CFAY CYP Teen Career Showcase Gives Students Hands-On Experience

YOKOSUKA, Japan -- High school students, the idea of a "career showcase" conjures up images of sitting in a stuffy auditorium, watching endless PowerPoint slides, and collecting brochuresthey’llnever read. But for a group of local teens atFleet Activities Yokosuka,the Teen Career Showcase,held July 15 and 22 by Commander Fleet Activities Yokosuka Child and Youth Programs (CFAY CYP),shattered those expectations by handing them a VIP pass to actual operations. Instead of listening to lectures, theystepped inside working offices across the installation.

"From my personal experience, I thought the teen career showcase would be sitting at the teen center from 9-3, listening to people talk all day," saidNatalie DeLeo, a participant in this year's program. "What I didn't know was that we would be able to go to the different workplaces around base, meet actual employees in their own domain, and even get to do hands-on activities."

Thehands-onnature of the program took the students everywhere from theNaval OceanographyAnti-Submarine Warfare Center Yokosuka, CFAY Legal Officeand theU.S. 7thFleetBand to the fire station and theCFAY PublicAffairsOffice. At each stop, the teens were given an inside look at theeffortrequiredtomaintainbase readiness and the physical demands that come with it.

"Reviewing this week’s showcase is like a VIP pass to a new world,"saidparticipant Djeneba Niang, who had the opportunity to meet command chiefs and the installation's fire chief. "Your first thought may be well, the job is simple,but it takes time and physical effort like any other job, which not everyone can do. It’s long, hard, and physically draining."

Niang noted that getting to see the gear firsthand, including lifting equipment weighing at least 20 pounds,completely changed her perspective on the base workforce. "They don’t get as much credit as they should, but they show up to work and do their part," she said.

Beyond a newfound appreciation for daily base operations, the showcase aimed to solve a much bigger problem for high schoolers: figuring out what comes next. When future career goals feel out of reach or undefined, seeing professions up close can provide much-needed clarity.

"Personally, I have found many possible careers I took an interest in, since my future pathway has always been kind of a blur," said participant Janelle Rodriguez. "In this program, teens like us get tolearn and or refinenew skills needed to apply to a career. You would have to be crazy to miss an opportunity like this."

As the first group showcase wrapped up, this year's class of studentswalked away with more than just a line on a resume—they gained a firsthand understanding of the complex movingpieces that support the community they call home. By stepping out of their comfort zones and into the newsroom, the fire bays, and the command spaces, these teensdidn'tjust look into the future; they took their first active steps toward shaping it.

Forteens in the CFAY communitylooking to uncover hidden talents, explore potential career paths, or simply see the installation in a whole new light, the Teen Career Showcaseoffers asummer gateway.