can do it over the summer. It’s forty hours minimum throughout the summer, and it’s 0.5 credits like a semester course,” explained Calamia.

In addition to the minimum requirement of forty hours, Calamia stated that students who enroll in the course will be expected to keep a journal of each day spent on the job, complete a time sheet, provide their own transportation, and prepare a written, reflective report and presentation after completing the Career Apprenticeship Program.

In order to provide students with the exposure to a career that interests them, Mr. Pete Nicholson, an Assistant Principal at NPHS, shared that students are allowed to find and confirm a placement with their own career contact. However, resources are available to students who may not know where to establish a contact.

“Students can come to us with their own ideas,” stated Nicholson. “If they have somebody they know that’s willing to host them and sponsor them, for lack of a better term, they can come to us with that. The only thing is it can’t be an immediate family member, a mom or dad, and it has to be unpaid.”

Being that the program will be implemented during the summer of 2017, Nicholson shared the importance of establishing relationships with contacts and building a database within the community, so they’ll be willing to welcome prospective students.

“We wanted to set up a situation where students could get out there and work in whatever field they’re interested in, and hopefully it reinforces what they want to do,” explained Nicholson.

Because Calamia directly communicates with students who share their career interests with him, he has spent an ample amount of time contacting businesses in the community.

“What I’ve been doing is reaching out and telling businesses that we have a lot of great students here at North Penn,” explained Calamia. “I’m really proud of our students, and I’m proud to put you guys out in the community representing our high school. We have a lot of students who are interested in getting more hands-on, more career-oriented direction heading into post-secondary education.”

Not only has Calamia been working on establishing contacts, but also ensuring that students who are interested are properly informed. Through his teacher website on npenn.org, students can access a Google Classroom dedicated to the Career Apprenticeship Program.

Although the response to the new program has been relatively slow, several students have shown an interest. Nicholson explained that a similar program was piloted over the summer a few years ago, but it wasn’t well received by the student body. However, the team of educators have revamped the program and are hopeful that the program will be taken advantage of.

“Our goal for this year was to really get it up and running as a re-pilot of what we tried last time,” stated Nicholson. “We’re not really sure what to expect as far as numbers. In my opinion, even if one student gets out there in the community, then that’s worth it. We’re hopeful to have at least more than one.”

After students complete the program over the summer, Nicholson explained that he and the team of educators will reevaluate the program based off of the students’ feedback to analyze what worked well and what could use improvements.

Organizing the Career Apprenticeship Program, Nicholson shared, has been much of a team approach; a district committee that focuses on career pathways exists in addition to the one at NPHS. Not only does the committee at NPHS work towards a successful execution of the program, but also looks at college-career readiness to bolter what is done in addition to the college and career fair.

Students with questions about the Career Apprenticeship Program are welcome to contact Mr. Dominic Calamia, Mr. Pete Nicholson, or their guidance counselor and refer to Calamia’s teacher website for more information and access to the Google Classroom.