Lyric Aitkens helps her mother Renée Bombardier measure a window in the Joyce Entrepreneurship Centre in preparation for the graphic design of signage promoting the Office of Research and Innovation Services inside. The activity was part of the job shadow portion of Take Our Kids to Work Day, Wednesday across campus.
Participants who visited campus Nov. 6 for Take Our Kids to Work Day enjoyed hands-on exploration of a range of UWindsor programs, from DNA science to the “human” role in human kinetics to mechatronics engineering.
Deirdre Prior of the Office of Enrolment Management, who organized the day in collaboration with Human Resources, said group activities focused on academic paths.
“Kids have to make decisions so much younger now about what courses of study they may wish to pursue,” she said. “Giving them an early look helps them to choose the right high school classes.”
She said about 70 Grade 9 students — children, grandchildren, and friends of faculty and staff — registered for the day.
“People were happy, the kids were happy,” Prior said.
Findlay Lucier, a student at Tecumseh Vista Academy, called the event “cool,” enabling her to explore varied areas of study.
“I got to see a lot of different majors, with the students showing us what they’re doing,” she said. “Nursing was really interesting — seeing all the cool gear they use. I’ve never seen that sort of equipment before.”
Rhys Robillard of St. Thomas of Villanova Catholic Secondary School said Take Our Kids to Work gave him a different perspective on the campus.
“I’ve seen around the perimeter, but this was my first chance to see inside the campus,” he said.
His favourite activity was hosted by the Odette School of Business: creating a video as part of mock marketing campaign to promote the Take Our Kids to Work program.
“We recorded participants just explaining what they did for the day,” said Robillard.
Watch the video here