European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - October 01, 1994, Darmstadt, Hesse                                On the family Robert scoff an employee of mall of America in Bloomington minn., takes classes at the mall s school. A teen s dream school Days at the mall by Karren Mills _ the associated press Hen hiram4 Bonet ducks out of class at noon and Heads for the mall of America in Bloomington minn., he s not skipping school to shop or ride the roller coaster at the seven acre amusement paric his trip is legit the 1 7-year-old is learning business skills from the experts those who run the nation s largest enclosed shopping mall and entertainment Complex. Jjo neti a student at Bloomington s Kennedy High school is enrolled in a course in entrepreneurship and business at the mall s new learning Center. They Are pursuing career interests _ and getting a flavor of what it s like said Jerry Cromer Poire a social studies teacher from St. Paul Central High school who teaches the Pilot course. We re not involved in flipping hamburgers Toto _ _ students spend mornings in regular classes at their Home schools then go to the mall for classes and internships with businesses monday through thursday afternoons. For Cromer Poire s students internships can be As varied As the 400 plus businesses in the mall. A student interested in sports Medicine works at a sports equipment store. A student considering a career in jewelry making works at a jewelry store. Others help manage restaurants sell clothes and Recycle. The Center which opened last Winter hoped to offer several courses to about 100 students from five districts. In addition it is conducting adult education courses to help mall _ employees who did not graduate from High school work toward equivalency degrees As Well As graduate level classes for those who have completed College. Eye class is to have have a real world partner. An environmental issues class will get help from Browning Ferris industries which collects and recycles the mall s garbage. An arts in the marketplace class will work with the Camp snoopy amusement Park in the Middle of the mall which offers plays and it musical performances along with its rides. The concept of taking business classes at the mall in t much different from taking other specialized classes at vocational technical schools or taking zoology classes at the zoo Cromer Poire said. This is an Opportunity to go in at management level. The idea of making decisions of getting involved in change is very important he said. That has captured the imagination of Bonet who is interning with operations a the people who run the Mal. _ _ i just wanted a Broad based View of what it takes to run the mall of America said Bohnet who plans to major in business in College. After that he says he May go into business Law. What areas of business i was t sure. That s Why i took this class.". Bonet has worked with the mall s tourism department Selling the mall to potential visitors the sponsorship department persuading businesses to sponsor events in return for advertising Public relations and events planning and sales. You re learn no because you want to learn not because someone s trying to Force it. In a regular classroom you focus so much on the work that you forget to learn he said. This class will look wonderful on a College  businesses using student interns also Are pleased. Tom Gotreau manager of Tony Roma s restaurant is training a student in restaurant operations and wants her to see All sides of the business including busing dishes hos Tessing and working in the Kitchen. If they re going to come work in these businesses they can t get just a one sided slant he said. She has a keen interest in what s going on. I wish All of my employees were like  Marcy Richeson manager of the Gap kids store is teaching an intern the tricks of the children s clothing business. She s learning about the product How to sell the product she s aware of the dollars we need to do what we _ need to do to beat our last year s dollars. She s learning what we re Al about Cromer Poire said students Arent distracted by other things at the mall. On classroom Days the students get a 10-minute break Halfway through the period Anco that seems to be enough. I be never lost anybody yet he said. The attendance rate is wonderful. The kids Are All motivated. They All try hard. I see kids talking More concretely about College  _ the new York times contributed to this report. You stress that children must be taught to respect the authority of their parents. Don t parents have an equal responsibility to show respect for their children. Parents cannot require their children to treat them with dignity if they will not do the same for them. Parents should be gentle with children s egos never belittling them or embarrassing them in front of their friends. That s Why children should not be laughed at unmercifully. Their Strong feelings and requests even if foolish should be Given an honest appraisal. They should feel that their parents really do care about  self esteem to the most fragile attribute in human nature it can be damaged by minor incidents and its reconstruction is often difficult to Engineer. A Parent who is sarcastic and biting in criticism of his or her children cannot expect to receive genuine respect in return. The offspring might fear the Parent enough to conceal their contempt but revenge will often erupt in late adolescence. Q my husband and i Are uncomfortable discussing sex with our children. Must we Force ourselves to talk about this subject despite the desirability of sex education being handled by parents we have to face the fact that Many families feel As you do. They Are admittedly unqualified and reluctant and their own sexual inhibitions make it extremely difficult for them to handle _ the task with poise and tact. For families that cannot teach their children the details of human reproduction there must be outside agencies that will assist them in this important function. I believe that churches Are in the Best position to provide that service since it is free to teach not Only the Anatomy and physiology of reproduction but also the morality and responsibility of sex. Unfortunately most churches Are also reluctant to accept the assignment leaving schools As the Only remaining source. Must i act like a teen Ager myself in dress language tastes and manners to s How my adolescent that i understand him no. Here is something disgusting about a 40-year-old adolescent  it was t necessary for you to crawl on the floor and throw temper tantrums to understand your 2-year-old likewise you can reveal an empathy and acceptance of the teen years without becoming a teeny bopper yourself. In fact the very reason for your adolescent s unique manner and style is to display an identity separate from yours. You la turn them off quickly by invading their territory leading them to conclude dad tries hard but i wish he d grow up besides your teen will still need an authority figure and you be got the Job or. James c. Dobson la president of focus on the family on organization dedicated to preserving the Home. Correspondence should be sent to him at focus on the family . Box 444. Colorado Springs Colo. 80903. Saturday october 1, the stars and stripes 19