Principals seek help on job fair, Washington trip

Two Lorain elementary schools are seeking community support for upcoming programs.

The turnaround principals announced the projects as part of the Community Business Schools Partnership meeting of Feb. 19.

Career day

Hawthorne Elementary, 610 W. 20th St., is planning a Hawthorne Hero’s Career Day from 9 to 11 a.m., March 25, said Turnaround Principal Stephanie M. Alexander-Johnson.

“We’re telling our students we want you to do well in school,” Alexander-Johnson said. “Why would we want you do well in school? What do you want to be when you grow up?

“So, we’re asking the community to come out and talk to our young people about your careers and what you do.”

Area workers are being asked to visit the school to explain to students in grades pre-K-5 about their jobs.

Volunteers should wear clothing that represents their career and should bring photos, literature or props to create interactive stations or demonstrations about their occupations.

Anyone interested should respond by March 18 by emailing Alexander-Johnson at sjohnson@loraincsd.org or calling 440830-4150.

D.C. field trip

General Johnnie Wilson

Middle School, 2700 Washington Ave., is looking for sponsorships for 40 students to visit Washington, D.C., said Turnaround Principal Kejuana Jefferson.

The trip budget is $15,000, and so far, 29 students have signed up, Jefferson said.

“There’s just an opportunity gap,” she said.

“They’re really good kids, but they can’t afford it.”

Jefferson said she grew up surrounded by the agriculture of the Mississippi Delta, but nothing that told students there that they should dream.

That changed when a principal took students on a long field trip to NASA, she said.

“I remember this long field trip and thinking, like, I’m somebody, and I was able to dream outside of my community,” Jefferson said. “And I would like to be able to offer that to kids who sometimes do not get out of this community.

“But I want them to be able to see something differently, hoping that it will inspire them the way that I was inspired.”

For more information, email kjefferson@ loraincsd.org or call 440830-4240.

Donation checks can be made out to Lorain City Schools, C/O General Johnnie Wilson Washington, D.C., trip fund.

The trip is scheduled for May 11-13, said Teresa Sayles, school dean of academic outcomes.