Schools and Education
This July, Give a Hoot provides Park County residents an opportunity to invest in the nonprofits strengthening this community. Community School Collaborative is asking donors to help expand a program that is already showing meaningful results for local middle school students.
Donations to CSC through Give a Hoot help keep career exploration experiences free for students and schools while supporting the staff, transportation, coordination, and community partnerships that make them possible. Contributions can be made throughout July at give-a-hoot.org/organization/CSC4Kids.
One of those experiences is CSC’s Job Shadow Program, offered in partnership with Sleeping Giant Middle School’s Young Entrepreneurs class. After seeing the effect of the program on students, SGMS plans to expand the class to 20 students per semester during the coming school year and is working to increase the amount of time students can spend at their job shadow sites.
That expansion matters because student engagement often declines sharply during the middle school years.
Gallup research involving more than 5 million surveys of students found that nearly three-quarters of fifth graders reported high engagement with school, but engagement declined steadily through middle and high school. The research also found that engaged students were far more likely to feel hopeful about their futures and to report doing well academically. Students were especially likely to be engaged when they believed their school was developing their strengths and when an adult made them excited about the future.
Job shadows give students both.
For ten weeks, students leave the classroom to learn alongside local professionals in workplaces connected to their interests. They see why communication matters, how adults solve problems, and how skills learned at school apply beyond the classroom. Just as importantly, they spend time with adults who take their questions seriously and help them recognize their own potential.
Seventh grader Jordan spent his placement at glassybaby, working with Production Manager Sacha Davidson to learn the art and science of glassblowing. Repeated practice taught him that creating something beautiful requires patience, precision, and persistence. He later used those skills to create glass pieces for the Livingston Farmers Market, gaining experience in both manufacturing and entrepreneurship.
Eighth grader Sylvia job shadowed school psychologist Taylor Dunlap at Winans Primary. She learned about the different ways people process information, experience the world, and respond to their environments. Inspired by what she observed, Sylvia created sensory bottles for her Farmers Market business. Her placement strengthened her empathy and introduced her to professions centered on helping others thrive.
At Elevate Montessori, eighth grader Olivia worked with Jess Haas and learned how educators guide young children toward confidence and independence. Her mentor watched Olivia grow into the role, later sharing that she was “blown away” by how much Olivia had learned as she calmly helped a child put on outside shoes. Through the experience, Olivia developed patience, leadership, and communication skills that will be valuable in any workplace.
These outcomes require much more than finding a business willing to host a student.
CSC identifies potential hosts and works to maintain a broad range of options so students can be placed in environments that fit their interests and strengths. CSC transports students to and from their job shadows, spends an additional day each week in the classroom helping them reflect on what they experienced, and helps to teach employability skills such as communication, initiative, time management, flexibility, and professionalism. CSC also recruits guest speakers who share the unexpected turns, setbacks, and decisions that shaped their own working lives.
The result is a partnership in which SGMS provides the Young Entrepreneurs class and its entrepreneurship curriculum, local professionals open their workplaces, and CSC connects the pieces into a sustained work-based learning experience.
The Job Shadow Program is one part of CSC’s broader work. The organization also coordinates Career Days for all middle school students from SGMS, Shields Valley, and Gardiner, along with monthly Pop-Up Clubs that allow interested students to explore particular professions in greater depth.
Together, these programs help students understand that school is connected to life, that their strengths have value, and that adults throughout Park County are willing to help them prepare for what comes next.
By supporting CSC during Give a Hoot, donors are helping more young people enter high school with practical experience, stronger workplace skills, and greater confidence in their ability to contribute to tomorrow’s workforce.