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OCTOBER 21, 2016, KEIZERTIMES, PAGE A3 KeizerCommunity KEIZERTIMES.COM McNary opens college and career center By DEREK WILEY Of the Keizertimes With bright green walls, stone countertops, large televi- sion screens and black couches, McNary’s new college and ca- reer center doesn’t look like any other room in the high school. And that’s exactly what Principal Erik Jespersen want- ed. “I think it’s amazing,” Jes- persen said at an open house on Thursday, Oct. 13. “What we were shooting for when we started this project is we wanted to create a space that didn’t look like a classroom, that didn’t look like any other part of the school because we want people to come in with a totally different mindset.” The college and career cen- ter, which was rebuilt with $20,000 from the NIKE In- novation Fund, has 12 Google Chromebooks as well as other technology that is so new that MHS Assistant Principal Su- sanne Stefani said the school’s top tech guy is not able to fi nd solutions on a few bugs that have been spotted. “The whole district is watching how we handle the technology and how we deal with it,” Stefani said. Jespersen noted the center will help McNary in its goal of becoming an AVID demon- stration school by 2020. “AVID is about taking a group of kids and providing some pathways for them to get to college but we didn’t really have the space to support that,” Jespersen said. “So we wanted an interac- tive space for people to come We are Everything Except Overpriced KEIZERTIMES/Derek Wiley A group of McNary High School students work in the new college and career center, which opened Monday, Oct. 17. into and really have the rubber meet the road, which is what’s going to happen in here.” On Monday, Oct. 17, stu- dents began using the center to get help with college and job applications as well as resumes. Every Tuesday, beginning in November, there will be AVID tutorials. “Our school district’s mis- sion is to prepare all kids to be college and career ready,” Jes- persen said. “We want to be really ag- gressive in that pursuit. I think this is a good fi rst step.” Rochelle Farris, a former fi - nancial aid counselor at West- ern Oregon University, has been hired as a college and ca- reer center assistant, which is a new position at McNary. “She is going to be the smiling face and organizer that makes this space work and that’s something that we haven’t had, a dedicated posi- tion exclusively for this,” Jes- persen said. As a student at Western Or- egon, Farris changed her major fi ve times so she knows fi rst- hand how diffi cult it can be to get on the right career path. “This is what I’m passionate about, to start working with kids,” Farris said. “Every stu- dent here has a path and they might not know what that path is. They don’t know what it’s going to be like when they walk out the doors and I think it’s really important to give kids a plan and to help them with that plan so they know what’s going to happen after high school.” McNary is bringing in col- leges, trade schools, different branches of the military and local businesses to give presen- tations. “By working with students on college applications, de- termining what colleges they want to go to, giving them the opportunity to explore differ- ent careers, giving them volun- teer opportunities so they can dabble in and experience what it’s like in certain areas, then they fi gure out that passion,” Farris said. “Doing things like that, they are going to have a clearer pic- ture of what their future is go- ing to look like and that’s what I’m really excited to help them on their journey and help guide them in that direction. We need to support both types of kids (college and career) and give them experiences to make sure that they have a plan when they walk out the doors of McNary High School.” Simple Cremation $795 KEIZERTIMES/Derek Wiley Inexpensive Burial and Funeral Options Rochelle Farris is the new college and career center assistant at McNary High School. Pre-Planning Available On-Site Crematory Award-Winning 4365 RIVER RD N, KEIZER 503.393.7037 Se habla español Authentic American BBQ Now 2 Locations 1210 State Street 503-362-2194 2505 Liberty St NE 503-689-1082 puzzle answers