Valley students benefit from job opportunities

When you pull up to the window at a local fast-food restaurant, who is generally there to hand you back your change and send you on your way with your meal? Most of the time it’s a local high school student, dedicating long hours to afternoon shifts over the course of the school year.

In this day and age, many high school students choose to break the traditional stereotype of a languorous teenager and pursue a local job experience during their later school years. For many students, this opportunity is optional, but for others a part-time job is a needed source of income to help pay for everyday expenses. Additionally, many high school students are beginning to accept the financial responsibility of paying for college, so they begin working in high school to save up money for their future education.

While many applaud these hard-working students for their determination and perseverance in maintaining a job, the struggle of balancing a part-time job with rigorous high school courses undoubtedly takes a toll on students.

Javier Alcina, a senior at both Wasilla High School and Mat-Su Central, is the embodiment of a dedicated student working part-time to pay for personal finances. He works a five-hour shift after school on Wednesdays manning in the drive-through window at the Wasilla Taco Bell. Like many students with part-time jobs, Javier finds himself caught between a strenuous schedule of academic courses and the need to pay for necessary expenses.

“It’s tough,” Javier said. “Sometimes you have to plan out your homework several days in advance just to have enough time to finish it.”

But he persistently keeps at his job, working long hours to ensure he makes enough money to cover his expenses for the week.

Javier is one of many Mat-Su Valley students who set out to find work in the hopes of supporting themselves while learning fiscal responsibility. You can find hundreds of high school students working in local valley businesses such as Carr’s, McDonald’s, Blockbuster, KFC and many more. These businesses provide students an opportunity for work and flexible schedules to meet the students’ needs. However, many students still find themselves trapped in a tough situation of trying to maintain good grades while sacrificing their free time to work.

“Being an honor roll student while trying to work part time is a demanding lifestyle,” Javier said. “But, I’ve stuck with it and it’s been a good experience for me.“

Despite the difficulty of trying to harmonize academic studies with a busy work schedule, you can see that many Valley students are persevering and are determined to stick with it to the end.

“This job has taught me a lot about financial responsibility and the importance of hard work,” Javier said, reflecting on what he has learned from working part-time.

The majority of students with part-time jobs soon learn the fiscal responsibility of income, as well as structuring their schedules around studying and staying updated in their academic classes. Additionally, students learn the value of using their free time wisely, sacrificing potential free time for curricular studies.

Thanks to local businesses in the Mat-Su Valley, students from Colony, Palmer, Wasilla and Houston high schools are able to find work to support them and help prepare for any future education plans that they may have. If it weren’t for job opportunities such as these, many students would have difficulty maintaining control of personal expenses and saving up for a college education.

Although this is a rigorous lifestyle for most, many students are grateful for the job experience to receive an additional income and gain a sense of self-worth in their work.

Josh Grissom is a senior at Wasilla High School in Mrs. Wright’s Journalism class.