ALTON - Alton High School students have the opportunity to engage with local professionals and learn more about their career paths.
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The high school’s Guest Speaker Series invites people to come in and speak with juniors and seniors about their post-high school careers. The hope, explained Director of Student Services Angela Kuchnicki, is to help students think about their own paths and how they can achieve their goals.
“It’s been very eye-opening for our students to hear how everybody got to their current position,” Kuchnicki said. “That’s what we’re really trying to build on, their interests and trying to help them answer any questions or get a better understanding and idea of what life could look like post-high school.”
Kuchnicki noted that this weekly program invites students to step outside a “traditional classroom experience and learn directly from successful and influential members of their own community.” Students listen to the speakers’ stories and can ask questions and network.
Since the program’s inception three years ago, the AHS Guest Speaker Series has brought in mayors, business owners, entrepreneurs and other local leaders. Andi Campbell at the City of Aton and Britton Quigley with Lewis and Clark Community College’s nursing program have joined Christina Harvey from C-Rations Food Truck and Boeing engineer Ashley Purkey, to name a few.
Many of these speakers have not followed traditional or linear routes. It’s important to Kuchnicki and the administrators with Alton Community Unit School District #11 to remind students that they can carve out the paths that are best for them.
“I think one of the most valuable lessons students hear each week is that success does not always follow a straight path,” Kuchnicki said. “Speakers share the challenges, unexpected opportunities, setbacks, and important decisions that helped shape their lives and careers. These stories allow students to see that there are many different pathways to achieving personal and professional goals.”
She added that they are always looking for more speakers to engage with the high schoolers and share their stories of success. If you are a local professional who would like to share, you can contact her at akuchnicki@altonschools.org or 618-474-2600 ext. 50626.
Kuchnicki and the speakers hope that by sharing their stories, they inspire students to think about the future beyond graduation. They want to set up students for success and show them that there are opportunities in the Riverbend community.
“The Speaker Series is ultimately about exposure, connection, and possibility. By bringing the community into the school, Alton High School is helping students discover careers they may not have previously considered while also building stronger connections between students and the community,” Kuchnicki added. “Students leave with the reminder that there is no single path to success — and that the people making a difference in their community were once students determining their own next steps, too.”
This featured article is sponsored by Alton Community Unit School District #11. To get your business or organization featured on www.RiverBender.com, contact us at sales@riverbender.com.
