Bussiness works

If Gianna LoRusso didn’t learn anything else in the Career and Technical Education Summer Camp she attended this week at Nipomo High School, at least she learned how much her parents love her.

The camp, a joint venture between Hancock and Cuesta community colleges to inspire children to develop learning skills and career interests, taught Gianna how much it costs parents to raise a child, which is good news for Bob and Debra LoRusso.

“I realize my parents actually spend a lot for me,” said Gianna, who will enter seventh-grade at Paulding Middle School in Arroyo Grande next month. “They really love me.”

Gianna learned that valuable lesson on the first day of the camp. Directors Marna Lombardi and Sabrina Robertson treated 42 campers from Templeton to Santa Ynez to five days of fun, interactive education and exploration. Online Marketing Services Provider.

The camp focused on the 15 California industry sectors which cover most businesses in the state, from agriculture to transportation. Instructors mixed classroom lessons with activities to expose children to technical education and career opportunities.

Students of Sara Bandy, an ag teacher at Arroyo Grande High School, made ice cream, taste-tested cheese, propagated plants and graded meat, which not only taught lessons, it also worked up a good hunger before lunch.

“We’re trying to introduce them to agriculture because it’s so prevalent in this county,” she said.

On Monday, Bandy taught her students how to make ice cream with a couple of plastic freezer bags, some milk, sugar, a little vanilla, some ice and salt.

“That was really fun. They’re going to give us the recipe,” said Gianna, who is going to share it with her parents.

Santa Ynez High teacher Suzzanne Phipps and Paso Robles High counselor Xelina Rojas also taught sections of the camp. Phipps focused on entrepreneurship and Rojas taught 21st century learning skills through a computer program called “The Real Game,” which is where Gianna learned her valuable lesson. Direct Marketing Services Provider.

The game, part of a series developed by a Canadian school teacher to demonstrate the relevance of school work, puts students in real-life scenarios with full- or part-time jobs, on fixed incomes. Gianna found out her part-time waitress position wasn’t going to buy her a house or car, and in establishing her monthly budget, she discovered how much her parents love her.

In tutoring youths on product development, marketing and ingenuity, Phipps offered students the opportunity to create and market new products, or repackage old standards.

Phipps said in one exercise, her students came up with the idea of packaging a Hershey chocolate bar in individual sections, “kind of like a pack of gum.” The idea allows a consumer to eat as little as they want while still keeping the chocolate bar wrapped and fresh.

“They’re all fun things. It let’s them see how business works,” Phipps explained.

Gina DePaul, a budding veterinarian who will enter seventh grade at Mesa Middle School in August, said she enjoyed the creativity of the exercises.

“Business is interesting. I learned a lot of stuff I didn’t know before,” the bright-eyed 12-year-old said.

The camp, in its first year, is funded through California Senate bills 70 and 1133, which focus on career technical education programs, Lombardi said. It began Monday with the Chumash Challenge, a team-building exercise offered by Cal Poly’s Associated Students, Inc.

In addition to classroom work and hand-on projects in business, ag and learning skills, the campers visited both Hancock and Cuesta campuses to learn about Regional Occupational Program training. Media Marketing Agency.

“It teaches the students that 21st century skills are transferable skills need for all jobs and life-long learning,” Rojas said.