A short day’s work

Danette Goulet

NEWPORT BEACH -- High school juniors flooded the marketplace Thursday,

but their debut was a bit too short-lived.

After six months of planning, the Newport Harbor Chamber of Commerce

launched a mentor program Thursday for 40 students at Corona del Mar and

Newport Harbor high schools.

Participants lauded the program, but there was one complaint -- it was

not long enough.

“By far, not enough time,” said Joseph Spiegel, who had two students

shadow him for the morning at J & S Automotive. “We got a car up on the

lift -- we were going to do a four-wheel brake job. We got one wheel

done.”

Nearly every student and mentor echoed the complaint.

It began at 8 a.m. with an introductory breakfast at the Radisson

Hotel, and it ended four hours later with a luncheon at the

Bahia-Corinthian Yacht Club.

Bookended by the meals was the students’ opportunities for a glimpse

inside the profession of their choice.

Students went on tours, visited with clients, went to court, went on a

police ride-along, and several wrote community commentaries for the Daily

Pilot.

“We visited some clients,” said Brittany Rosenblatt, 17, who spent the

morning with Peggy Fort, president of California Marketing Concept of

Newport Beach. Fort “explained what advertising and marketing really

was.”

After shuffling around Newport Beach visiting advertising clients,

including Starbucks, and doing a sales pitch at Bloomindale’s, Brittany

said the business was nothing like she thought it would be.

“I thought it was all drawing logos for companies,” she said.

While the various academies at Newport Harbor have offered yearlong

mentoring programs to students for years, the experience is new for

students at Corona del Mar High.