Staff Interview: Jessica Porter
05/12/2023
Since the beginning, Tri-County Jobs for Ohio’s Graduates (JOG) has worked hard to provide needed academic and career services to students in our local partner schools, but the JOG model is not limited to just those standard education tenants. Our specialists go above and beyond to help their students feel welcomed, supported, and engaged.
Jessica Porter is a great example of a Career Specialist who takes this approach with her students, effectively implementing the key JAG model concept of trauma-informed care and caring adults. She works hard to provide top-notch services as a Career Specialist while also being a rock for students on which they can rely. Jessica explained, “Day to day, I build relationships and try to be that one supporting person.” She continued, “Yes, we do academic work. Yes, we talk about resumes and careers. But we do so much more than that. Not every student has a person at home who will ask questions like ‘how did your test go?’”
Building these relationships is crucial to creating trust with our students. They need to see that we care and that we really do have their backs. By building trust, it helps us do the other things we were brought in to do, like the academic work and career preparation. As Jessica put it, “I have found, when you start at a place of caring, they are more willing to listen when you ask about things like math homework.”
Problem solving is a big part of a Career Specialist’s day. One way Jessica teaches her students to take control in situations that feel hopeless to them is to ask confidence-reaffirming questions like “What can we control in this situation?” and “What can we do to make this better?” This helps students feel more grounded and ready to tackle the day. After all, trying to work on math homework is not a priority when someone has issues at home or hasn’t eaten yet that day.
Outside of helping students grow, Jessica has been mentoring some of the new Career Specialists at JOG. She emphasizes just how important it is to take an approach of understanding and problem solving. As Jessica described, “I have been working with youth for 19 years now. I want to be able to share [this knowledge] with other people, and I love being able to do that. At the end of the day, the essence of a good program is a good Career Specialist.”
We are lucky to have such caring Career Specialists like Jessica at JOG. Our students are better because of the efforts put forward from our staff. We hold our head high knowing that our new hires are being taught great practices and will be more prepared for their futures with the JOG program because of it.