By: Katie Groves
This 2010-11 school year, 16 Atlantic students are taking business teacher Rhonda Hawkins’ multi-occupations class.
Multi-occupations (MO) students are employed for 15 hours per week and receive two credits. An additional credit is rewarded for taking the class. MO students receive a total of three credits per semester and six credits per year.
To qualify for MO, the students fill out an application in the spring of their junior years. Students pick a career that they are interested in pursuing after high school. Some of the places students work include Curtis Welding, KFC, Casey’s, and Fairway.
Senior Dakota Johnson works at Hy-Vee. He says a benefit of MO is getting out of school for half the day.
M.O. students are paid at least minimum wage if not more. Hawkins mentioned that the worst experience is when her students get fired. Some students have been fired in previous years due to poor attendance and attitude.
The best experience with MO students, says Hawkins, is when they get to work at the job to find out if that is really what they want to do in the future.