Job Shadows

  • Signature Programs at each of our twelve comprehensive high schools offer job shadow opportunities connected to and intertwined within the Signature curriculum and Signature-related courses and lessons.  Job shadows open the doors of community organizations, businesses, and government agencies to students.  When students are afforded time alongside career professionals in their workplaces, then authentic conversations, interactions, and job awareness are all increased.  Moreover, following job shadow opportunities, students report feeling more confident in discussing career aspirations, more willing to reach out beyond their comfort zones to talk with working professionals, and more connected to what it is like to participate in the world of work.

    Some examples of community-based job shadow locations that are offered to our high school Signature Program students include, but are not limited to, shadows at:

    • Anne Arundel Medical Center SAIL Center
    • Goshen Farms
    • Greenstreet Gardens
    • Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts
    • Northrop Grumman
    • Smithsonian Environmental Resource Center
    • University of Maryland Baltimore County (UMBC)
    • US Coast Guard Station in Curtis Bay

     

Contacts

Field Experiences and Events

  • We believe that students learn best when we offer them quality opportunities both inside and outside of our school walls.  Frequently, for students to more fully understand career profiles and pathways, it is best to have those working in targeted fields share their experiences and their workplaces directly with our students.  For example, students studying in our Homeland Security Signature Program at Meade High School are best served to understand what it means to work in a secure environment by meeting and speaking with industry or government professionals who hold security clearances and work in homeland security-related fields. Authentic conversations between students and professionals working in the public and private sectors across numerous themed areas, generate excitement and enthusiasm in our students.  Subsequent to these real world field experiences and events, we continue to support our students to explore and act on what they have learned upon returning to the classroom.

    Some examples of regional experiences offered to our high school Signature Program students include, but are not limited to:

    • Arts and Music Performances at the Chesapeake Arts Center, Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts, and Compass Rose Theater
    • Aviation Field Trip to Signature Air
    • Engineering Career Expo sponsored by DFI Engineering
    • Explorations at the National Electronics Museum offered by Northrop Grumman
    • Future Farmers of America (FFA) Offerings
    • Health Career Fair at Anne Arundel Medical Center
    • Visits to and Career Discussions with federal government agencies such as the FBI, CIA, EPA, USDA, FDA, NIH, NASA, etc.
    • Tech Mania Showcases offered by the Fort Meade Alliance member organizations

     

    Please direct all questions you may have about Signature Program-related job shadows and field experiences to your Signature Site Coordinator at your high school.  Their contact information is available on the top right corner of this Signature Program web page.