Most teachers care about their students and put effort and forethought into their lesson plans, but sometimes teachers go above and beyond for the children in their classes. At Mead High School, Mr. Wilson and Ms.Saenz have gone the extra mile in preparing students for entering the job market.

The Mead High Annual Job Interview Contest is a yearly event planned by Saenz and Wilson in which leaders from local businesses visit Mead High, and speak to students about the interviewing process in an informational panel, which is followed by conducting mock interviews.

This year the panel consisted of over 13 business leaders from around Mead, each giving personal advice for the interviewing process. Lasting a whole class period, the event allowed each panelist  plenty of time to give in depth advice.

Classes that participated in the event were Wilson’s Finance and Saenz’s living on your own. Each student was given an opportunity during the second class period to have a one-on-one interview with one or more of the panelists. Penelope Smith, a senior who has had an actual job interview before said, “It was just like a real interview, except they would stop to give advice”. Students who have never had any form of job interview, like Alexis Gabba-Garcia, also found the exercise useful and informative.

When speaking with Kayla Myers, one of our panelists, she said she wished that she had a resource like this when she was in high school. In fact, none of the panelist had access to anything similar to this event. Programs like this will put Mead’s students at the forefront of the emerging workforce.

Mr. Wilson and Ms. Saenz were able to pull together the lineup of panelists through business connections they has made over the years. Wilson told me, “When you meet someone in the business world, never forget them. Don’t just throw away their card, because you never know when that contact will be useful.”

Panelists included: Derek Lopez-Regional Manager at Starbucks; Jim Vernon-Business Faculty Leader at Front Range Boulder Campus; Mike Lefever-Retired Fire Lieutenant and Advocate for Corn Growers Association; Karen Eslick-Mortgage Loan Assistant at Elevation Credit Union; Stephaine Murphy-Director of High School Program at Junior Achievement; Parker Ridgley-Exclusive Agent at Horace Mann Insurance; Erin Davis- Senior Public Affairs Specialist at Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City, Denver Branch; Brenda Ridgley- Ridgley Consulting; Bill Meier-Community Affairs Representative at United Power; Alexis Gotte-Paralegal/Firm Administrator at Bendelow Law Office; Kayla Myers-Designated Supervisor at First Bank; and Kim Furhman- Labor/Delivery Nurse at Longmont United Hospital.

Mead High’s High Annual Job Interview Contest is an excellent resource to the students of our school. Ms. Saenz and Mr. Wilson have gone the extra mile in creating a memorable experience for students that will give them a real life advantage when entering the workforce. It’s great to see the faculty of our school put so much effort in preparing students for the future.