ASHVILLE — For many juniors and seniors, deciding what to do after high school can be a daunting task.
The Hewes Educational Center sought to offer some guidance by holding its College & Career Fair, lining its A Building halls with nearly 50 businesses, colleges, and organizations where students were able to learn about different career opportunities.
“Many kids think they need to go right into postsecondary education when they can go right into the career field,” said Aaron Taylor, Hewes Educational Center counselor. “A lot of times, those career fields will pay for some postsecondary education. It doesn’t always have to be a stepped process.”
Conrad Kochi, a junior in the Construction Technology program at Hewes, said he was impressed with the range of industries represented at the event. Among them, he pointed out, were several career options at the local hospital as well as patient care, law enforcement, and the military.
“There’s a little bit of everything here, which is really nice,” said Kochi, who is looking to become an allied trade specialist in the U.S. Army.
The College & Career Fair allowed a host of local business representatives to highlight their job offerings to students.
Kevin Lindvay, maintenance manager at Casella Waste Systems, said it was important to note that not everyone is college-bound upon graduating high school. “Having career-based opportunities for students is incredibly important, and I think it’s also important to have people in the skills trades come out and explain that to kids,” Lindvay said.
Casella’s commitment to Career & Technical Education and Erie 2-Chautauqua-Cattaraugus BOCES has been readily apparent. In the last couple of years, the company has provided thousands of dollars in scholarships to students looking to further their education in the skilled trades.
“These students are the future of these trades,” Lindvay said. “It’s very important that we continue to promote these kids with the opportunity to move on.”
Two recent E2CCB graduates from Hewes also attended the College & Career Fair.
Brianna Loomis, currently working for the state Department of Transportation, and Will Homan, working at Stuart Tool & Die, both promoted their employer and highlighted the opportunities CTE students have upon graduation.
“I try to tell them there’s a wide range of jobs that you can do when you’re considering something like this,” said Loomis, who graduated from the Conservation/Natural Resources Management program at Hewes. “For me, getting a CDL (commercial driver license) was a huge thing.”
“I like to tell them how I ended up working here (at Stuart) and sort of what we do,” Homan said of his interaction with students. “There’s a big need for tool and die makers and not many people are getting into it.”
Business and organization participants of this year’s fall College & Career Fair included Cassadaga Jobs Corp, The Resource Center, New York State Forest Rangers, UPMC, New York State Department of Transportation, U.S. Army, state Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation, Air National Guard, Lutheran, Living Legends Health, Chautauqua County Sheriff’s Office, Athenaeum Hotel, Jamestown Police Department, U.S. Marines Corps, Casella Waste Systems, Stuart Tool & Die Inc., Jamestown Fire Department, New York State Police, U.S. Coast Guard, Goodwill, JMI, Career Connection, Peek’n Peak Resort, Shults, Land Pro Equipment, and Milton CAT.
College participants included Alfred State College, University of Northwestern Ohio, Ohio Technical College, SUNY Canton, Trocaire College, Universal Technical Institute, SUNY Fredonia, Rosedale Technical College, and SUNY Morrisville.
Later in the day, Hewes hosted its annual open house. Families were able to meet with CTE instructors and tour each of the programs.
For more information on Career and Technical Education programs at Erie 2-Chautauqua-Cattaraugus BOCES, visit e2ccb.org.
