On the afternoon of Friday, June 30, Potomac Falls High School student Amanda Zehr scooped a cone of Ben and Jerry’s Cherry Garcia low-fat frozen yogurt into a chocolate covered waffled cone.
The junior spends her summer vacation working eight-hour shifts at Ben and Jerry’s in Cascades. On Friday, Zehr was one of four teenage girls working behind the ice-cream counter.
"I thought it would be cool because I like ice cream and it’s a good place to hang out," she said.
Zehr found out about the job in her marketing class and decided she wanted to work to have money for shopping and weekend activities, like going to the movies and out to dinner.
DOMINION HIGH School senior Nicole Pett is working two jobs for a different reason.
"I’m saving up for school," she said.
Next year, Pett plans on moving to Ohio to play Division I soccer at the University of Akron.
The 18-year-old babysits her neighbors' children during the day, and at night and on the weekend she works at Rave, a clothing store in the Dulles Town Center.
Her friend, Charlie Monroe, is looking for a second job. The Dominion High School senior works at Logan’s Roadhouse in Sterling on the weekends.
"I need something to fill my time during the week. I’m bored," he said. "When I’m not working, I’m at Starbucks."
Pett and Monroe agreed it was easy to find summer jobs. However, some employers are reluctant to hire students.
The Cascades Shopping Center is packed with student employees. For several weeks, the new Ted’s Montana Grill waived a "Now Hiring" banner across the main entrance.
Monroe applied for a job as a server, but he wasn’t old enough to work there. In order to work at Ted’s Montana Grill, employees must be at least 18 years old.
Restaurant manager Steve Quander had a hard time finding qualified employees at first.
"We try not to hire students," Quander said, "because we’re looking for full-time employees. We don’t want to have to look for new employees in the fall."
Sterling resident Brian Scott is a sophomore at West Virginia University in Morgantown, W.Va.
"I’m doing this to save some money for school," the 18-year-old said. "But I’ll only be here for a few months."
"We’re looking for full-time employees, so we don’t have to go through the process all over again when they leave," Quander said. "It makes it easier on us."
DURING THE school year, Park View High School guidance director Erin O’Malley sorted through fliers from Sterling companies offering summer internships.
"We get a lot of fliers from employers looking for summer interns," she said. "I put them up on the bulletin board, but most students choose to work during the summer."
O’Malley said her students work a variety of jobs.
"Students work at Starbucks, the pool, local shops. I even have one student working at Jiffy Lube," she said.
All Loudoun County high schools offer guidance through their career center. Park View High School’s career center is open during the school year and in the summer from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. The center offers parents and students a number of tools to help prepare for college and employment.
The career center has information on colleges, scholarships, SATs and financial aid. It also has information pamphlets and books on careers, O’Malley said. They have two computers set up to help parents find additional information online.