A local student takes part in a vet session during the inaugural MoCo Career Expo held May 4 at the Morrow County Fairgrounds.
Courtesy photo
MOUNT GILEAD — Nearly 400 ninth grade students attended the first MoCo Career Expo on Thursday, May 4, at the Morrow County Fairgrounds and the Mount Gilead EMS Station.
The goal of the expo was to give youth experiences that will help them decide whether certain career options may or may not be a good fit for them in the future. The expo was designed to give Morrow County youth the opportunity to learn more about six of the 18 careers featured within the industries of agriculture, health care, and manufacturing.
At each station, students were given the opportunity to complete a task that usually occurs within the career field. For example, when learning about being a veterinarian, they were asked to take the vital signs of a goat, or when learning about caring for a patient in cardiac arrest, students were taught to use an AED.
Evaluation surveys were conducted and 77% of students surveyed agreed they learned about careers they didn’t know about before the career expo. In addition, 95% of students attending the healthcare sessions agreed they increased their knowledge of healthcare careers, and 80% of agriculture and manufacturing session attendees agreed they increased their understanding of agriculture and manufacturing careers.
The MoCo Career Expo was spearheaded by the Mid-Ohio Educational Service Center Business Advisory Council’s Morrow County Action Team. The Morrow County Action Team is made up of over 15 community partners. It is led by Mid-Ohio Educational Service Center Director of Special Projects Amy Wood, Morrow County Development Coordinator Angela Powell, and OSU Extension 4-H educator Amanda Staley.
The expo was held during Ohio’s In-Demand Jobs Week. Special thanks are extended to the event’s lunch sponsors — E.D.S The Sauce Guys, Mid-Ohio Educational Service Center and OSU Extension-Morrow County.
Submitted by Angela Powell and Amanda Staley.
