What Students Say About CTE
Every day, PWA opens doors through career education.
Resources
“At first, I had no idea on how to apply or start my nursing journey. After these four sessions, I have so many resources that I could use in the future. I got so [much] advice and tips from professionals/nursing students. They just motivate me to work harder now so that I could pursue my dream of becoming a nurse."
- Tina Ha, Parkrose High School | Tina was took part in the Fall 2020 Future of Nursing Program
“I believe that having available resources for students to understand the working world is incredibly important. I also believe that getting insight into the fields where a student may be interested in working is important, as high school is a stepping stone towards college and the working world, and getting a better understanding of that world helps a student prepare for the life they will have after schooling.”
- Ben Franson, Grant High School | Ben is part of PWA's Youth Impact Council. In Ben's junior year, he attended Career Days at Adidas, Swift, and Ziba Design. He said the experiences helped him develop his love for design and gave him confidence in his college search.
“What’s been driving myself is trying to get out there and explore and see what’s out there, and try to find out the right fit for me. … The doors that opened for me the last two years, I think they’ve helped me find what I want to do for the rest of my life, which is construction or the trades.”
- Kevin Leon, Gresham High School | On exploring careers through Career Days, Summer Construction Camp and the ACE Mentor Program while speaking at the 2019 PWA Breakfast. Kevin was awarded an ACE Scholarship in 2019 to pursue the trades.
“You don’t get jobs just through resumes anymore. It’s all about personal connections. … You have to be able to communicate.”
- Abby Cridlund in 2009 on how connections she made through ACE helped her land a paid summer internship in college at a prestigious Portland firm. She is now an ACE Mentor Captain, and well into her Interior Design career at Hennebery Eddy Architects. She was also a presenter at the 2019 ACE Luncheon.
“The difference that these career days make in students’ lives is really incredible. … Students can find out what’s going to make them happy, where they’re going to thrive, and what’s going to be fulfilling for them. And that’s such an amazing opportunity.”
-Aurora Mendez, Jefferson High School | Aurora spoke about the impact of Career Days for her at the 2019 PWA Breakfast
"This was a fun way to learn more about design. I have more knowledge and whether or not I’d want to pursue a career in design.”
- Miles Smith, Wilson High School | Mary attended the 2019 adidas Career Day during Design Week Portland, where they designed their own pair of Stans and t-shirts.
“I was waiting my whole life just to show my work and my creativity somewhere. I could finally show it in ACE.”
- Antonio Crosier in 2013 about the impact of the ACE Mentor Program on his educational path. He is now a PWA Board Student Representative & about to graduate from PSU's Architecture program.
"I got more information than I was thinking which is amazing. Everything was very important that I learned behind-the-scenes at KGW."
- Mary Dinh, Parkrose High School | Mary attended the KGW Career Day with her video production class.
“It showed me to start early, take it all the way and love it."
- Yaw Agyemang, Grant High School alumna after attending the Nike Career Day. | Yaw had the opportunity to further network with professionals at Nike during the 2016 PWA Breakfast.
“I appreciate the opportunity so much.”
- Anthony Bussey, Benson Polytechnic High School alumni | An aspiring filmmaker, he got to sit with leaders from the Oregon Governor's Office of Film & TV at the 2016 PWA Breakfast.