The College and Career Center is bringing two professionals on campus every month, to talk to students about different career paths, the first in this career speaker series was Pixar producer Jonas Rivera. The series is being put on in order to give information about different career options that students may not have been aware of.
The series will be held at lunch as to not cut into class time for those students who are interested in going, with the first two speakers presenting on Fridays. The presentations will give students background information about how to get on certain career paths, along with the level of education required in these careers, according to College and Career center Director Allison Bly.
“The presentations are to hear about the different career paths people have taken, so to see that if you major in one thing in college that doesn’t necessarily mean you will go into that career, and that everyone’s careers can take many different turns,” Bly said.
One of the first two speakers is Jen Colton who will present on Nov. 20. Colton is the founder of Flashpoint, a public relations firm based in San Francisco. She will talk about the different aspects of public relations, business and how social media affects these things.
Colton’s presentation will follow that of Pixar producer Jonas Rivera, who presented on Nov. 6.
Rivera talked about the animation and creative process, explaining in detail what it was like to be part of the Pixar team and the dedication it took to be a part of the movie making process.
“When you start to see the animation, when you go frame by frame, that is when you take things from an idea to a motion picture, and that is what I love,” Rivera said.
Rivera elaborated on the five-year movie making process, giving the example of how even the fastest animators take a week to create four seconds of film.
Rivera recognizes that amount of pressure that is placed on young people to find out what they want to be and get on a career path.
“Often times the pressure of school and ‘checking all the right boxes’ can really out get in the way of a person’s search for what they really want to be” said Rivera.
Rivera advises those who are not sure what they want to be is to go out in the real world and get exposure, connect with different people and activities and find what they like.
“To find a career path you have to ask yourself, ‘What gets me out of bed in the morning?’” Rivera said. “Find something that is tied to what you really want to do.”
PHS junior Annie Pellegrini who attended Rivera’s presentation found it entertaining and informative.
Pellegrini attended the presentation because of her long time interest in the pixar movies and she says she thought it was inspiring how Rivera could follow his childhood dreams of working in the film industry.
“I thought it was a really cool and gave an interesting perspective on things, but I’m not sure if it opened up any new ideas on what I want to be when I grow up,” Pellegrini said.
Bly is hoping that the speaker series will give an expanded view on different career paths as it continues.
“A lot of times when students are thinking about colleges, they’re thinking, ‘What major should I have,’” Bly said. “They try to find colleges that have strong programs in the major they want, but a lot of times they don’t really know what careers are out there. They think, ‘I gotta be a doctor or a lawyer or an engineer,’ but don’t think outside of a few careers that are commonly mentioned.”
