Jax Dunn, a third-grader at Petal Elementary School, has already got a head start on his future plans: he wants to be a lawyer.
And the best part is, Dunn and his classmates don’t have to wait until high school or even middle school to being learning about the career field, as PES officials held the school’s inaugural career fair last week to introduce the kids to various professions in the area.
“We focus a lot on academics, but we also focus on social, emotional and career aspects, because we’re wanting to form that whole child,” said Carmin Mizell, counselor at the elementary school. “It’s not just about the grades and the scholarship and things like that; it’s about finding your interest and what you want to do for the rest of your life.”
To that end, the students spent the morning and afternoon attending presentations and demonstrations from different professionals, including a photographer, a professor, an electrician, and even a pilot. A welder took time to talk to the children about ship-building, and Dunn’s father, a local pastor, talked to the students about his career.
“I know it’s an early age, but we feel like it’s important to start now developing those interests,” Mizell said. “A lot of these kids don’t get to the opportunity to go out and see all the different careers in our area, so by doing this, they’re able to experience some different careers that they’ve never really experienced before. So we have careers that are college-oriented, and we have some that are for just (beginning) to learn those skills.”
For Dunn, the best part of the career fair was seeing his dad’s presentation, as well the talk from the pilot.
“Honestly, I think being a pilot is pretty cool, along with being a preacher because of my dad,” he said. “Even though we don’t have a lawyer here, that’s my ambition.”
Matt Dillon, superintendent of the Petal School District, said the career fair was a great way to introduce careers to the students.
“Having experts in the field come in to share their work experiences with our students was truly fun and engaging,” he said. “There was a lot of excitement in the building.
“We appreciate the partnerships that we have formed with local businesses and organizations, and their willingness to assist our district. Our staff at PES did a great job of organizing this event and it was a great success.”
