Second Annual Senior Prep Day

On Aug. 31, Corinth High School (CHS) hosted its second annual Senior Prep Day event, a day for CHS seniors to interact with local professionals in preparation for their future. The day opened with breakfast prepared and served by the CHS Culinary Arts students followed with a talk from Bro. Gary Caveness and then seniors rotating through four different stations. Stations included mock interviews, personal branding, financial literacy and professionalism. 

Over 50 local professionals volunteered for this event and helped lead the four stations. In the mock interviews, students were interviewed by two community volunteers. In the “Impact, The Warrior Way: A Path to Excellence,” volunteers spoke about professionalism, passion, integrity, commitment and community. At the personal branding station, volunteers presented on how social media behavior can directly affect individuals both personally and professionally. Finally, in the financial literacy game (Fab Life), students went to different stations to complete a budget. They saw how much things like car payments, car insurance, mortgage payments and health insurance added up, even to the point where they didn’t have money left over in their budget to purchase their favorite streaming tv subscription.

This unique experience lets CHS seniors practice important skills before they leave high school while also introducing them to local opportunities. “Senior Prep Day is designed to expose, prepare, and connect our seniors to opportunities available locally and to strengthen our future workforce,” said Candace Marlar, CHS Career Coach. “It bridges the gap between the students and community volunteers while providing a platform for potential employers to directly educate them on ways they can set themselves apart from other applicants.”

The mock interviews were a common favorite session among the students. Each student provided their resume and an application to two local professionals and then were interviewed for 20 minutes. After the interview, the professionals were able to give instant feedback to the students. Students had an opportunity to self reflect and score themselves after the event. Senior Lamiah Hoey learned “to always be prepared before the interview and that everything you do on social media will reflect on the jobs that you get.” 

For the local professionals, it was a joy to be around the students. “What a wonderful event held by the career coaches at CHS,” said Chip Wood, Alderman of Ward 3 for the city of Corinth and Director of Human Resources and Operations at J & A, Inc. “The students had a great opportunity to meet and learn from different career options. The students were eager to hear advice on how to pursue and develop their goals and make informed decisions about their education and/or career from an extensive variety of people.”

Overall, the students learned many valuable lessons during Senior Prep Day, including how to professionally interact with adults. “It is difficult sometimes to meet new people,” said Kasey Atkins, CHS Career Coach. “Some of our students have never had the opportunity to shake hands with a professional before. Helping them learn soft skills such as a good handshake and making eye contact will enhance their confidence moving forward. Also, seniors took this event seriously and came dressed to impress. There was a noticeable difference in the way they carried themselves when dressed professionally!”

Senior Prep Day also showed that the local Corinth community supports students at CHS. “The response from our local businesses and surrounding communities let us know just how blessed we are to have the support and encouragement for our students that we do,” said Atkins. “Also, if community members are interested in hosting a student tour or job shadow experience, go to https://careerconnections.tours/#/ to create a business account. Our students would love to learn more about local career opportunities.”