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From day one, Jessie Kern noticed something different in her daughter, Kendree.
Gone were the feelings of restlessness plaguing the motivated University High School senior as she eagerly awaited graduation, a collegiate softball career and more of life’s moments. They were replaced with genuine excitement and interest as she discovered a brand-new world of possibilities when shadowing the Weld County Department of Public Works for 50 hours in April and May.
“She was very excited about it,” Jessie said, explaining the conversations she had with her daughter every week after she’d spend part of her Monday with Public Works. “There was no complaining. She couldn’t wait to be there. It was exciting to me to see her be so excited about something.”
The opportunity provided Kendree, who has long wanted to pursue an interest in engineering, an up-close view of what work in the field entails. One day, she’d meet with Weld County Weed Division Supervisor Tina Booton to explore the county’s use of drone technology. The next, she’d tour the soils lab and learn about the importance of evaluating materials used in construction projects. Then, she’d sit with engineers in design meetings, coming away with a better understanding of the entire scope of a project. She even toured active project sites, such as Two Rivers Parkway, to see the work being done to bring project design to reality, all elements which made a lasting impact.
“I really enjoyed going out into the field and the traffic engineering with [Public Works Engineer] Cameron Parrott more than I thought I would,” Kendree said with a smile before speaking to the bigger impression the experience made. “Seeing how much (government) cares … it’s special knowing how much they want to take care of people and that they’re trying to do their best for everybody. It was super cool seeing all the different aspects that go into Public Works.”
As she gained greater appreciation for county government as a whole, she also walked away with more questions about her own future. Before shadowing Public Works, she was set on studying mechanical or civil engineering, but after seeing the wide range of engineering opportunities available, she may decide to focus more on traffic or environmental engineering going forward. That openness to new and different possibilities is another element that made her time with Public Works worthwhile.
“What was exciting about this opportunity is it was at the high school level, so it does help with the decision making and narrowing down passions,” said Dawn Anderson, Development and Review Manager for the Weld County Department of Planning Services. Anderson, who helped set up the opportunity for Kendree, knows how deep the engineering field can be and believes as much exposure as possible to career opportunities is beneficial. “To throw as much at her and give her the biggest picture of the engineering field was important.”
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A building block to education
In addition to being Kendree’s mom, Jessie has taught at University for the past decade. As a business teacher in the school’s career and technical education department, she’s advised thousands of students through experiences such as Kendree’s, which are classified as internships in the school’s curriculum and mandatory for each student to complete prior to graduating.
No two internship experiences are alike, and there’s no guarantee how much a student will take away from the experience. However, Jessie sees the internships as a building block to enhance the overall educational experience.
“If they take the internship experience seriously, the advantage is immeasurable,” she said, mentioning the importance of seeing theories taught inside the classroom practiced outside of it. “I tell all my students that I don’t want the experience to be a hoop they jump through. I want them to gain something from it — either solidify what they want to do or figure out what they thought they wanted to do is something they definitely don’t want.
“I’m incredibly thankful that Kendree took the opportunity seriously and made connections with people that showed her what (engineering) was like and got her excited about it," Jessie said. "That, as her mom and as an educator, is exciting.”
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A mutually beneficial experience
Curtis Hall knows the impact even the smallest opportunity can have. After starting as a seasonal employee over 20 years ago, he is now the director of Public Works. So, when asked about what this experience could mean for Kendree as well as Public Works in the future, his outlook was nothing but optimistic.
“As a Weld County resident, maybe Kendree goes to school, comes back here and looks for a job at Weld County Government or within Weld County — if that happens, we could end up with more great employees in the county or within Weld County Government, which are both positives," Hall said.
Even though life could take Kendree in many different directions, the opportunity she was afforded sparked the beginning of a goal within Public Works: to introduce a younger group of people to the many job opportunities that could await them.
“We’d like to look at internships not only on the engineering side, but also on the operations side to try and get younger people interested in Public Works and government,” Hall said. “I’d like to see a younger crowd interested in equipment operation and the other things we do.”
Kendree, having recently graduated from University, looks forward to continuing her education and softball career at McCook Community College in Nebraska before hopefully pursuing an engineering degree at the Colorado School of Mines.
As she travels down a new road filled with new challenges, she does so with a unique experience and connections to take a goal and turn it into reality.
That’s not a bad start to life’s next chapter.
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By Baker Geist, Weld County Communications Specialist
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