High school students 'shadow' Airmen

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Kristen Rohrer
  • 60th Air Mobility Wing Public Affairs
TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. --  Local high school students got a chance to learn about different Air Force jobs as part of a job shadowing program here on base Feb. 2.

The program, National Groundhog Job Shadow Day, is a national campaign that provides young people experience at a structured work site and exposes students a wide range of career opportunities available to them.

During the day, more than 20 students from two local high schools got to visit a Team Travis member's work site and "shadow" them for several hours, observing and assisting them with work.

The Travis volunteers and students started their day at a breakfast in Fairfield; from there, the "pairs" headed for Travis to go about a traditional work day for each respective job.

"I was able to show him/her a day in the life of an aircrew flight equipment technician," said Staff Sgt. Analie Baxter, 60 Operations Support Squadron Flotation Section supervisor. "I took the student around our various shops to show what types of equipment we inspect on a daily basis."

They were allowed to get an in-depth look at the equipment we upload on various airframes that save lives, she said.

For one student, getting a chance to speak with Travis Security Forces members about his dream job was a highlight for him.

"My favorite part of the day was meeting all the Security Forces members," said Brayan Diaz, a student at Sem Yeto High School in Fairfield who hopes to become a military police officer. "Being able to talk to them about police training and what to expect was helpful."

For the volunteers, it was an opportunity to show the students what the military is all about.

"I'm ecstatic about being able to introduce different aspects of the military to this student. I hope this day gave them a better idea of what the Air Force is all about," said Sergeant Baxter. "There are many different career paths to pick from as a young adult and I encourage this student to really find something that they enjoy, as I do being in the military."

"I think it is a great opportunity to mentor these students," said 1st Lt. Sean Kelliher, 60th Comptroller Squadron, Financial Services Flight chief. "They see the aircraft flying every day, but they may not understand the mission that they do. At the same time, they may not know everything that goes on behind the scenes that allows those planes to fly. I think I am lucky to be able to show the students what we do on a day-to-day basis. I think it gives them a better understanding, rather than hearing about us on the news."