Beginning this school year, sophomores and juniors will have seminar teachers whose expertise aligns with student career interests.

They are gathered through the college and career readiness website Xello. When students complete Xello questionnaires, it gives them “career options based on their personality, skills and knowledge,” according to the Xello website. 

“Let’s say you’re interested in a career that might be in business or communications,” Northwest principal Dr. Gruman said. “We would put you with a teacher that also said that’s an area of interest for them.” 

The change was made in hopes that students could gain interest tailored advice from seminar teachers. 

“It’s hard for teachers to answer questions about everything from engineering to medicine to communications to art,” Dr. Gruman said. 

By grouping students together who share common interests, Dr. Gruman also hopes they can make connections with their peers. 

Northwest also wants to host more guest speakers on careers during seminar hours. The talks would be focused towards and more advertised to students who have chosen that career as a potential interest.

“It’s a pretty small change,” Dr. Guman said. “But it’s hopefully impactful.”