650 high school students to attend job symposium

On Friday, some 650 Lawrence County students will have an opportunity to attend an event to help them find a career field after they graduate from high school.

The first-time event, called the Lawrence County Career Symposium, will be held Friday at Ohio University Southern in Ironton and is sponsored by the Lawrence County Business Advisory Committee, a group comprised of local businesses, the seven school boards in the county, Briggs Lawrence County Public Library and Ohio University Southern.

“The Business Advisory Committee wants students to have a good understanding about the variety and types of jobs that are available in our community,” said Jeff Saunders, superintendent of the Educational Service Center and chair of the committee. “The Symposium will provide interactive career stations, exposure to career resources and a firsthand conversation with hiring professionals on soft skills.”

The students attending the event are freshmen from Chesapeake, Dawson-Bryant, Fairland, Ironton City Schools, Ironton St. Joseph, Rock Hill, South Point and Symmes Valley.
OUS dean Nicole Pennington said that hosting more than 600 teens on the Ironton Campus to explore careers is critical in helping develop the county’s future workforce. “We appreciate the opportunity to showcase area employers and career options to young students, to show them the pathway to career and college,” she said.

The students will participate in sessions with Ohio Means Jobs and with the human resources staff from Our Lady of Bellefonte Hospital.

Additionally, career stations will be set up, which the students will visit, to explore various career fields in Lawrence County and the Tri-State area. These career stations include Drone Technology and Veterinary Technician programs from Mountwest Community and Technical College; Ohio Southern’s Electronic Media, Equine Studies, Nursing and Environmental Technologies programs; Collins Career Center Forensics program; and employers such as Ohio Highway Patrol, Lawrence County Emergency Management, Ironton Fire Department, Hecla Water and Ohio Department of Transportation.

Julie Walters, Student Services coordinator with the ESC, said the event would not be possible without the commitment of the school districts and guidance counselors.
“The symposium is an instrument for counselors and teachers to help foster students’ interest in future career options,” she said.

Ohio Southern’s Workforce Success initiative is one partner of many on the Career Symposium planning group.

“This first-ever Career Symposium is the capstone for the first year of the Lawrence County Business Advisory Committee,” said Sarah Diamond Burroway, director of External Relations and Workforce Success for Southern. “Ohio Southern supports efforts that spark inquiry in students and encourages them to pursue interests that will result in productive careers after high school.”

 

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