Surely some of the students at Folly Quarter Middle School in Ellicott City have ridden an Eyre bus. Now they will be learning all that goes into getting one from departure to arrival.
The Glenelg-based tour and travel company has formed a partnership with the school that will teach students about its place in the tourism industry. The students will learn about planning a route and scheduling, and apply those aspects of the business to classroom subjects such as math and geography. Eyre will also teach students about such careers in the industry as finance, marketing and communication.
The partnership comes at a time when many Howard County businesses are formalizing long relationships with the school system to teach youngsters more about the county's business sector and much of what makes those businesses flourish. The partnership with Eyre was formalized at the Sheraton Columbia Town Center Hotel on Monday.
Howard officials said that Eyre has also agreed to sponsor some events at the school and judge academic competitions.
"We're always looking for businesses to explain to students what types of jobs and careers are available in their particular business," said Mary Schiller, manager of the Howard County schools' Partnerships Office. "We tend to gravitate toward things we know, and if students are not exposed to certain types of businesses, either through friends or family or television, they're not going to know about it."
The move comes as the school system formed a partnership with the Howard County Economic Development Authority (HCEDA) more than a week ago that school officials say will provide students "with a broad understanding of the varied economic landscape of Howard County."
"It's an investment in our most precious resource, our kids," said Linda Burger, senior vice president of small-business development at HCEDA's Center for Business and Technology Development. "We want to be involved with positive solutions here and make some positive things happen. This is one of the top school systems in the state, and it makes sense to us to do everything we can for the kids."
The HCEDA partnership will include such initiatives as The Howard County Farms and Agriculture Activity Book for elementary students as well as an opportunity for high school students to take part in HCEDA meetings and learn from client CEOs at the county's NeoTech Incubator, which offers resources and programs to technology companies.
Officials boast on the county's websites that Howard has more than 20 working farms yet was listed in USA Today in 2006 as being the second most technologically advanced community in the nation.
They've encouraged business leaders to showcase those offerings to school children, and Schiller said that the efforts have bolstered students' education. Students have learned about careers that require secondary education as well as some that lure graduates right out of high school.
She said that some middle school students have taken part in a recent program that allows them to spend a day on a farm to see many aspects of agriculture up close.
"Many of the students have never been on a farm," Schiller said. "They walk onto the farm and they get the usual sounds and smells, and you can see them thinking, 'What have I gotten myself into?' And by the time the day's over, they're fighting over who does the farm chores.
"I think there takes a variety of careers and jobs to make our economy work, and not all of them do require a college education but they are still very valuable, important aspects of our economy and for the vitality of our community," added Schiller. "For Eyre bus, if we didn't have drivers and mechanics and those types of positions, if everybody had to be in their own cars, it would make a big impact. We need those roles."
joseph.burris@baltsun.com