By: Ryan Duey
Since 2020, Dickinson County schools and local business partners have been collaborating to give area students a unique opportunity with a year-long course known as Creating Entrepreneurial Opportunities (CEO). Led by Brandy Gray, this course gets students out of the traditional classroom setting and into the community.
This year’s CEO program includes 13 students from Abilene, Chapman, and Solomon High Schools. The students have the opportunity to explore the business world firsthand. Each student is also given a mentor, who is there for them every step of the way.
While students have similar favorites about the program, they are all unique to them.
- Abilene High School student Kaylee Weibert said they have business ventures.
“We have three business ventures in our class. The first one is where we get a name tag and a jacket sponsored by a business in the county. The second is our class business, this year we hosted an 80s Murder Mystery Dinner. Then the third is an individual business that we’re working on now.”
- Abilene High School student Canyn Taylor likes learning about how the different businesses became what they are now.
“We do this thing where we go around throughout the whole community and visit businesses and their leaders. They talk about how they started up their business and all the roadblocks they had to get through to become successful.”
- Abilene High School student Riley Goodale likes the networking aspect of the course.
“At all these business visits we get to meet people who work at these places and own these businesses. I think it’s a really good opportunity to meet and network with people who are influential in our Community. If we ever want to come back to Dickinson County in the future we now know people that we could work for.”
- Abilene High School student Nolan Wilkins said CEO helps him figure out what he wants to do when out of school.
“When I joined CEO, I didn’t have a clue what I was going to do after I graduated. So, this program has helped me explore the career world and it’s helped me narrow down a few things of what I want to do after college.”
- Abilene High School student Brooklyn Haaga feels the program prepares her for future success.
“CEO is shaping me to be more professional. I already know what I’m going to the college for, and it’s not business. I was hesitant to join the class at first because I thought it was for business. But I’m glad I did; I’ve learned so much about how to carry yourself professionally, how to have those tough conversations, and really how to present yourself in a business.”
- Abilene High School student Levi Evans enjoys the mentorship program and what the mentors do for the students.
“Each student is assigned a mentor at the beginning of the year, and you just get to connect with them, and they help you with anything you ask them. They’re always there for you. I think it’s big because we’re pretty much blind in this program and they’re there always there for us. I think it’s just great.”
- Abilene High School student Aubrey Watson likes the fact that she can explore her career choice firsthand.
“CEO has given me a different outlook on different things to see if that’s actually what I wanted to go into. We have this thing where students get to choose a business to visit. I did it at a Salon here in Abilene and I just thought it was really cool to get to explore what I was actually going into after high school.”
- Chapman High School student Abigail Gaston believes that CEO offers experiences that normal high school students do not learn.
“It’s just a great experience to learn how to adult basically, as high schoolers. We’re learning things that I don’t think a lot of people learn until they’re in their 20s. It’s just a great experience of doing real things. For instance, we’re learning about bank statements and stuff that you would not learn in other classes.”
- And Solomon High School student Andrew Gray enjoys the different learning styles of CEO, compared to the traditional classroom.
“One of my favorite things about CEO is how we get out of the classroom and how the learning styles are completely different. When you’re in school it’s all about taking notes and paying attention to exactly what the teacher is saying. With CEO you put your knowledge actually into something, instead of just on a piece of paper.”
Since the program’s inception, Dickinson County CEO has graduated 34 alumni, with these 13 students soon to be added to that status. Recruitment for next year’s course is currently underway for any interested Dickinson County Sophomore or Junior students. Visit the Dickinson County CEO website to learn more, or to apply for next year’s course.
