Summer Jobs Program Gives High School Student Corporate Experience
Whether she’s preparing submarine sandwiches at Hero’s or learning the ins and outs of the insurance business, Christina Campos gives it her all.
Prior to her senior year at Lane Technical High School, Christina spent her summer working as a part-time intern at the Chicago office of CBIZ, a leading provider of business services. While she also maintained her job at the sandwich shop, Christina thought working downtown “would be interesting and fun – an opportunity for something new that might help in the future,” she said.
Her CBIZ colleagues were thrilled to have her. They prepared a to-do list containing 12 items that they thought would fill Christina’s eight-week internship. She was to organize active client files, set-up a system for prospect files, create mass mailings, organize the entire supply room, update and transfer census information, and create administrative binders for all clients present and future. She also was asked to update records in the company’s database and create email lists of all active client contacts.
“Christina finished our eight-week to do list in three weeks,” said Jim Pajauskas, CBIZ senior account executive. “She helped with a lot of the day-to-day stuff that for the year and nine months we’ve been here we haven’t been able to get to.”
Christina’s work ethic even exceeded that of some full-time employees, said senior account manager Don Harper. “She was always early, and she wasn’t the first one out the door. She’s a very quick learner and always looking for more work. We ended up getting more done than we anticipated – it was a real win-win all the way around,” he said.
Christina learned Microsoft Word and Excel, and enjoyed “making things to make things easier.” But it was the unexpected lessons and perks that Christina seems to cherish most. She learned how not to let a client’s bad day ruin hers. She worked side-by-side with a 24-year-old college student who was studying psychology and sparked Christina’s interest in the field. She mentioned what she thought was just a pipe dream – attending college in California – and was told that CBIZ has offices in California and may be able to help her find a job to further her educational goals.
“Other than it being a pleasure to work with Christina, we all felt good about enhancing her future in a small way,” said Lisa Russ, the CBIZ marketing manager who hired Christina and served as her mentor through the internship.
“I know people up to 25 years old who wish they could be a part of the Summer Jobs Program,” Christina said. “I was really lucky – where I was placed, the pay was good, and I considered it a really big opportunity.”
It was an opportunity Christina maximized. “We’ve made it very clear that whenever she’s on break from school, she always has a place here,” Don said.