SIATech Students Gain Career Exposure and College Opportunities at SIATech Youth Summit 

On Tuesday March 26, 2024, a total of 65 SIATech students were hosted by Mt. San Jacinto College for a day of empowerment and career exploration.

Each of the SIATech independent study campuses sent students and staff to attend the SIATech Youth Summit. The day had student and staff representatives from the SIATech high school sites in Downtown Los Angeles, East Los Angeles, El Centro, Indio, Moreno Valley, North County (Oceanside), Perris, and South Bay (Chula Vista).

Upon arrival, students received a swag backpack filled with a printed agenda, pens/pencils and earbuds. They were then given a continental breakfast and completed their registration form. Students were prompted to answer which career pathway they are enrolled in or which one they would be interested in if they were not yet enrolled. The SIATech Career Technical Education (CTE) team will use this feedback to better understand student interest in SIATech’s various pathway offerings.

The official event kicked off at 9:45 am when SIATech Director of Career and Technical Education Dr. Karl Aragundi and Dean of Career Education Dr. Harvey gave a welcome speech to the students. Students were then to choose between four workshop sessions to attend:

• Health Workshop: SIATech’s Nicole Taylor and her daughter Iman Taylor shared perspectives and information about nursing and various nursing careers in addition to RN. They shared about prerequisites and requirements for different program fields, including the Community Health Worker (CHW) career pathway that SIATech offers.

• Logistics Workshop: Leo Medina, a professor at ELAC and MSJC explained how everything is interconnected through logistics, and how both degree and certificate programs offer pathways to employment in this broad field. Leo has been involved with UPS for over 20 years and has job placement into UPS sites in different regions.

• Entrepreneur/Business Workshop: Danny Cobb, the owner/operator of a collectibles (comics, trading cards, etc.) business explained how he built the business using social media for advertising.  As his business began to thrive, he was able to leave his corporate job and focus solely on further expansion. He led students in creating a logo for their own future company.

• Just Us 4 Youth Workshop:  Eric Vazquez is the founder of Just Us 4 Youth a non-profit organization that focuses on working with at-promise students. Eric gave an inspiring and engaging talk on his past and how he advanced coming from a difficult upbringing.  Eric also gave powerful tips on how to persevere through a childhood and in a dangerous neighborhood.  His tips on entrepreneurship and business were pragmatic and reached students on a real level.

Students were then provided with lunch and were able to explore the career expo. There were various outreach tables for students to visit and interact with. Students were encouraged to engage with the outreach tables and were given a bingo card to track their table visits. Those that visited all outreach stands and completed their bingo card were given an extra raffle ticket.

“NCIS students had a great time interacting with each other and getting to know their peers in a different context.  Some students paired up with one another, playing Bingo during lunch as they visited entrepreneurs at their booths, while scoring some fun free items. A favorite part of the day, for sure,” said SIATech North County ITA Flor Delgado.

Raffle prizes included SIATech hoodies, mugs and beanies. MSJC provided laptop cases, water bottles and lanyards. The two grand prizes were provided by LAUNCH were shirts and $25 Visa gift cards.

“We had a lunchtime career fair where there were representatives from the military, college support services and student-led college clubs,” said Dr. Karl Aragundi, Director of Career and Technical Education.

After lunch students were given the opportunity to explore and take a campus tour of MSJC led by Outreach Coordinator Beth Bowels. In addition, they were given more in depth information from Sonia Verduzco; Business, Technology & Entrepreneurship Counselor about MSJC Pathways and CIS Majors.

Lastly, students were able to attend the LAUNCH Apprenticeship Network. According to their website, “LAUNCH apprenticeships are designed to develop highly skilled workers capable of meeting the demands of the modern workplace to remain competitive in the new global economy.” This presentation provided students with valuable information about career options post graduation.

“Students especially appreciated the hands-on opportunities that many of the apprenticeships offered as well as information on college programs leading to apprenticeships,” said SIATech North County CTE teacher Tom Healy.

Students were also able to participate in fun activities such as button making. Students cut up pieces of magazines and created their own button while at the college.

The goal of the event was to provide experts for all pathways and assist students with career and college exposure. This year’s SIATech Youth Summit was a success as students were able to gain insight on a variety of career pathways and career readiness opportunities. Special thanks to SIATech’s Charneece Fraticelli for her diligent work to organize the event!

“It was wonderful to see so many excited students at this year’s SIATech Youth Summit.  We had representatives from college, industry, and community based organizations sharing resources and  representing the CTE pathways that we offer. It was a great day of exploring and learning about college supports and career pathways available for students. I look forward to our next SIATech Youth Summit” said Aragundi.

Thank you to the K12 Strong Workforce program for funding the Inland Empire region and supporting our students’ success!

For more information, contact SIATech at info@siatech.org