Stimulus Dollars Help Students Plan for Future Careers

Missouri's Next Generation Jobs Team provides job training for students.

ByABC News
July 10, 2009, 3:46 PM

KANSAS CITY, Mo., July 13, 2009— -- Justin Menning was pretty sure he wanted to be an accountant. Now the case is settled.

"This is actual hands-on experience with what I want to do when I graduate from college," the University of Central Missouri junior said. "This is the first time that I've gotten to experience this kind of work, and actually do it, and I do enjoy it."

Kalia Newton intended to major in finance at the University of Missouri in Columbia.

"Now I'll be a double major. I'll change my major next year to nursing as a second major," Newton said.

Deraan Washington spent last summer working at a restaurant. Now she's learning marketing psychology.

"It has definitely broadened my horizons and made me look into different things," she said.

All three are spending their summers getting their new career experiences thanks to federal stimulus dollars.

That's because Missouri is using a portion of its funding from the $787 billion American Recovery and Reinvestment Act on what it's calling the Next Generation Jobs Team. Menning, Newton and Washington are among the 6,500 students between the ages of 16 and 24 working this summer in high-tech jobs around the state, in opportunities that are changing their expectations for their own careers.

It is a critical time in the life of the stimulus plan. Skeptics on both sides of the political divide are finding fault with the Obama administration's bill. Conservatives are saying it was too big while some on the left are arguing for a second stimulus.

As the nation's unemployment rate approaches 10 percent, it is programs like Missouri's that could help determine whether the plan has been a success.

In addition to providing work for the age group hit hardest by unemployment, the program aims to provide job training for students in fields outside what many typically envision when they think of summer jobs.

Menning, the would-be accountant, spent last summer working at a local gym in his hometown of Sedalia, about 100 miles east of Kansas City. This summer, he works in the accounting department of Pro Energy Services, a high-tech consulting firm focusing on alternative energies.