Before taking the role as executive director for the Collaborative, I was fortunate to be the director of career and college counseling at Animas High School. As I reflect on this first fall without late nights of writing counselor letters of recommendation and adhering to college application deadlines, I have contemplated whether any of these skills have transferred into my new job role.
I have thought about the many family meetings I had where I would emphasize the need for ongoing family conversations. I recommended these conversations become a weekly habit within the family’s household, where teenagers knew on Sundays at dinner they were going to discuss a topic around the student’s life and future. I provided families with a list of topics that students were anxious about and did not know how to discuss. Topics included financing college, what to study, expectations of where to go to college, and some topics that seemed less apparent, such as how to deal with failure and how to make a life choice without knowing the full picture.
At first, coaching my families to have these conversations was at times met with resistance and uncomfortability. However, when families did lean into the discomfort and had these conversations, I received overwhelming positive feedback from both the parents and the students. Families felt more connected: They understood each other better and the student felt more relaxed in making larger life decisions without guaranteed outcomes.
I believe this practice of having conversations with students about exploration and life experiences is also a foundational practice that we bring to our work at the Collaborative. Since officially launching the first part of our Career X curriculum we have seen many successes with bringing students to industry leaders via job shadows. Our Work-Based Learning Manager works closely with industry professionals to support job shadows that incorporate brain-on and hands-on activities, allowing students to explore potential available careers without the sit-and-get approach of a traditional career panel. We have received fantastic feedback from both students and industry professionals about these experiences! However, upon reflection, it is clear that the interactive job shadow is really the kitchen table that allows for the needed family conversations to take place within an industry setting. Through working with students, industry professionals are connecting with the next generation and discussing how they entered into their careers, what failures they had early in their careers, and provide advice to students about what they can be doing to further their interest in a particular career pathway. For example, at our recent job shadow with Timber Age Systems, students learned how to use a mill to strip lumber in preparation for building materials. Yet, students also walked away with learning how adults took a risk and left their traditional career paths to start a company that will bring new technology to our building community by means of recycling and using our beetle kill forest.
On the net
Learn more about the Collaborative by visiting www.swcoedcollaborative.org.
This practice of family conversations also takes place within the weekly career exploration class we hold at Silverton School. Students are being provided opportunities to explore what type of careers are available alongside activities that allow for them to have conversations with their family members about careers they pursued, why they chose those careers and what advice they can provide. We also use resources such as Ikigai – the Japanese concept of obtaining a life’s purpose – which provides a platform for students to start their own family conversations with adults they trust.
Once students become more open and comfortable with the idea of engaging in conversations around topics without a clear outcome, we are gearing up to provide more opportunities to strengthen their conversation skills in the classroom. This Spring, Fort Lewis College will launch a concurrent enrollment online class for students called Global Perspectives with an environmental focus. This class will provide the opportunity for students to expand their knowledge by engaging in discussions with peers across all five school districts about environmental issues from many perspectives. Another opportunity to enlarge the kitchen table for more perspectives and conversations to be had.
The Collaborative’s many initiatives for access to educational resources for all students provides direct impact to all our school communities while also providing student support to bring our next generation closer to owning their choices for their future. The intentional use of family conversations in our work brings students closer to adults while breaking down walls and changing students’ perceptions that successful adults always have it figured out. It humanizes the world of work and allows for connection between industry and future generations. These conversations can start at your family’s kitchen table over the holiday and then extend into the many resources provided to your students with career preparation. Have a safe holiday season, and I look forward to hearing how those family conversations helped everyone at the table this year learn something new from each other.
Jessica Morrison is executive director for the Southwest Colorado Education Collaborative.
