Robins Air Force Base Student Pathways Program back after decade-long hiatus

ROBINS AIR FORCE BASE — Knowing what to do after high school can be difficult for students, but a recently revived program at Robins Air Force Base will help teens explore their interests and encourage a fulfilling future career this summer.

The Student Pathways Program, as described by Renée Daughtry, the base’s School Liason Program Manager, is a unique internship opportunity for juniors and seniors. Students can work part-time or full-time on base over the summer, a rare chance to gain hands-on experience in a professional military environment. Daughtry emphasized this is among the first program across bases where students are paid for their work.

The first step of the process involved asking who would be interested in training an intern, which goes more in-depth than simply cleaning or coffee runs, as Daughtry mentioned.

“Some of the key players: our mission support group commander, myself and our resource advisor, reached out to our mission partners, units on base to say,’ Hey, if we are able to make this happen, who’s interested in having an intern this summer, and can provide meaningful work to them and teach them the career field that you’re in? Not a body to shred and file and clean the building things like that, like, actually learn to do the jobs you’re doing, teach them about Robins Air Force Base?’” Daughtry said.

As a result, 24 units requested an intern. 119 students across Houston County applied for the program, and 22 positions were filled, ranging from engineering to public affairs, audiovisual technology, aircraft structural maintenance and real property support.

Daughtry said students were selected based on a comprehensive set of criteria, such as pre-existing enrollment in a technical program and a resumé. The school district also vetted students based on GPA, attendance and disciplinary actions, ensuring that the selected students were the best fit for the program.

While on the job, students will first shadow the team, work with a mentor and gain training in whichever job they are assigned. With a hands-on training plan developed by each department, interns are expected to know the basics of their assignments and work towards mastery of related hard skills. 

Daughtry cited examples from various departments. In the communications directorate, one student is already learning to configure and manage software, while another is busy maintaining heating and air conditioning systems in the HVAC department.

“Whatever they’re doing, if it’s aircraft, structural maintenance, they’re going to have tools in hand and they’re going to be shown how to do things, taught why it’s important,” Daughtry said. “And then they’re going to perform those those skills and those actions.”

According to Daughtry, the internship program ended 10 years ago. Back then, it was more streamlined, and the base could directly hire from school district recommendations. Now, federal guidelines mandate students go through the same hiring process as other jobs on base.

This year, the internship program has been revived, thanks to partnerships from across the base and the Houston County School District, something Daughtry described as a herculean effort over the last six months highlighting Installation Commander Col. Deedrick Reese’s desire to partner with the community for recruitment.

“This just fit really nicely into that whole recruitment effort. Whether the students eventually want to come on base as a civilian, or maybe they’ve seen some of our military members out here and say, ‘I want to put the uniform on,’ our hope is that by exposing them to what’s on Robins Air Force Base, and seeing what we have out here, that we are developing our future workforce and some of them want to come back after college or even after high school,” Daughtry said.

Daughtry explained the internship is a resumé booster for students, a chance to gain technical knowledge and a taste of working in a professional military environment, teaching them valuable skills in this realm along the way.

“Our standards are second to none. We expect professionalism. We expect them to be respectful, to dress appropriately. So many of those soft skills they’re getting while they’re out here. They’re learning about our core values: integrity and service before self, all of that. Having that ingrained in them during the two months that they’re out here is gonna make them, I think better, whether they come work for us in the future or not. I think it’s just giving them a leg up on their other high school peers,” Daughtry said.

Daughtry added the program also teaches students the value of teamwork and taking pride in their work.

“We always talk about Team Robins and Robins Proud. I think if they get to spend two months being a part of Team Robins and seeing our Robins Proud in action, I think that they will take away with them that concept whatever they go into, when they go back to school, when they go to college, in whatever career they may choose to pursue,” Daughtry said.

So far, Daughtry has heard positive feedback from students in the program. Like full-time employees, students are free to use the base’s amenities, such as the gym and food court.

One student remarked how expansive the base is, a bonus to the mission of educating the public on its scope and city-like structure.

“Part of our goal is to get our community and our future workforce to understand Robins Air Force Base is like a city, and a lot of people that live right here in Warner Robins and Houston County do not know that. They think all we do is work on aircraft and that’s it. And in reality, we are like any town in America and we have the jobs that are in a city,” Daughtry said.

Daughtry is planning to follow up with students, employers, and the school district at the end of the program. Overall, she said she is grateful for the team effort and partnerships formed to bring the Student Pathways Program to fruition. 

“It was led by our mission support group, but a lot of units on base, from civilian personnel, then also the support of the Houston County School District and the College and Career Academy. They were phenomenal every step of the way,” Daughtry said. “Whenever we would need some guidance as far as reaching out to the students, things that we could do to make this more attractive, they worked really well with us. So, we’re just really grateful to them.”

Daughtry said the program hopes to expand into neighboring school districts next year. Interested students should look for the opportunity from their guidance counselor.