Part-time jobs aren’t just for adults anymore: a select number of high school students have already begun clocking in to work after class, learning valuable skills and responsibility one shift at a time. According to the US Bureau of Labor, 22.5 percent of high school students participate in some form of employment. For senior Charlotte Kuchinad, a high school student working two jobs, managing her schedule requires a large amount of dedication, time management, and communication skills to maintain balance between work and school. Between refereeing youth soccer games and serving frozen yogurt in Lower Manhattan, Kuchinad has truly learned what it means to juggle responsibility. Although her days often start early and end late, she approaches each shift with professionalism and excitement.

“I’ve visited Kuchinad at the yogurt shop countless times over the years on the few days she works each week, and I always leave with a free, overflowing cup of fro-yo and a smile on my face from the exceptional service. Senior Anna Brandmeyer, a frequent Downtown Yogurt visitor, said. Fellow senior Dimitri Magdo-Krieger remarked, “Charlotte always gives the best service, and gives me extra Oreos each time.” He continued, “I think it’s a very energetic and welcoming community. I look forward to visiting Charlotte with my friends on Tuesday nights after school.” Kuchinad has transformed Downtown Yogurt into a hotspot where many of her school friends visit her for free yogurt and light-hearted conversation, sitting around the pink tables. 

Kuchinad was initially inspired to work in order to make some extra spending money.  “My friends and I go out to dinner a lot, and I feel better when I can pay for it myself,” Kuchinad said. “I also use my money to buy clothing and to keep up with the latest trends.” Apart from the financial side, Kuchinad started working as a referee on top of her frozen-yogurt job because it gave her a pleasant sense of nostalgia: “I’ve played at the fields I now ref at since I was five, and it gave me another chance to get involved in that community, just in a new way.” 

However, working a job is not purely beneficial, as it can come with stressful consequences. According to US News, working while enrolled in school is associated with adverse short-term outcomes, including a decrease in grades or the number of credits earned. For Kuchinad, sleep is an element that suffers during the months she works. “My friends and I usually like to hang out late on Friday nights, and on Saturdays, I have to wake up at six a.m. So I am usually exhausted on Saturdays. Kuchinad wants to make sure she’s not trading her social life for work, so she said that “I usually stay out late on Friday and just suffer the consequences of being tired on Saturday.” According to the American Psychological Association, 31 percent of employees have experienced similar “emotional exhaustion,” partly due to taxing tasks, long hours, or packed schedules. 

In terms of her workload, she studies for hours on Sundays rather than on school days. “Because I work so much on Saturday, first as a ref [and] then at Downtown Yogurt, I don’t have time to do school work.” This also extends to working school nights when Kuchinad only has one 30-minute break a shift. “Additionally, it can be challenging for me to study during my free periods at school because I would rather spend time with my friends and go out for lunch. I always make sure I get everything done, though, sometimes I just save it, and it gets stressful.” 

Although Kuchinad doesn’t plan on working in either industry in the future, she has learned skills that she will carry with her to her future career. “[My jobs] have taught me so much about social interaction and communication. My coworkers and I are always working on different tasks, so we have to be constantly talking to make sure things run smoothly.” Working at Downtown Yogurt has inspired Kuchinad to become more involved in her community, both in college and beyond. Although her working experience has many challenges, like “when a parent yelled at me for giving his son a red card,” or when “a homeless person broke into the store with a broom,” working has instilled a deep sense of community and drive within Kuchinad, assets she said she “wouldn’t trade for the world.”