Mar. 1—Tuesday morning, 11th-grader Cheyenne Reese was unsure of her post-high school graduation plans. But after visiting the Dalton Convention Center and participating in the annual High School High Tech (HSHT) College and Career Fair that afternoon, she said her options became clearer.
“The fair has been really interesting because it’s been hard for me to choose what I want to do,” Reese said. “Coming here today actually helped me out a lot. I found a lot of stuff that I wasn’t really interested in before, but I’m interested in now.”
The fair is part of the larger Whitfield County HSHT program, which involves a partnership between the Georgia Committee on Employment of People with Disabilities Inc., the Georgia Vocational Rehabilitation Agency and Whitfield County Schools. The statewide program’s main focus is to “assist students with disabilities in making good decisions about a vocational goal and to help them transition from high school into either the workforce or postsecondary education, and then work,” said Charlotte Young, a program manager for HSHT.
Close to 400 students — double the number from last year — traveled from high schools in Whitfield, Walker, Fannin, Gilmer, Catoosa, Gordon, Pickens, Union, Floyd and Bartow counties to meet with 40 businesses and postsecondary colleges about future employment or enrollment opportunities.
“I spoke with Dalton State College and Kennesaw State University,” Reese said. “I also looked at the (Dalton Institute of) Cosmetology. I didn’t really know a lot of information about cosmetology, but going to their table actually helped me become interested.”
Reese said she has always liked art and graphic design, and speaking with multiple universities and colleges at the fair helped her to know “that I have options.”
Preparing for the future
A major goal for the event each year is to provide high school students with “opportunities to learn about jobs in their community,” said Young. “And to learn about the qualities that make up great employees that employers want to hire.”
Held in February or March of each year, the fair “helps students who are seniors prepare” for the future, Young said.
“At this time of year, seniors are really beginning to make some decisions about their vocational path,” she said. “This just gives them another opportunity to hone in on different things in their community, and when they graduate in May, hopefully they have a plan.”
Bob Pipkin, a program manager for HSHT, asked students about future goals such as starting a family.
“You’re going to have to have a job to support that family,” Pipkin said. “This allows you to go out and find that job today.”
Sara Merideth, a sophomore from Fannin County, said she went into the event with the aspirations of becoming a registered nurse or a photographer after high school.
“I’m studying healthcare right now, so any colleges here that have healthcare programs, I’m interested,” she said before walking toward a table for Georgia Northwestern Technical College (GNTC).
Jason Gamel, the director of recruitment for GNTC, said the fair is a “great opportunity to partner with students.”
“And for showcasing opportunities that are available for them at GNTC,” Gamel said. “We have a variety of programs when they graduate from high school that we sort of break down into four areas — business, healthcare, industrial and public service. For us, we just want to be a resource for them.”
Connecting with students
Vendors set up inside the convention center included representatives from postsecondary schools ranging from Dalton State College to the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, as well as representatives from Engineered Floors, Mohawk Industries, the Elite Linemen Training Institute, the U.S. Army and U.S. Marine Corps, Lodge Cast Iron and Dalton Utilities, among others.
Joshua Ewing, the business agent for the United Association of Plumbers & Steamfitters’ Local Union 43, said community outreach is “key” for the trade sector.
“You want to capture these kids at the right time in order to get them into a program, certainly one like ours, where it’s paid for and we’re teaching hands-on things that they will carry throughout their lives,” Ewing said. “We try to focus on high school kids, let them know they have other options. There’s nothing wrong with going to college. It’s fun, but it’s expensive. We’re just another avenue for kids that want to work with their hands and another option for a five-year program that they can get out and make $100,000 a year with just a little bit of hard work. We want them to know that if you really apply yourself, you can do anything.”
MFG Chemical also had a table set up for students, where they learned about chemical reactions and water pressure from chemists and engineers.
“This is an incredible opportunity to be able to connect with these students, and a lot of them that are graduating and considering what careers to go into, a company like MFG might not be known to a lot of students,” said George Graham, MFG Chemical’s vice president of operations. “There are small companies with really exceptional job opportunities. A lot of students have had chemistry in high school and it might not be easy to envision what you could do with that. Three plants in Dalton that create products that make automotive paints glossy and shiny. Another plant makes chemicals that clean water, so it might be used by the city of Dalton for water treatment or in large industrial facilities. Another plant, we make a lot of products that would be the base for paints and coatings.
“We want these students to know the kind of jobs we have available and the opportunities that they could have. We’ve got everything from chemical operators to full-fledged synthesis chemists, quality assurance chemists, customer care, accounting, finance, logistics and engineering. We’re really trying to help these students understand the breadth of opportunities we can offer.”
A ‘privilege’
Haley Durphee, a junior at LaFayette High School, said it was “really exciting” to visit each table and meet with people from each business and college.
“It’s such a privilege,” Durphee said. “I love coming to these type things. You get to hang out with people and learn about what they do.”
Durphee said she wants to become a cosmetologist.
“But I also want to go major in business because I want to be a cosmetologist on weekends and open a bakery during the week,” she said. “I am going to have to check out the (Dalton Institute of) Cosmetology table.”
One thing about the HSHT College and Career Fair that Mohawk’s Senior Program Manager for Workforce Development Laura Wood appreciates is face-to-face interaction, something that seems to be moving away with each generation, she said.
“I’ve always been a big advocate for interpersonal communication and being able to do events like this with students, it’s a great opportunity for them to be face-to-face,” Wood said. “We’re in such a highly-digitalized world and when you can actually meet with students face-to-face and talk to them about career opportunities, it’s really great. When they can come in and you can really get to know them and hear their stories, I think that it’s something that we need to continue doing in-person and that’s what I appreciate about events like this.”
Jordan Wells, the high school special education coordinator for Whitfield County Schools, said students at the fair have “endless” opportunities available to them.
“Looking back at my schooling, I wish I had something like this,” Wells said. “This is good for our students because it gets them thinking about what all is offered in this area and it also helps the community because it gets the community’s voice out about what Dalton and Whitfield County can offer while also seeing what the next workforce group coming in might be.”
Wells said the partnership with HSHT and the Georgia Vocational Rehabilitation Agency has been “monumental in helping these students see that there’s so much out there.”
“We’ve been able to experience firsthand students who were unsure of what they wanted to do find the direction that they were interested in, be able to graduate, get certified in that area and make really great money coming right out of high school,” he said. “It’s been great to see.”
Young said the event is “a lot of bang for your buck” when it comes to showcasing opportunities to students.
“We get great feedback from the teachers in the school systems who feel like this is a wonderful opportunity for students to come to one place and have exposure to all of these employers and postsecondary institutions in one spot,” Young said. “This, along with the industry and college tours that High School High Tech give students throughout the year, is very rewarding to be a part of for not just us, but the employers that take part each year.”
While this year’s event had the largest number of students and vendors to date, Young said there is always room for more.
“My hope is that more and more employers will continue to contact us and say ‘We want to be a part of this,'” she said. “We’d love to see more because these are students who can be great employees.”
For more information on participating in HSHT events, employers and postsecondary institution representatives are encouraged to contact Pipkin at [email protected].
Amanda Smith is a dedicated U.S. correspondent with a passion for uncovering the stories that shape the nation. With a background in political science, she provides in-depth analysis and insightful commentary on domestic affairs, ensuring readers are well-informed about the latest developments across the United States.
