When I was initially signed up for Career and Exploration class I was not very happy. I did not think it was going to be very interesting or that I would learn anything. During the third week of class, Kyle Prouty, who is a Vermont Army National Guard Recruiter, came and spoke to our class. He spoke to our class about the different military branches and I was super interested in this career.  

After class, I walked up and spoke to Sergeant Prouty. I asked, “How old do you have to be to join the army?" and he replied, “Seventeen.” Since I was already seventeen, I asked if I could join. He said, “Yes, but you will need to come down to the recruitment office with your parents to explain the next steps.” When I got there, he explained the process of joining, bootcamp, thumbprint scanning, and the paperwork. My parents and I decided to sign the paperwork that day to enroll in the Vermont Army National Guard. 

For my final presentation in Career and Exploration, we had to pick a passion project. Since I signed up for the Vermont Army National Guard, I decided to do it on this. We had to make a trifold board explaining the career we wanted to join and I did military careers. Part of my board was an interview with a Veteran. The name of the veteran was Detective Adam Lucia. I learned that before he became a detective he was in the Air Force and worked in security forces. His job was to guard the base.  When I asked him, “What are considered the best jobs available in this career? What makes them best?” He replied, “Any job can be the best, it depends on what the individual wants to do.” This made me think because I like mechanics. I wanted to be a military mechanic. 

When it came time to present our passion projects, we went over to Proctor Elementary and presented it to 5th and 6th graders. One student asked, “What is the highest rank in the Air Force?” I replied, “Captain,” however I later realized I had made a mistake because the highest rank is a five-star general.

I love presenting because I get to act out and be very animated.  At one point I had a crowd of kids around me. Later, Mrs. Currao said, “The kids voted for whose presentation they liked the best and they picked yours.” 

For anyone thinking about taking this class, the advice I would give to them is to give the class a chance. Pick a career that you're interested in and maybe it can steer you in the direction of what you would like to pursue after high school. Don't give up.