Zoom into Careers available for junior high and high school students this summer

March 19, 2012

Contact:  Tonya Lowentritt

3/19/12

 

     HAMMOND – Junior high and high school students can again explore the exciting fields of culinary arts, inventing, photography, television and theatre at Southeastern Louisiana University this summer through "Zoom into Careers" workshops.
New to this year's Zoom lineup is criminal justice, digital innovations, and nursing, announced Joan Gunter, assistant vice president for extended studies.
     "Our workshops are designed to explore many exciting career fields. Participants attending Zoom workshops will be exposed to a real work environment by focusing on teamwork and project completion," said Gunter. "At the end of the week, Zoom participants will demonstrate what they have learned to family and friends."
     Workshops are open to all rising 7-12 grade students and are scheduled on Southeastern's main campus in Hammond, the Livingston Parish Literacy and Technology Center in Walker, and the St. Tammany Center in Mandeville. Housing will be available to high school students for the main campus workshops.
The workshops feature a number of professionals who will instruct the students in various career paths. Participants can take advantage of workshop cost discounts by registering during the early bird period, which ends April 27. Registration will continue through June 8 and is available online at www.southeastern.edu/zoom.
     "To provide a quality learning experience, registration will be limited in each workshop category to small groups," said Charlotte Collins, project manager for Zoom into Careers. "To ensure participation, interested students need to register early."
The 2012 Zoom into Careers workshops include:
     Zoom into Criminal Justice – June 18-21, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Livingston Parish Literacy and Technology Center, $280/$295. Have you ever considered becoming a crime scene investigator? Kelly Jennings, a nationally certified 911 dispatcher, a certified emergency police dispatcher, and a national 911 dispatcher certification instructor, exposes students interested in exploring criminal justice to a variety of real life professionals and provides insight into their roles and functions in the criminal justice field.
Zoom into Culinary Arts – June 18-21, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., White Hall, $280/$295. Students can get a taste for a career in the culinary arts. With over 15 years of experience, Chef Kevin Foil will organize participants into various positions needed to run a successful kitchen.
     Zoom into Digital Innovation – June 18-21, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Charles E. Cate Teacher Education Center, $280/$295. Do you see yourself developing high-tech solutions to engineering problems? By zooming into this cutting edge workshop, Southeastern faculty members Elizabeth Rhodes, Robert Hancock and Becky Sue Parton will help students build a functional robot, write a program for the iPad, and fabricate a working catapult, while working in a group environment designed to nurture the innovative mind.
Zoom into Inventing – June 18-21, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Anzalone Hall, $280/$295. Michael Beauvais, assistant professor of industrial technology, and other design professionals, will teach the fundamentals of sketching, building parts and solid models using the modeling software AutoDesk Inventor.
     Zoom into Nursing – June 18-21, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Livingston Parish Literacy and Technology Center, $280/$295. Helping patients work to promote health, prevent disease, and cope with illness is the cornerstone of the nursing profession. Wendy McCon, RN, a certified cardiac life support instructor, as well as a certified nursing assistant instructor, will teach a variety of hands-on, basic nursing tasks including changing a sterile dressing, taking blood pressure, starting an IV on a simulator and performing common lab tests.
     Zoom into Photography - June 18-21, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., St. Tammany Center, $280/$295. Led by certified professional photographer Chuck Billiot, students are taught the instructor's "dare to be unique" approach to learning skills directly applicable to a career as a professional photographer.
     Zoom into Television – June 18-21, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., the Southeastern Channel, Southeastern University Center, $280/$295. Students attracted to careers in front of or behind the camera will gain experience in producing news story packages at the Southeastern Channel. Workshops will be led by General Manager Rick Settoon, and students will produce a two-minute news story segment that will be aired on the Southeastern Channel and its website.
     Zoom into Theatre – June 18-21, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Vonnie Borden Theatre, D Vickers Hall, $280/$295. Do you see yourself in lights? This workshop is a hands-on approach covering all aspects of theater. Students will work with theatre professional Jade LeBlanc to give them a true taste of what goes into creating a live theatrical event. The workshop will culminate with a short public performance.
     On-line registration and workshop details are available at www.southeastern.edu/zoom. For more information, contact Extended Studies at 1-800-256-2771, 985-549-2301 or zoom@southeastern.edu. Information can also be obtained by calling the St. Tammany Center, 985-893-6251 or the Livingston Parish Literacy and Technology Center, 225-665-3303.