TOLEDO, Ohio — Toledo Public Schools hosted its Career Connect Wednesday to help young people explore possible career and educational paths.
The day-long event at the Glass City Center included more than 100 employers, colleges and universities, military recruiters, as well as representatives from TPS career technology programs and magnet academies.
Bowsher High School senior David Maidlow, who wants to be a firefighter, spent the day talking with younger students still considering career paths.
"The most important thing I'm going to do here today is probably teach a kid how to do CPR, which is a life-saving technique and it's just really helpful to know," Maidlow said.
He was just one of a number of seniors demonstrating what he's learned at a career academy.
"The intention is to have them engage in hands-on activities across a variety of industries," said Tom Dimitrew, the district's executive director of career technology. "It could be in construction it could be in the graphic design field we have numerous programs in magnet academies within Toledo Public Schools."
The event was open to sixth-, eighth- and 10th-grade students, as well as the seniors from the career programs.
The older students were available to talk with younger students about training for various professions and to discuss the required training for various programs.
"Just don't sit on a couch and be like I can't do it because I can't go to college to get something done," said Start High School student Octavia Abraham. "No, there's many more opportunities to where you can go and get a job and make money in this world. "
Participants said Wednesday's event wasn't just about making a career choice, but rather, letting other students know they have more than a few options.
"I feel really good about myself teaching other kids how to do something especially when they want to work for it. It feels really good," Maidlow said.
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