This July, CREATE is a host organization for the Summer RISE program. Summer RISE is an initiative led by the Montgomery County Public Schools’ (MCPS) Partnerships Unit in collaboration with local businesses, government agencies, and non-profit organizations. The purpose is to provide high school juniors and seniors with a career-based learning opportunity to learn more about an industry of interest and career field options. RISE stands for Reimagining an Innovative Student Experience.
Keep reading to learn more about our RISE students in their own words.
My name is Ryan and I have had the opportunity to take part in working with the Create Arts Center here in Silver Spring, through the Summer RISE program.
I’m 16 years old and a rising junior at Montgomery Blair High School. I am interested in multiple forms of art, but I’m most interested in theater. I haven’t been in any productions acting-wise, but I have been a part of the stage crew in one of the musicals our school performed. Writing is a hobby of mine, making little stories of things either in my life that I document or works of fiction that rush into my mind. I’m not much of a drawer, but painting is right up there with writing though I haven’t seriously sat down and painted something for a long time. But my most pleasurable hobbies are listening and discovering music, binge watching YouTube, browsing social media, and playing video games.
One of the main reasons why I wanted to take part in both Summer RISE and working with Create Arts Center is because I’m still trying to figure out my future plans. I have had ideas about what I wanted to do but I always end up running into obstacles in my plans. Engineering was my first choice but I quickly learned that it was a very challenging field filled with skills that I’m still lacking. The theater is my most recent choice but it’s a job that demands a lot of time whether you like it or not. So, I’m taking this opportunity to explore different careers in which I can succeed and also genuinely enjoy working.
In the short amount of time that I have spent here, I feel as though I am getting a better understanding of what I want in my ideal job. Though still searching for my dream job I always knew that I would dread having to work an office job, wearing suits and ties, taking phone calls in a bland cubicle. But interacting with people face to face is, I feel, one of my specialties. Especially when it comes to subjects that produce creativity and fun, it creates a more relaxed workspace for both staff and customers. I hope that further down the line in my volunteer work, I can learn more about my own preferences in the career that I would feel comfortable and determined to continue with.