Change Your Life Through Summer Programs

Krysten Neel
Jefferson High School
Jefferson, TX

After participating in a summer technology program, I am now faced with an interesting dilemma: deciding where to attend college and what I want to "be" when I grow up.

I am going to graduate in 2008 either as Valedictorian or Salutatorian (I am currently second in my class); I have completed so many AP classes and have so many more scheduled for my senior year that I think my brain is going to explode. . . but I always wanted to go through with these classes because I love science. This passion for science has led me to my extreme interest in space and the strong desire to work at NASA as an aerospace engineer and Mission specialist. Maybe I have my head too high above the clouds, but now I think I might be changing my mind about what I want to do (even though I've had the same dream since I was five years old). It all began with a technology camp I attended at Texas State Technical College.

The college reviewed my transcript and shared it with one of their sponsors, Eastman Chemical. The company told me that once I graduate from high school, I can enter a work program until I enroll in college, and then if I decide to go to TSTC, after my first year I will be offered an internship that pays $16.50 an hour as a process operator (the person in a chemical plant that monitors the equipment on screens and makes sure everything is flowing smoothly). If I complete the internship successfully, they will offer me a job as soon as I graduate from college. I love chemistry and working with chemicals, and I would be making about a starting salary of $42,000 a year.

I am not into accepting a job solely for the money, but this sounds like a job I would really enjoy. I just don't know if I should exchange my lifelong passion for aeronautics for a new interest and a new opportunity. At the very least, though, this summer program has really given me something to think about for my future.

All in all, if you are already sure about your future, you might want to rethink your situation. Something as simple as attending a Science and Technology camp fifteen minutes away from home has the potential to change your entire future. If money is a problem in participating, take some initiative; get some friends to help you rally around local businesses to help you raise the funds.

Take chances--get out there, open up your options, and immerse yourself in a learning generation!