These kids are working on their futures

Creativity mixed with business acumen last week, when students in Baldwin High School’s Career Academy presented the community with the findings from their studies and their work experiences.

Speaking to an audience not only of their peers, but also of faculty, administrators, politicians and community and business leaders, academy students highlighted the impact work experience and business lessons has on them. Superintendent Shari Camhi called the academy “one of the shining lights of Baldwin.”

Regent Roger Tilles, one of the attendees at the School-to-Career Breakfast, said, “This week was a very good week in Albany. We got rid of one of the most onerous laws passed.”

He referred to a report, issued earlier this month, that called for an overhaul of the Common Core program. The report was issued by Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s Common Core Task Force.

But for his part, Tilles stressed the need for arts in education, and said he was very pleased with the Career Academy. He joked that when his daughters were born, he imagined that they’d be attending Ivy League schools. “So I got a cupcake maker and a make up artist,” he said. “I’m happy with that.” But he noted that if his daughters “had a program like that [the Career Academy], it would have streamlined things for them.

“This business program allows kids to be creative,” he added. “This is a pathway, a step in the right direction.”

After Tilles’ remarks, it was time for the students, one by one, to step up to the microphone and explain to the audience about what they learned.

For life skills student Adam Lusterman, “All this is preparing me for a job after I graduate.” Lusterman said he works at Dollar Tree, where he has learned such “practical skills” as stocking shelves.

Liana Dominique, who participated in the Career Opportunities in the Accounting Profession program in July, said she was particularly pleased to meet “young accountants,” who helped her get a feel not only for the profession but also for the college experience.

“The golf course at Eisenhower Park,” she said. “I learned that’s where the deals are made.” Her remark was greeted with laughter from the audience.

Dan Scheinman, who attended a Junior Achievement Heroes event at Meadow School, also generated some laughs, when he said the elementary students “were always happy to hear they can go out for lunch, but they were stunned that there’ll be no recess.”

But he added, “What the Business Academy provided me with can’t be quantified. When people ask me what makes Baldwin special, the first thing that comes to mind is the business school.”