SIDNEY, Neb. — Area high school sophomores stepped out of the classroom and into workplaces across Sidney on Wednesday, Oct. 7, as Career Cabs gave students a firsthand look at careers available in western Nebraska.
Sophomores from Sidney, Leyton, Potter-Dix and Creek Valley participated in the Career Connections of Western Nebraska event, exploring six career clusters and visiting employers throughout the community.
“Students get to explore six different career clusters and tour Sidney employers,” Sidney High School counselor Allie Juelfs said. “They’ll go on about four tours to hear about career paths and different opportunities, with the focus of hopefully our students getting education and training and then returning to the Panhandle of western Nebraska.”
Students interested in education began their employer tours at The Learning Korner at the Cheyenne County Community Center before visiting ESU 13, Western Nebraska Community College and Sidney Public Library.
Other Career Cabs tracks introduced students to agriculture and natural resources, business, criminal justice and human services, health and human sciences, and trades. Stops ranged from local businesses and health care providers to agriculture operations, public safety agencies and skilled trades.
Juelfs said exposing students to careers before graduation can help them discover both what interests them and what does not.
“They really need exposure to as many career possibilities as possible,” Juelfs said. “By the time they graduate, hopefully they have an idea and have tried things that they liked and tried things they found out they didn’t like.”
The long-term goal was equally important: showing students they can build careers and lives in the Nebraska Panhandle.
