When the Pequea Valley School District First Choice program held a career fair on Feb. 8, Jody Bradley, assistant principal at Paradise Elementary School, Paradise, manned a table to tell attendees considering the field of education about the school's internship program. The program was the brainchild of First Choice Career coordinator Jared Erb, and the first four Pequea Valley High School (PVHS) interns started working with educators at the elementary school in the fall of 2023.

Assistant superintendent Rich Eby summed up the purpose of the program, saying, "Creating an opportunity to foster and grow young people to want to enter the profession of being an educator is more important than ever due to the decreasing pool of potential candidates entering the field." Eby noted, "It is critical to have quality young people motivated to be in the profession to educate young learners and be integral role models." Eby said the program offers benefits to students considering the field of education. "The intention of the Pequea Valley (student) internship is to allow juniors and seniors the opportunity to observe and learn from veteran educators - to grow the profession one intern at a time."

Bradley said that Erb and Paradise Elementary staff members talked about the idea over the summer and then kept the program very basic and open ended when it began in the fall. Organizers met with interested students to talk about how to schedule internship time, and they created a pamphlet to show interns what would be expected of them during participation. Among those expectations were honoring individual students with regard to diversity and culture and supporting staff members by reinforcing expectations to help keep students focused and on a positive learning path. "Some of (the students) weren't sure if this was going to be their first career path choice, but they wanted to try to find out," shared Bradley.

Interns have aided teachers and paraeducators in a variety of ways while gaining experience in a possible career choice. "We have one (student) who works in the afternoon with our art teacher," said Bradley, who noted that the student, who wants to be an art teacher, also works with the STEM teacher to bring creativity to that program. "We have a few (interns) who come in the morning to work with kindergarten (students) in small groups," stated Bradley, adding that those students also help cover lunch and recess duties. "They get a taste of a few aspects of how the school day runs," she said. Another intern boards buses each morning to teach students about the bus rewards program, discussing character traits and positive behavior. "We have some fun competitions to keep them motivated to be safe, respectful, and responsible on the bus," said Bradley, who noted students are working toward earning the pieces to build an artificial snowman in the school lobby. Another student spends time with children in the PVTV news program that is part of the school's Braves Club. "This intern wants to go into communications, and she is working with the sixth-grade communicators," said Bradley, who added that the administration makes efforts to give the interns the type of experience they seek. Recently, for example, administrators worked to pair a student who was interested in becoming an athletic director with both the nurse and the physical education teacher.

While the program provides interns with important experience, Bradley admitted that Paradise Elementary students benefit from working with high school juniors and seniors. "(Elementary students) get to see these high school interns working here during the day, and the kids get really excited, and it builds relationships. They do look up to them." Bradley noted that interns are coached about how to behave with students. "They can't come in as a friend," she noted. "They are a role model."

Readers who would like to know more about the First Choice program at PVHS may email Erb at jared_erb@pequeavalley.org.