Forest Grove Eighth-Graders Explore Marine Careers at Fort Pierce Expo

Eighth graders at Forest Grove Middle School got a firsthand look at careers on the water last week when the Chart Your Course Marine & Maritime Career Expo brought industry professionals and hands-on demonstrations to the Fort Pierce campus.

The Fort Pierce Yacht Club Foundation hosted the event in partnership with St. Lucie Public Schools' Career & Technical Education department, giving students a structured window into the marine and maritime industries — fields with a strong and growing presence along the Treasure Coast.

Students rotated through demonstrations and heard directly from working professionals about the skills, training, and education required to break into those fields. Forest Grove eighth graders showed genuine enthusiasm as they discovered career paths that had previously been off their radar, officials said.

The expo reflects a broader push within St. Lucie Public Schools to connect middle schoolers with career exploration before they enter high school and begin selecting coursework that shapes their professional futures. Introducing these pathways at the eighth grade level gives students time to pursue relevant electives, dual-enrollment options, or Career & Technical Education programs once they reach high school.

The marine and maritime sector is a natural fit for a district that sits at the edge of the Indian River Lagoon and the Atlantic. From marine mechanics and naval architecture to harbor management and commercial diving, the industry offers a wide range of entry points for students with varying academic and hands-on learning styles. Connecting young people to those opportunities locally underscores the district's effort to build workforce pipelines that keep Treasure Coast talent on the Treasure Coast.

The partnership between the Fort Pierce Yacht Club Foundation and the district's CTE department signals the kind of public-private collaboration that education advocates have long pushed for — bringing real-world expertise into schools rather than leaving students to discover these fields on their own.

Families of Forest Grove students interested in marine and maritime career pathways can contact the school's guidance counselors or the St. Lucie Public Schools Career & Technical Education department for information on related high school programs.

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