Bandages, bootcamp, and outdoor basics, a look at some of Imbler’s senior projects
By Garrett Christensen on Monday, May 13th, 2024 in More Top Stories Northeastern Oregon News
IMBLER – For school districts that include them, senior projects serve as multifaceted learning opportunities, allowing students to organize unique hands-on projects and events for their communities, while also offering convenient introductions to their career paths. In the case of the Imbler school district, these projects include collaboration with the Oregon National Guard, highlighting the service of local search and rescue teams, and sharing firsthand knowledge on treating life threatening injuries, among a plethora of other topics. Elkhorn Media Group had the opportunity to recently speak with three Imbler students on their projects.
Jaden Mckaig, Gabe Harder, and JoJo Turner, currently Juniors at Imbler High School, recently completed the main activities of their respective projects. Gabe, planning on joining the military after graduation, worked with Sargent Broncho of the Oregon National Guard to have a military unit visit the school on April 25th. Visiting national guard members set up an obstacle course and sparring pit for K-12 students.
Jaden, also with an interest in the armed forces, specifically the Coast Guard, instead worked with Nick Vora, Union County Emergency Manager, to highlight the service of the Union County Search and Rescue team. Nick stopped by the school on April 9th to give a lecture on outdoor safety and how the SAR team operates. JoJo, with an interest in the medical field, also brought some EMS experts out to Imbler, specifically the Grande Ronde Hospital’s Stop the Bleed program. Members of the Stop the Bleed team, including team leader April Brock, visited Imbler on April 24, teaching several classes throughout the day on the essentials of treating major injuries, culminating in a short presentation and hands-on activities for the high school students. JoJo reflected further on the visit, stating:
“Once we got the team out here, they were able to interact with the students. They had a really good curriculum for each class period. All the students were really great at asking questions and just being really respectful and interactive with them.”
All three projects were completed over the course of roughly eight months. When asked, all three students mentioned scheduling and arranging a curriculum for their respective visits being the most challenging parts of their projects, or in Gabe’s case simply “working with the military.” These headaches were, thankfully, offset by some entirely unique experiences. Gabe got to visit a National Guard tank division in Ontario, while JoJo remarked that simply having Stop the Bleed visit the school was a highlight on its own. Jaden meanwhile offered some insight into what her volunteer time with Search and Rescue meant:
“I would say my favorite part was volunteering with them because there were a lot of hands-on activities that I got to do, and it helped me gain a lot of skills and just insight on the job and what it includes. It just helped me decide if it’s what I want to do in my future.”
Like all students working on their senior projects, the three had plenty of support. For Gabe it was his advisor, Jake Evers along with his mentor that helped him along. For Jaden, Nick Vora played a key part of course, along with her advisor, Kathy Christensen. Lastly JoJo gave a shout out to April Brock, along with her mom.
