WINTERS, Texas (KTAB/KRBC) -- Winters ISD juniors and seniors have been attending the World of Work (W.O.W) conference in Abilene for several years, and the mock interviews are an exciting part of the conference for their school. However, the conference did not hold mock interviews this year. Nevertheless, the community gathered to hold some later that afternoon.
Every year, Winters ISD helps students prepare for the event by creating resumes and business cards for their portfolios, practicing job interview questions, improving communication skills, and learning about appropriate business attire. Teacher Deb Pritchard mentioned that they discovered these activities would not be taking place this year when they arrived at the conference.
"So, much to our dismay, when we arrived at the conference today, ready to impress, we experienced a HUGE letdown when we learned there would be NO Mock Interviews. None of us were aware they had done away with that portion of the conference, so I was particularly disappointed since our students had prepared so diligently for the past six weeks," Pritchard shared on Winters ISD's Facebook Page.
She explained that after hearing the news, Mandie England and Danna Hoppe suggested gathering people at the school to hold mock interviews after the students returned from the event.
"I personally didn't think the idea would work, nor did I believe the students would want to stay in their business attire and participate, so I shunned the idea," Pritchard typed. "However, they persisted, and within an hour, they lined up 12 community members, businessmen and women from Winters, who were willing to help and give our students the opportunity to experience the interview process."
England, Hoppe, and Melissa Gerhart developed a list of interview questions, printed an interview rubric, secured rooms, and created an interview schedule. They then greeted a panel of interviewers, guided them to rooms, and escorted the students to their interviews.
"'Prospective employers' showed up at 2:00 p.m., and by 3:15 p.m., had interviewed 30 seniors and provided valuable feedback and constructive criticism! To top it off, the students were willing and eager to follow through with the process," Pritchard shared.
Winters ISD would like to thank those who helped make this happen, including Lisa Blake, Sue Prewit, Sherri Langston, Dinell Jacob, Paula Geyer, Jill Davis, Will Duggan, Doug Wheat, Heather Brown, Bill Bredemeyer, April Sweet, and Susan Conner.
"THIS is the reason we LOVE Winters! No one said no to our request. Some could not help today but would have loved to. Many helped today and loved giving back to our community," Pritchard expressed. "Lots of places talk about giving back to your community. Winters DOES IT. Selflessly, willingly, generously, and at the spur of the moment. Lots of places give lip service to paying it forward, but the people who answered the call today would all tell you that others before them had helped them along the way."