Kimora Walker, 17, can now say she’s had a taste of what it’s like to be a doctor–her dream profession.
On Tuesday, she spent the morning in a briefing with pediatric doctors and residents, then went on rounds to visit patients. Later she watched a physician perform a Pap smear.
The Marshall High School senior was one of 1,000 Chicago high school students who got an opportunity Tuesday to take time off from their regular classes to try out the jobs of local professionals.
Students enrolled in the district’s wide-ranging vocational program paid visits to the city’s fire commissioner and police superintendent, high-level bankers, restaurateurs and business executives, among others.
Jill Wine-Banks, chief officer for the Education-to-Careers program, said the job-swap day was an opportunity for students to gain insight into work they might be interested in pursuing.
“This is exposure to them for a career path,” she said.
The district’s vocational programs teach everything from broadcast technology to food sanitation. Walker, for instance, is enrolled in a three-year Allied Health program at Marshall and already holds a nursing assistant certificate.
With a 4.0 GPA, she has her eye on a medical career specializing in obstetrics. Visiting Stroger Hospital gave her a chance to meet Lisa Henry-Reid, chairwoman of the Department of Adolescent Medicine, who praised Walker for her persistence.
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When Walker attends Millikin University in Decatur this fall–the first in her family to attend college–she will not be going alone. Her 18-month-old son will accompany her.
“Through all of this, you stayed in school and not only that, excelled,” Henry-Reid told the teenager.
Iysha Mitchell, a senior at Tilden Career Academy, spent part of her day at the trendy restaurant mk, where she finessed her egg-cracking skills and learned a more efficient way to whisk.
Mitchell helped pastry chef Mindy Segal make toffee, brioche and lemon curd. After Segal added some butter to the brioche batter, Mitchell was given the task of adding two more pounds to the mix.
Segal said hands-on experience is essential to any aspiring chef.
“They need to learn to get a feel for the dough, to get used to working with their hands,” she said.
Mitchell, who has already won a few local competitions, said she’s wanted to become a pastry chef since she was in 8th grade.
“My mom doesn’t complain when I go home and practice. She’ll even buy all the ingredients and tell me to go ahead and cook.”
For Angie Showers, Tuesday was her first time at a downtown hair salon. The senior at Chicago Vocational Career Academy on the South Side has completed 1,407 hours of the required 1,500 to get her cosmetology license.
At the Ivan Noel Salon, owner Noel Shaw gave her a behind-the-scenes look at a class he was teaching for two assistants. He showed them how to evaluate a client’s hair and find an appropriate look.
His lesson for Showers: “You’ve got to remember, you’re one part hairdresser and one part psychologist.”