The profession's future is up to you: volunteer for CalCPA's high school outreach program.

• Position: High School Outreach - California Society of Certified Public Accountants

Remember when you wanted to be a firefighter? A baseball player? A teacher? What was it about those jobs that made them seem so attractive? The bright, shiny fire engine probably added to the mystique, but a lot of it had to do with familiarity. They were high-profile careers and it was clear to a 4-year-old what a firefighter did.

Well, it's time for you to make it clear to the next generation what you do.

Participate in CalCPA's student outreach program and share with high school students the career diversity, excitement and integrity that is the CPA profession.

CalCPA makes participating in our student outreach program easy by providing a bevy of resources for you to use at local schools. There's Quest magazine, CalCPA's complete source of information on CPA careers, education and licensing. Each outreach volunteer also receives a comprehensive outreach packet, filled with tips and tricks to use when visiting classrooms, as well as access to a PowerPoint presentation and video.

CalCPA outreach volunteer Steven Galet, a CPA with Thyssen Krupp Elevator in Commerce, suggests that the best way to keep high school students interested is to provide interactive situations and use role models and examples from the business world to which they can relate.

For instance, explain to students how as CPAs they could work for famous musicians or actors such as blink-182, Freddie Prinz Jr., Sarah Michelle Cellar, Shaggy or Destiny's Child.

During his classroom presentations at Covina High School, Galet showed the 15-minute "Takin' Care of Business" video, provided an overview of various CPA careers and led a Q&A. He also challenged advanced classes with interactive journal entries for a fast-food restaurant.

Another outreach volunteer, Daniel Morris, co-founder of the VeraSage Institute in San Jose adds, "When working with students, we have to walk the walk that what we do is fun, challenging, different and above all loved by us personally. If you talk about GAAP/GAAS and technical items--forget it. That work isn't exciting and fun."

To Morris, the program is a case of reaping what you sow. "We can't complain about low student enrollment or lack of qualified candidates if we aren't willing to do something about it," he says. "Helping to mold, guide and influence a young person in an important life decision is invaluable--meeting billable hour quotas just doesn't compare."

RELATED ARTICLE: How to Volunteer

If you would like to participate in CalCPA's...