[KHTS] – Bowman High School students took a break from their everyday studies Friday to hear some outside experts discuss their postsecondary options.

More than 50 students from Bowman attended the Roadtrip Nation event, held at the Child and Family Center and sponsored by AT&T Aspire.

Speakers including AT&T Director of Public Affairs, Ryan Minniear and Founder of The Gentle Barn, Ellie Laks attended the event and shared their stories.

“It’s really great for the kids. Bowman High has been doing this for a couple years now and it gets the kids excited,” said Jenny Pham, one of the Roadtrip Nation officials. “It gives them their own experience to get the Roadtrip Nation Experience and interview their local leaders.”

Choosing Careers

The event goes along with an assignment, the Roadtrip Nation Experience, that students have to complete for school, Benavides said. The students have an assignment to interview a professional in a career field that they are interested in.

“One of the things, personally, with my own experience I didn’t know what options there were, what my interests were, or how to feel empowered or know the steps to take to feel empowered,” said Rick d’Elia, one of the Roadtrip Nation officials. “It’s cool to be at a place that really helps students find their way.”

Roadtrip Nation is an organization where a group of four strangers come together and travel across the nation in an RV to talk to students about how they can turn their interests into a potential career.

“I’m a writer and I wanted to do something that could work with my schedule and I could work with their schedule,” said Griselda Benavides, one of the Roadtrip Nation officials. “I thought what better to work with a company that inspires you to pursue your dreams since I’m trying to achieve mine.”

How Roadtrip Nation Works

The Roadtrip Nation group comes together and shows videos about careers, tells their backstory, connects students to a working professional in the career field of their choice and they give the students a tour of the Roadtrip Nation RV at the end of the event, Benavides said.

“Even last night, we were in a Walmart and someone came up to us and said ‘Oh, you’re with Roadtrip Nation. You came to my school. You guys are so cool’,” sid Matt McGingley, one of the Roadtrip Nation officials. “It’s cool that the community and the kids get to go on the ride with us and enjoy what we do.”

Santa Clarita is the first stop for the group, who met two weeks ago, Benavides said. From there, the group will go to San Francisco, Chicago, Cincinnati, Kentucky, Florida, Georgia and Texas.

AT&T Aspire has contributed $1.5 million to Roadtrip Nation this year, enabling the organization to engage more than 15,000 students during the 2014-2015 school year.