Olentangy Local Schools has partnered with BridgED to provide students with a useful tool in their lives. This program is a somewhat recent addition to Olentangy Schools and they are excited to continue to be involved within the district. 

“The purpose of our program is to bring the business community into high school and middle schools for access, awareness, and understanding of different career fields,” said Chris Svec, one of the co-founders of BridgED.

Bridge-ed is a service for all Olentangy schools, the purpose of the program is to bring the business community into high school and middle schools to help students access, gain awareness, and understand different career fields with the help of numerous companies involved. They focus on three audiences which are parents, teachers, and students. 

“The companies involved can enter the classroom setting when teachers ask to have speakers for part of their curriculum,” says Svec. “We’re also doing programs where teachers will be bringing in different businesses to learn about the different careers fields and the types of companies that we have.”

Students can utilize this tool to learn about career fields they might not have known about. This can help students greatly with their future careers and plans after high school. It also can give students hands-on experience with their desired career paths.

“We want all types of students from all different backgrounds to be involved in our company,” says Meredith Reffey, a representative from Honda who participated in the panel. “We have a number of roles open in all positions at Honda. From production associates to technical positions, engineering to business positions. We want somebody who wants to engage with the company and who wants to see it succeed.”

Students can interact with each company to gain a better understanding of the workforce and everything it entails. This is vital for students to learn early before they graduate and are thrown into the deep end of adulthood.

“We have students in our apprenticeship programs or Co-Op programs,” says Accenture representative Anand Sekaran. “We want people to understand, especially students, what the full experience of a full-time career is.”

BridgED becoming involved with the Olentangy School District is a great opportunity for middle and especially high school students to gain knowledge and experience surrounding a multitude of career paths. It provides students with the freedom to explore their future before they graduate high school. 

Click here to read our sister article, which focuses on each company involved in BridgED:

Ohio Companies Are Getting Involved With Olentangy’s Bridge-Ed