Lc Class Gives Students Workplace Experience

EDUCATION

When high school senior Monica Corkill goes to class in the morning, she wears blue pajamas.

It’s not that she’s lazy or particularly into PJs.

She’s into her first class, and her first class is in the Deaconess emergency room. There, PJs - actually loose-fitting hospital“scrubs” - are the required uniform.

Corkill is one of 26 students who took Lewis and Clark High School’s Career Focus class before winter break. The increasingly popular course puts students in the work place for credit.

Since the program began in 1996, it has increased fivefold.

“I believe it has been extremely beneficial,” Corkill said. “Most kids really like it,” program coordinator Bob Lobdell said. “It gives them an opportunity to see what the world is really like.

“The class ties school and the real word together.”

The bulk of the jobs are at the hospital because of its proximity to the school. Students learn basic hospital-related tasks in oncology, radiology and even the public relations office. In the future, Lobdell hopes to expand the program to include construction jobs. Corkill is the first LC student allowed to work in the E.R. since the program started. The senior worked her way into the position after two years rotating through other departments.

Mainly, she stocks supplies but has helped out with injured patients on occasion.

Recently, Corkill helped out with a highway car crash victim who was thrown from the car. She said the man was not wearing a seat belt at the time.

Although she could not reveal details because of patient confidentiality, she said the injuries were gory.

Corkill ran X-rays back and forth between departments while the patient was being treated in the E.R. Later, she mopped up the blood.

“It was definitely in my face,” she said.

Students receive credit for the class but are not reimbursed otherwise. They are expected to maintain a good work ethic, which Lobdell said has never been a problem.

A glance at the attendance log shows that most of the students regularly show up around 7:30 a.m., half an hour early for the two-hour class.

During the quarter, students also take seminars on business etiquette, interviewing skills and resume writing during the quarter. Lobdell said that the class can boost students’ self-esteem.

Some students discover their life’s work through the class. A stint in radiology last year showed Corkill that X-rays are where its at.

“I felt really at home there,” she said.