In JAG (Jobs for America’s Graduates), students are taught lessons that should stick for life, such as helping students apply for jobs, and helping them enter the armed forces. Enlisting and applying are tasks that require a conscious decision that individuals will have to commit to.

The choices students make while in JAG will support them throughout the rest of their lives. The JAG program is helping students overcome a fear of having responsibilities and many more debilitating behaviors. It shows students a positive future and how much their decisions can be life changing. Often for the greater good, students that participate in JAG are more often fully employed because it helps students “achieve success in high school” and “helps following higher education.” 

“It’s really about building career awareness and job skills for students. Typically for students that don’t want to be college bound, but rather going straight into the workforce. It helps show how to fill out resumes, how you do the interviewing, what’s Social Security, what’s income tax, things like that,’’ Principal Jeff Wagner said.

As as multi-step program, each student in JAG is to be evaluated for entrance into the program. Only a handful of students (about 45) can be accepted. Students who want to graduate, but don’t have the supplies or the assistance are often looked at with most consideration. After the selecting the students, a specialist will join the young adults to help and start with a pretest and a post test to assess the problems the students are having. The classes students participate in are heavily based on hands-on projects that show students talents or skills that they will need in life. Also, the program will assist students with barriers preventing them from graduating or being respectful adults. Students will have the assistance of the JAG mentors to help with life long skills, even the little things, such as the confidence to go after the big things. Big things are like joining the military or the workforce. After graduation, adults either apply, enlist or enroll. After graduating, the mentors or specialists will work with graduates following graduation for 12 months.

“It’s an opportunity for students to attain more real world job oriented skills used to help them succeed in finding a job and/or career,” Dean Chuck Wright said.

Within this program, there are 5 different areas of which students can attain the assistance they need. Each corresponds to the grade of said students, as well as the type of barriers and  access to the support a student might need in order to be successful in high school and in a career. 

JAG has been serving and assisting the youth of America for over 40 years. With the program being more accessible across the country, the projected growth of success in America’s youth is tremendous. Additionally, the program is available at no cost to the students. With external funding, the JAG program offers a future to many students who otherwise may not have the tools to access that future. 

“ I do see JAG staying around and in schools for years to come. I feel it would be beneficial to America and our youth,” Wright said. 

Over 1.5 million students have been assisted through JAG and taught things they otherwise would not have. 

“Anytime we look at programs for our students its all about whether or not we can provide more services, can we provide more opportunities for our kids, and if it would benefit students. It’s really just about how much we can help our students while they’re our students,” Wagner said.