The students of the Parkinson Memorial Secondary School recently got the opportunity to investigate a variety of careers that are open to them when they leave school.

The extensive Careers Showcase was mounted as the brainchild of Guidance Counsellor Kara Maynard who invited Goddard Enterprises Ltd (GEL) to participate as the company had adopted the school some time ago.

The subsidiaries readily responded to the outreach from the GEL Head Office to take part and McBride (Caribbean) Limited, Goddard Shipping (Barbados) Limited, Precision Packaging Inc and Caribbean Label Crafts Limited all had booth displays alongside entities like the Barbados Police Service, and a Beauty School among other businesses showcasing the possible careers there.

“I am really pleased with the number of companies and persons on site. It gives the children encouragement and a level of knowledge about their choices and when they can see past students who are successful in their careers, they see something to work towards” stated Principal Ian Holder as he expressed his satisfaction with the day’s set up.

The Guidance Counsellor Ms. Maynard explained that the Showcase had given students options to contemplate and think about. She further explained “We did a needs assessment with the fifth formers to find areas on which they wanted to focus, and then we sought out businesses that fit the criteria that the students asked for and we also gave them some other options to look at.”

“We are a skills-based school and therefore experience and exposure to practical aspects of careers are important for our students.” She added.
Staff at the GEL Companies reported interest from the children in the various career paths that could be followed within the companies. Many, they said were unaware of how many options they had within the organisations. McBride introduced a unique element to their booth where the students were invited to take part in a raffle where 5 of them will get the opportunity to tour the McBride Plant in Lowlands and witness first-hand what happens there.