The fair will be held on March 10 from 5 to 7 p.m. at AHS, which is located at 4610 S. Madison Ave.
In previous years, the College and Career Fair was only open for the local high school students.
Jason Neal, director at D26, said that Ivy Tech was also interested in doing a career fair, hence sparking their collaboration for this event.
Additionally, the fair will be open to middle school students this year.
“The sooner that they start thinking about what they want to do or a career path they might like, that helps them to guide their decision,” Neal said.
He noted that the programs at D26 are a year long commitment, so learning more about career paths in middle school will help students choose a career path they will enjoy.
“If they think that they want to be in construction and then a month in, they decide they don’t like construction, they got to stick it out,” he said. “I want to try to get a little bit more exposure to them earlier.”
The College and Career fair will feature representatives from many institutes of post-secondary education including Anderson University, Ball State University, Summit Salon Academy and Purdue Polytechnic.
There will also be an abundance of employers present looking to recruit students. Some employers that will be present include Community Hospital Network, Ascension St. Vincent, Ed Martin Automotive Group, Lowes and Fredericks Construction.
Representatives from each of the branches of the U.S. Armed Forces will also be present at the fair.
Neal encourages any interested parties to attend the fair, as it provides a good networking opportunity.
“It gives our local employers an opportunity to interact with students and it gives students an opportunity to interact with local employers and post-secondary opportunities.”
This article appeared in The Herald Bulletin on March 3, 2022.