On May 13, 2019, NEOnet and the Summit
Educational Service Center (ESC) collaborated to host their first-ever Career
Engagement Expo for high school juniors. Six school districts participated in
the Expo, including Copley-Fairlawn City Schools, Kent City Schools, Manchester
Local Schools, Nordonia Hills City Schools, Norton City Schools and Springfield
Local Schools.Students traveled to both the
Summit ESC and NEOnet locations in Cuyahoga Falls where they had the
opportunity to interact with different exhibitors from various career fields.
Over twenty exhibitors participated,
sharing their perspective on what it means to pursue a career in their particular
area of expertise. They also shared available opportunities for students within
their organizations, including internships, volunteer work and paid positions.
"I visited a lot of places at the Career Engagement Expo, and they all asked about what we wanted to do when we got out of high school,” said Calvin Jones from Norton High School. “I honestly didn’t have a definitive answer for that, but the exhibitor’s advice helped me figure out what kind of career I would learn towards. The Expo offered a lot of guidance, and that’s why I chose to come. It was definitely beneficial.”
Each student in attendance had the
opportunity to rotate through the exhibits, interacting with exhibitors, asking
questions and seeing which careers sparked their interest.
Exhibitors that participated in the Career Engagement Expo included: Acme Fresh Market; Akron Zoo; Arhaus, LLC; Bridgestone Americas, Inc.; ConxusNEO; DriveMind Group; Giant Eagle-Market District; Kent State University - Geauga and Regional Academic Center; Main Street Gourmet; Mustard Seed Market and Café; NEOnet; Nordonia City School District; OhioMeansJobs; Stark State College; Step2 Company, LLC; Summit County Community Partnership; the Summit ESC and Walsh University.
The day also featured a session
conducted by Michelle Collins from ConxusNEO and Ralph Sinistro with OhioMeansJobs
on in-demand jobs in the region. Collins and Sinistro reviewed career
counseling resources that help students build resumes, searching through
available job postings, finding workforce programs to assist in skills training
and exploring tools that can assist in funding further education in job fields.
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“Both NEOnet and the Summit ESC
are dedicated partners in helping our districts best serve their students,”
said Matt Gdovin, Executive Director at NEOnet. “The Career Engagement Expo was
a fun collaboration that served as a great learning experience for both the
school districts and exhibitors that participated. We can’t thank everyone
enough that helped create this opportunity.”
