A fun day of learning

Clark College welcomed dozens of employees’ children—from toddlers to teens for Take Your Child to Work Day on April 27. It was the first time this fun family event returned to campus since 2019 before the pandemic.

Cath Busha, Dean of Student Engagement, who led the event organization, said employees were excited to bring the event back to campus and to give young Penguins an opportunity to do hands-on activities and see the campus where their parents work. Many employees volunteered to create and coordinate the busy day of activities.

Busha’s son, Oliver, 10, listed a slate of activities he’d already enjoyed: scavenger hunt, guessing the number of penguins, getting a cookie from the bakery, and then, it was time to get to the STEM Building for more fun—building an apparatus to sustain a 40-foot drop and going on a walk to learn about bees.

Anina Peethala, 11 and her sister Avina, 7, were in the Bookstore with their father, Sudha Frederick, Vice President of IT. The girls were trying to guess how many penguins were in the clear plastic bin far over their heads. They had already enjoyed their treats from the bakery and visited the gym.

Genevieve Layfield, 7, was hanging out with her dad, Chris Layfield, after she made a photo badge that she wore proudly around her neck on a Clark College lanyard, just like her dad’s.

In the gym of O’Connell Sports Center, Katie Massey, an ASL interpreter who works in Disability Support Services, recorded a video on her phone while her sons, Brody Massey, 11, and Cooper, 9, shot hoops with their new Clark-branded basketballs. Later they blew bubbles in the courtyard outside of the bakery.

Later children lined up to get their photos taken with Oswald, Clark’s mascot.

A great time was had by all. 

The slate of activities included:

• Free photo badges at Security. Thanks to Guided Pathways!
• Penguin Guessing Game in the Bookstore: Two winners took home a stuffed penguin. Free lanyards for kids’ photo badge. Thanks to the Bookstore!
• Pick up free Clark-branded basketballs and shot hoops in the O’Connell Sports Center gymnasium. Thanks to Athletics!
• Free treats from “apprentice bakers” in the food court. Thanks to HR!
• Practice conversation with Spanish, Japanese, or ASL tutors in the Tutoring Center or learn to write their name in a new language
• Guided campus tour led by a student ambassador
• Self-guided campus scavenger hunt
• Built LEGO creations, played games or made a zine at the Teaching and Learning Center
• Gravity Falls – An engineering project in the STEM Building led by professors Tina Barsotti and Carol Hsu. Children designed, built and tested an apparatus to safely deliver candy dropped 40 feet onto a target below.  
• Bee Walk with Professor Steven Clark, Bee Campus Project Manager and Biology Instructor, on the ground outside the STEM Building
• Selfies with Oswald, Clark College mascot in Gaiser Hall
• Story time and zine-making in Clark College Libraries 

Photos: Clark College/Susan Parrish