High school is a time for learning and exploring areas of interest, and Becton’s CEIP (Career Exploration Internship Program) is working with nearby places of employment to help students fulfill this goal.  The Internship Program, which was made possible by Principal Dr. Sforza and Career and Technology Education Instructor Ms. Annitti, has grown exponentially in size from the pilot program last year.

The current seventeen students involved in the internship program are being stationed at a wide range of businesses in the area surrounding Becton. Some of these businesses include The Valley Hospital, Sportscare, Garbarini Accounting, Hybrid Interactive Marketing, Precious Cosmetics and Heights Animal Hospital. Furthermore, the local police department and schools will be hosting students who wish to learn more about law enforcement and education.

Senior Amber Jordan hopes to study pediatric dermatology at Georgetown University next year, so she believes working at The Valley Hospital in Ridgewood, NJ, will give her a good idea of what a medical career might look like. Moreover, Senior Jocelyn Echeverria looks forward to working with Ms. Farrel’s kindergarten class at McKenzie School in East Rutherford because she hopes to become an elementary school teacher one day.

Since last year, Ms. Annitti made a few changes. First off, she began motivating students to think about their future earlier on in their high school careers by having more meetings and sit-downs with them. Furthermore, she is also using technology in new ways to benefit the program. For instance, the CEIP now has its own website, and Ms. Annitti is also beginning to use Google Classroom with the interns in order to allow them to hand in weekly time sheets and journals based on their experiences. She said that this technique is very convenient for both posting announcements and assignments. 

To all the students thinking of joining the Internship Program next year, Ms. Annitti suggested contacting her as early as April 2017. She noted that the CEIP is a tremendous opportunity that allows adolescents to figure out how much they enjoy their field of interest.