Over the summer of 2022, Tia McGuffie, Matthew Waldrop, Ryan Hodges, and Alex Kimbrell were nominated to participate at the STEM SEA program at the University of Alabama, where they stayed on campus in dorms with an entire floor to themselves. They were given the project to identify a problem in their school and find the solution. The group chose to help students better understand what they want in their lives after high school and college. McGuffie got into contact with Bill Squires and asked for his opinion on this new founded club and he agreed that this program would be a wonderful idea to contribute to the Brookwood community.

The group has now started the process of founding The Career Assistance Organization.

The group of students came up with the Career Assistance Organization designed to help their peers. They were given a week to finalize their idea and then presented their project on the following Saturday, applied for a grant from the University, and received one thousand dollars to implement into Brookwood High School. These students are currently working on having this club approved by Mrs. Hubbard, with the supervision of Mr. Plasters and Mrs. Clark.

Tia McGuffie uploaded a survey to the “What’s happening in Brookwood” Facebook page to be sure that this program is right for Brookwood. The results of the survey show that 55% who took part in the survey regret their college major, 45% do not. The survey also shows that over 75% are interested in this school program.

80% of students end up changing their major and only 27% of students have a job related to their major. The group of four took this knowledge and incorporated it into their PowerPoint that they presented in order to form this program.

The Career Assistance Organization is currently set to be an after-school club to help give students the right guidance to find out what path is suitable for them. During this program students will join zoom calls with college professionals in a wide range of career paths to help them find their major, the college right for them, and scholarships.

This club will help students come up with questions they need answered by these professionals about the schooling process, what their life would look like while in the field of work chosen by the student, and what classes the student should take according to the career options that are given.

This program is perfect for students who are unsure of the career or college path they want to pursue.