High School students and local professionals show Indian Trails eighth graders what careers are available to them | Observer Local News

When Flagler Palm Coast High School senior Tasha Wongchai was in middle school, there were no career fairs to give her guidance on a field of study. So, she did her own research and decided to join FPC's Allied Health medical program.

She and fellow Allied Health student Nolan Roy talked about their program with Indian Trails Middle School students at the school's first annual Eighth Grade Career Exploration Fair on Monday, Nov. 4, in the ITMS gym.

"There are tons of different areas you can go into in health care," Wongchai told a student.

There were over 50 tables at the fair, including six FPC and 10 Matanzas High School programs including the International Baccalaureate program at FPC and the Cambridge AICE Diploma program at Matanzas. The high school programs were situtated next to professionals in like fields in government, health, law, media, finance, building construction, first responder careers and other professions.

"The kids can see all of the options they have here," Wongchai said.

The ITMS fair followed a similar career fair held at Buddy Taylor Middle School last month.

The fair was sponsored by the Flagler County Education Foundation, the Palm Coast Junior Chamber of Commerce, Flagler Schools and Community Foundation — United Way of Volusia-Flagler.

Jeremy Ossler, the career education coordinator at Matanzas, said all of the school's classroom to career programs are busting at the seams, but the Marketing and Finance program is becoming one of the most popular.

In the marketing lab, students work toward a small-business certification, produce their own commercials and marketing campaigns and compete in their own shark tank contest. Daniela Mendez told an eighth grader about her product, a clear protective lens that fits over the lenses on a pair of glasses. The thin clear lens is smudge proof and crack proof, she said.

The finance program includes an internship where students run an in-school VyStar Credit Union branch during lunch periods. In the summer, the students work at a Palm Coast VyStar branch. Both students and teachers have accounts at the in-school branch, Ossler said.