Carlson, a global leader in hotel, restaurant, business and leisure travel, and marketing services, is participating in Job Shadow Day for the eighth consecutive year.

Job Shadowing is a national, year-long effort designed to enrich students' lives by acquainting them with the work world through on-the-job experiences and a curriculum that ties academics to the workplace. The experience helps young people understand how their academic achievements correlate with success in the workplace.

On Friday, Feb. 23, Carlson will host students from Washburn High School and Maple Grove High School. Students interested in business, marketing, hospitality and tourism will meet at the Carlson headquarters in Minnetonka. They will spend the day learning about careers in these fields, and will attend workshops on career success, interviewing tips and diversity.

"Job Shadowing provides students with a chance to experience first hand what they've been learning in the classroom," said Carmen Baker, vice president of diversity, Carlson. "The exposure to executives in their fields of interest helps inspire and prepare them to succeed in a global economy."

In addition to hosting the event in Minnesota, Carlson provided students with shadowing opportunities at numerous hotel properties around the country. Participating hotel brands included Radisson Hotels & Resorts®, Park Plaza® Hotels & Resorts and Country Inns and Suites By Carlson℠.

The Carlson Hospitality Worldwide Reservation Center in Omaha will host students from Benson High School on March 5. Participants will take part in a day-long schedule, including a tour of the facility; career workshops on top job candidates, etiquette, interview techniques, and educational needs; and job-shadowing opportunities in hotel voice reservations, cruise line reservations and customer service.

Carlson Restaurants Worldwide kicked off Job Shadow Day on Feb. 2, with 620 students participating at 56 T.G.I. Friday's® and Pick Up Stix® restaurants. Students shadowed team members as they went through a normal day on the job, and learned about everything from food preparation to dishwashing.

National Job Shadowing is a coordinated effort of Junior Achievement Worldwide, America's Promise - The Alliance for Youth, the U.S. Department of Education and the U.S. Department of Labor. More than one million students and 100,000 businesses will participate in Job Shadowing 2007. (See www.jobshadow.org.)