High school is a time for self-discovery as students learn about potential careers and opportunities beyond graduation. With the Discovering Paths Mentoring Program, an initiative of the Lancaster Chamber, high school juniors across the county have a unique way to explore meaningful career options and plan for life after high school.

The program hosts eight field trip sessions throughout the academic year, said Ashley Burkett Glensor, workforce and education initiative manager for the Chamber. Each session focuses on a different overarching industry or group of career pathways.

"Participants engage in interactive workshops, speed mentoring with industry leaders and experiential learning opportunities that spotlight in-demand career fields," Glensor said. "The program also features career fair integration, where students connect with local educational institutions and employers to explore postsecondary options and workforce opportunities."

Families of participants enjoy a meet-and-greet with mentors at the start of each year, and mentors visit students in school midway through each year.

The career exploration program launched in the fall of 2008, when the Chamber's Women in Business group connected young women at Warwick High School with career mentors. The program quickly expanded into other school districts, and a few years later, a program began for male students. During the 2022-23 academic year, the two programs merged into Discovering Paths, as it is known today.

"This year, we have 17 high schools - 14 public school districts and three private schools - and 139 students," Glensor said of program participation. "Next year, we anticipate hosting up to 160 students from 20 high schools."

Participating high schools this year are Cocalico, Conestoga Valley, Donegal, Elizabethtown, Ephrata, Garden Spot, Lampeter-Strasburg, Lancaster Catholic, Lancaster Mennonite, Lititz Christian, Manheim Central, Manheim Township, Penn Manor, Pequea Valley, School District of Lancaster, Solanco and Warwick.

"One of the most critical aspects of the program is its emphasis on real-world exposure," Glensor shared. "Each student completes at least two job shadowing experiences, allowing them to gain firsthand insight into potential careers. Offered at no cost to students, Discovering Paths inspires, guides and empowers students with the knowledge, skills and confidence to navigate their future career journeys successfully."

In early April, students participated in a session on volunteering and the nonprofit sector. They completed service projects at numerous area organizations, including GEARS in Elizabethtown, CrossNet Ministries in New Holland, Raven Ridge Wildlife Center in Washington Boro and Schreiber Center for Pediatric Development in Lancaster.

"Students and their mentors helped prepare food for distribution, helped engage seniors at area senior living communities in a variety of activities and aided in conservation and cleanup efforts, among other projects," Glensor remarked.

While the number of participating schools has grown over the years, so has the pool of mentors.

"We have over 100 businesses represented among our volunteer mentors and liaisons," Glensor commented. "We engage with over 100 additional businesses, organizations and institutions over the course of the program to facilitate career readiness content, showcase work-based learning opportunities, create career exploration activities and demonstrations and share real-life experiences representing a variety of education and career pathways across industries."

For the required job shadowing sessions, more than 200 businesses offer options for participants.

"Mentors are often working within their own businesses to provide these opportunities or connecting with their network to ensure a student can shadow at an employer that represents their career interests," Glensor said.

And she emphasized that the Chamber is always looking for more professionals and employers to join the program. Applications for mentors opened at the end of April, but there are additional ways to participate beyond mentorship.

"We also look for partners to help facilitate career readiness workshops or career exploration activities, serving as a speed mentor during an industry session or sending a representative to one of our industry career fairs to highlight your company and future opportunities for students," Glensor explained.

She is excited to share that for the upcoming school year, every public district in Lancaster County will participate in Discovering Paths, along with numerous private schools.

"This is a great opportunity to connect high school juniors with a network of professionals and intentional programming to help identify their next steps after graduation," she said. "Discovering Paths aims to supplement the robust career readiness and exploration activities integrated into high school curricula."

For more information on the program, visit http://www.lancasterchamber.com/discovering-paths-mentor-program.