Two students from Fort St. James Secondary School participated in a cost-of-production study session with cattle producers and ranchers from the Nechako Valley region on Jan. 29.
As part of the Nechako Lakes School District 91 (SD91) Career Connections program, Nikayla Leatherdale and Joshua Hoy sat at the table with six industry professionals to discuss the business of agriculture and the economic impacts local producers face.
"They started to share their inputs and feedback from their experiences, and they were part of the conversation. So it became a real nice experience to hear from youth," said Darren Carpenter, career and trades programs coordinator for Nechako Lakes School District.
He said the Nechako Valley Regional Cattlemen's Association helped facilitate the learning for the two students who volunteered to be part of the event.
The data and feedback collected during the day will aid in the creation of more accurate computer modelling to assist producers and their respective business-related decisions.
The Career Connections program aims to help high school students learn about careers they could work towards after graduation.
"We're very much about getting kids out into the workplace and talking to adults and seeing if that resonates for them. And if it doesn't, that's fine too, that actually helps align some of your thinking," Carpenter said.
"Our job is to introduce them to this and and hopefully it resonates. If not, fair enough, it's still a good day for them in terms of getting some information they never would have been privy to anyways. And they're a little more worldly in their view, at the very minimum, at the end of the day."
The school district works to partner with local businesses for the program. Carpenter said it can help show students how they can give back to their community through their careers.
"Certainly they can go and travel and work where they want to the end of the day. But, we're hoping to obviously provide those opportunities that are real and relevant to our area," he said.
Organizations can contact SD 91 Career and Trades Programs to discuss how students may be able to observe or participate in events such as the cost-of-production workshop.
