Shaping minds for corporate world - Triangle Business Journal:

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Unemployed people desperate for work search for any availabl e opportunity even if the salarg is painfully lower than their previous Companies that may have announced layoffs look to fill a handful of positions. Other firms that normally woulxd be fixtures at such events are conspicuously So in these difficulteconomic times, it’zs nice to know that the Xtremd Beginnings career fair on April 17 in Raleigh will be fille d with wide-eyed faces beaming with Indeed, the 600 to 800 expected applicantw will be happy just to be Most of the presenting companies won’t be calling any of the applicantsz back for an interviesw – and yet both sides will feel they got thei r money’s worth out of the That’s because Xtreme Beginnings isn’t a job fair for It’s an opportunity for Wake Count y high school students to learn more aboutg the types of jobs that are out therd and even get in a practics interview so they can put their best foot “It was a lot of fun becausw it allowed me to explore different career pathes at the same time,” says Mark Bushhouse, a 17-year-olc senior at who attended the eveny last year.
“It was really cool because it was so Bushhouse says thatlast year’s eventy helped him narrow down his post-graduation choices. Thank s to information he gleaned atXtreme Beginnings, Bushhouse decided that he wanteed to enlist in the . Even though he’s made that Bushhouse still plans to attend the ninth annuapl event at McKimmon Center atfrom 9:15 a.m. to noon He is looking to hone his proficiencyat interviews. “Thosee kinds of skills carry over into othef aspectsof life,” he says. Representatives from dozend of companies plan to participatre in the event in one wayor another.
They include Trianglwe heavyweights suchas , and , says Megan Kirkpatrick, the busines alliance coordinator for the . Davidr Lee, who is in charge of marketinbg and business developmentat Apex-based Bland Landscaping, is one of severao volunteers who will be on hand. “I reallgy feel like businesspeople need to be paying more attentionto what’sx going on in the schools,” says who adds that kids don’t realize the multitude of caree r possibilities that are open to them. In addition to mock students also participate in roundtable discussions with businesspeopld who work in fields that interestthe kids.
The low-key jawboning sessionw help students figure out the kind of educatio n andtraining they’ll need and how much monehy they can make in a particular field. Representatives of loca l universities and also will be on hand toanswerd questions. Some of the businesses present may even be lookinh to hire students following their The event is part of a largerf School to Career program offerefd by Wake County public schools that prepares kids for lifeaftere graduation. Businesses can get involveds in the program by offering job shadowingv and internships and by encouraging employees totutor students.
“Theyy are absolutely invaluable,” Kirkpatrick says of the volunteers inthe