Politics & Government
B-BP Students Get First-Hand View of Career Path Options
High schoolers spend a day 'shadowing' career professionals.
Bayport-Blue Point students went to work, not class, and got a clear view of potential career paths thanks to local business owners.
It was all part of Bayport-Blue Point High School's annual Fall Shadow Day for juniors held last week. In the words of business teacher Michael Plugues, “the importance of Job Shadow Day is to make students college and career ready.”
Shadow Day, held twice a year, allows students to shadow a choice of local professionals in workplaces such as the Bayport Flower House, several BBP schools and John Bracco, a Sayville architect. The real-world experience is crucial to the students developing a sense of career and collegiate options for their future.
Right now, Shadow Day averages participation from about 15 to 20 percent of both the junior and sophomore classes. The business department hopes to increase this number to around 50 percent in the coming years in order to reach more students. Also, the school looks forward to incorporating more medical professions and careers in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics).
Shadow Day is only part of the business program’s many opportunities that are designed to help students find their future pathways into the “real-world”. BBP also offers classes in career exploration and an internship class.
Many students gather copious amounts of information in a single day regarding their options and their choice of career. Students come out of Shadow Day with experience that is long-lasting and important to the development of their lives.
As the Shadow Day organizer, Plugues recognizes that Shadow Day “gives students exposure to potential careers as well as the reassurance that the things they learn in the classroom apply to the real world. It also prepares students for college and their future careers. The sooner they know who they want to be, they'll know how to get there.”
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