The Oregon Department of Public Safety Standards and Training (DPSST) hosted a number of activities at the Oregon Public Safety Academy in Salem today as part of a national event, Take Our Kids to Work Day.
More than four dozen boys and girls participated in today's events at the Academy. The children were of family members and friends employed at the Academy in a variety of roles including public safety trainers, police officers, firefighters, regulatory specialists, and trades such as electricians, carpenters, food services, etc.
The day's activities began with a "roll call" during which all of the children were given a "briefing" on an "investigation" they were going to be assigned to assist with. The investigation would provide clues at each location which would eventually allow them to close their case. The clues would bring the children to various locations within the agency so they can see the various careers that exist at the Academy.
DPSST Director Eriks Gabliks said "the goal of our event is two-fold. First, to give the children of our staff the opportunity to find out more about what their parents do. Second, to get boys and girls thinking about what type of careers they might be interested in when they grow up. Waiting until they are out of high school is too late. The motto of our day is that any boy or girl can do any career they want when they grow up."
Background on Take Our Kids to Work Day from Wikipedia - Take Our Daughters To Work Day was created in New York in the summer of 1992 by the Ms. Foundation for Women. The first celebration took place on Thursday, April 22, 1993 and has since been celebrated on the 4th Thursday of April every year in order for the 37 million children, parents, schools in over 3.5 million workplaces across the country, in addition to participants in over 200 countries around the world, to plan ahead for the annual event. The day has generally been scheduled on a day that is a school day for most children in the United States, and schools are provided with literature and encouraged to promote the program. Educators are provided with materials for incorporating career exploration into school curricula on the day before or after the event. The program was officially expanded in 2003 to include boys; however, most companies that participated in the program had, since the beginning, allowed b oth boys and girls to participate, usually renaming it "Take Our Children to Work Day" or an equivalent. The program's official website states that the program was changed in order to provide both boys and girls with opportunities to explore careers at an age when they are more flexible in terms of gender roles. The Ms. Foundation also states that men who have hosted children have benefited from being seen as parental figures in addition to their roles as professionals, which can contribute to combating gender stereotypes as well.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Take_Our_Daughters_and_Sons_to_Work_Day
## Background Information on the DPSST ##
The Department of Public Safety Standards and Training (DPSST) operates the Oregon Public Safety Academy which spans more than 235 acres in Salem. The Academy is nationally recognized for its innovative training programs and active stakeholder involvement. Eriks Gabliks serves as the Director, and Marion County Sheriff Jason Myers serves as the Chair of the Board. The department implements minimum standards established by the Board for the training and certification of more than 40,000 city, tribal, county and state law enforcement officers, corrections officers, parole and probation officers, OLCC regulatory specialists, fire service personnel, telecommunicators, emergency medical dispatchers and private security providers.
DPSST provides training to more than 25,000 students each year throughout Oregon and at the Oregon Public Safety Academy in Salem: certifies qualified officers at various levels from basic through executive; certifies qualified instructors; and reviews and accredits training programs throughout the state based on standards established by the Board.