Ellington

Created in 2002, the Chattanooga Zoo’s Promoting Ethnic Diversity in Zoos (PEDZ) program has already garnered national attention by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums for its efforts. With the goals of providing exposure to career opportunities within the zoo field, expanding the diversity of the staff and audience at the Chattanooga Zoo and increasing the percentage of college applicants and graduates in the community, the program sets out to make a difference in the lives of our youth.

The program, which is facilitated through partnerships with local nonprofits and schools—including Hope for the Inner City Ministries, On Point and Big Brothers Big Sisters—gives disadvantaged youth in grades 10 through 12 the opportunity to see what a career in the zoo field would look like through various work and mentor opportunities.

According to a recent study, teens that are exposed to mentors are 50 percent more likely to attend college. The program focuses on using mentors to teach and evaluate students on a continual basis throughout their tenure. Students will be exposed to everything from visitor services training and preparing animal diets to honing their public speaking skills by leading tours and keeper chats.

This summer we caught up with two PEDZ kids and got their thoughts on the program.

Fifteen-year-old Jonathan Chapman is a tenth-grader at Hixson High School. Jonathan was involved with Hope for Inner City Ministries when he learned about the PEDZ program, and thought it would be a great opportunity for him to experience what he calls “the real job world.” He sees his experience at the zoo as an opportunity to prepare him for future employment, and he credits this program for positively impacting his conversational skills and patience. “Working at the zoo allowed me to be exposed to a different way of learning that I wouldn’t have been exposed to at school,” he says. Jonathan’s ambitious goals include attending Duke University and majoring in Business Management with the hope of one day owning his own business.

Bria Robinson, a 15-year-old sophomore at CSAS, is also a participant in the PEDZ program this summer. According to Bria, working at the zoo has taught her valuable life skills—including being responsible, developing a good work ethic and learning how to manage her time. Bria credits her mentor at the zoo for helping her learn these valuable traits and believes that in the future she’ll be able to impact someone’s life in a positive way, just like her mentor has impacted her life. Bria plans to attend college and study to be a corporate attorney, and looks forward to the day when she can tell someone her first job was at a zoo.

Students that successfully complete the PEDZ program and enroll in college are awarded a $500 college stipend at the completion of the cycle. The program has already seen many participants go on to become successful college students, and the hope is that many more will follow in their footsteps.