Throughout the months of December and January, the seventh and eighth graders at Assumption Catholic School, in Perth Amboy have been researching information on future careers that interest them.  Students have been examining and exploring jobs that currently don’t exist, but will exist five, ten, or twenty years from now.  Their research and discoveries are amazing!  Students studied topics such as vertical farming, computer engineering, and the future of medicine and architecture.  They not only wrote about their chosen profession, they had to incorporate how technology will alter that career in years to come.  In addition, they were also required to contact a company in their field, share their research with them, and ask if their organization is in the planning stages of creating any of these innovations.

Keeping this amazing project in the classroom was simply not an option!  So, on Thursday, January 16th, 2014, different businesses and local citizens were invited to Assumption Catholic School’s first “Jobs of the Future Expo.”  Our students displayed their projects, and shared their presentations with many Perth Amboy citizens, including the Perth Amboy Police Department and Homeland Security representatives. The students also extended an invitation to companies they contacted, as well as to local officials.  The positive feedback and response was amazing – over 175 people came to support the middle school in their endeavors.

Our guests enjoyed presentations, posters and student’s Animoto video presentations about their future careers and how technology will alter it. It was an amazing experience for all involved and it showed our children the value of education and planning for a bright future!