Community job fair promotes job pathways, opportunities in Rowan
Published 12:00 am Sunday, April 9, 2023
More than 200 people attended the Aspire and Hire Career Expo at West End Plaza. Submitted photo
Officials gather for the Aspire and Hire Career Expo at West End Plaza. Submitted photo
The Aspire and Hire Career Expo included resume writing assistance and job skill preparation. Submitted photo
The Aspire and Hire Career Expo was the first of two planned for this year. Submitted photo
The Aspire and Hire Career Expo included resume writing assistance and job skill preparation. Submitted photo
The Aspire and Hire Career Expo at West End Plaza. Submitted photo
SALISBURY — Rowan County held its first community job fair of the year and had more than 200 high school juniors and seniors take part, as well as 115 members of the public.
The Aspire and Hire Career Expo at West End Plaza was a two-part event with Rowan-Salisbury Schools students attending in the morning and members of the public seeking employment or career changes in the afternoon. Roughly 50 of Rowan’s top employers attended the event sponsored by Rowan Partners for Education through a grant from Novant Health. The job fairs are a program of the Rowan Chamber’s Workforce Development Alliance.
The NCWorks mobile unit was available for students to take part in resume writing and job skill preparation.
“We really enjoyed seeing all our students at the Aspire and Hire Career Expo,” said Kresen Whitmarsh, Work Based Learning Coordinator for RSS’s CTE Program, in a news release. “We had 200 students come out to visit our local employers. It was a great turnout. Students were so excited to be able to make that connection, and we are happy that we could facilitate it for them.”
“This event was great for our kids because they were able to see that they don’t have to leave Rowan County for great paying jobs,” said Stacey White, executive director of RSS’s CTE Program. “They can go do internships, to school, or work, but when they go to school, they can come back here and work.”
“The last two hours of the event were exceptional with over 115 community participants,” said Joseph Dismuke, Career Center Leader/Manager with NCWorks Career Center-Rowan. “That was a great amount of people in a short period of time. This shows the desire of the community to work and stay in Rowan. You should too.”
“Thank you to everyone who came out to our spring job fair,” said Elaine Spalding, President of the Rowan Chamber. “We had over 50 employers and hundreds of students and lots of adult job seekers. We appreciate all our employers that participated. Keep employing all our Rowan grown folks.”
“Words cannot begin to describe how gratifying it feels to see this event come to fruition,” said Kendall Henderson, director of business services for the Rowan EDC. “Locking arms with Rowan-Salisbury Schools CTE, our community partners, and business leaders has been such a fulfilling experience. Many Rowan County residents came away from Monday’s event with either second interviews in place or pending job offers in hand. That was our goal. To not only connect existing industry employers with ambitious job seekers and aspiring students but to ensure folks from our community walked away from the career fair feeling empowered and inspired about their future in Rowan County.”
You can still visit the Work in Rowan job portal on the Rowan EDC’s website for a one-stop-shop way to search for jobs in the area.
Anyone considering relocating to Rowan County should visit www.RowanOriginal.com, the talent attraction hub for the county. On the site there is a form that will connect visitors to a concierge relocation guide who can answer questions and connect prospects to resources.
A community job fair focused on veterans and their families is being planned for Saturday, Nov. 4. Visit www.RowanChamber.com for more information.
