Central Iowa Times

More than 120 employers and over 450 job seekers and students came together to make connections on the Iowa Central Campus at the annual Spring Career Fair on March 1.

Many local employers looking to hire were on hand to speak with attendees about job opportunities, including the Fort Dodge Community School District, which is looking to recruit teachers, support staff and paraeducators for the 2023-2024 school year.

“We have several teaching positions,” said Brooke Naber, a human resources generalist for the school district. “Some third grade, preschool and special education positions and even for students who haven’t finished their teaching degrees we have many para positions that students can take advantage of for experience.”

Additional local employers included City of Fort Dodge, CJ BioAmerica, Community and Family Resources, Community Health Center, Decker Truckline, Force America, Fort Dodge Ford, Fort Dodge Fire Department, Jensen Builders, Marian Home, Nestle Purina, NEW Cooperative, Smitty’s Lawn and Landscape, Unity Point Trinity Regional Medical Center, Woodruff Construction and YOUR Inc. Headstart.

Other employers, such as the Police Department from St. Joseph, Missouri, traveled several hours to be in attendance at the career fair. Recruitment staff with the department said Iowa Central’s reputable Criminal Justice program drew them to Fort Dodge in hopes of finding quality applicants.

“We’ve done a lot of recruiting in Missouri and around St. Joe, but also branching out to surrounding states,” said Ethan Mills, a recruiter for the St. Joseph Police Department. “The hands-on program and training that your students get at Iowa Central is something we like to see, that really caught our eye to come here today.”  

Seasonal employers, including several summer camps, were also on hand seeking high school and college students to help fill vacancies on their summer staffs, something the camps said has been a challenge in recent years.

“We ae still looking for around 60 people to join us this summer,” representatives from the Mitigwa Scout Reservation near Woodward said.

Also in attendance at the Career Fair were: ABCM Corporation, Absolute Group, Ag Processing Inc (AGP), AgReliant Genetics-AgriGold-LG Seeds, agriCAREERS, Inc., Agriland Inc., American Packaging Corporation, Americans for Prosperity, Ankeny Community School District, Aventure Staffing, Barilla America, Inc., Basepoint Building Automations, Bethany Life, Boone County Hospital, Camp Fire Heart of Iowa, Cherokee Regional Medical Center, Children's Hospital & Medical Center, City of Mason City, Conservation Corps Minnesota & Iowa, Cooperative Farmers Elevator, Country Landscapes, Croell, Inc. Delkor Systems, Inc., Denison Drywall Contracting, Department of Homeland Security, Empirical Foods, EveryStep, Family Resource Center, Fareway Stores, Fifth District Department of Correction Services, Fruit of the Loom, Gold-Eagle Cooperative, Hagie Manufacturing Company, Housby, Interstates, Iowa Army National Guard Recruiting, Iowa Commission on Volunteer Service, Iowa Department of Corrections-Fort Dodge Correctional Facility, Iowa Department of Health and Human Services, Iowa Home Care, Iowa Select Farms, Iowa Workforce Development, Jet Company, Karl Chevrolet, Keystone Electrical Manufacturing, Koch Industries, Inc., Lake Okoboji United Methodist Camp and Retreat Center, Lakes Regional Healthcare, Landus, Liguria Foods, Marian Home, Mary Greeley Medical Center, McFarland Clinic, McMahan Industrial Services, Mediacom Communications Corporation, Mitigwa Scout Reservation, Musco Sports Lighting LLC, Mustang Disaster CleanUp, Nelson Electric Co. LC, Nittobo America, Northridge Village, OCI NV, Parks Marina, Pinnacle, POET, Power Engineering & Manufacturing, Ltd., Precision Pulley & Idler, Prestage Foods of Iowa, Pritchard Companies, Ranco Fertiservice, Inc., Ranko Equipment, Red Power Team, Rembrandt Foods, Rinker Materials, Riverside Technologies, Rueter & Zenor Co., Saint Joseph Police, Sanford Health, Scott Amusements, Seneca Companies, Inc., Senior Legacy Partners, Spencer Hospital, Stewart Memorial Community Hospital, Summit Agricultural Group, The Driller LLC, Titan Tire Corporation, U.S. Army Recruiting, United Bank of Iowa, United States Air Force, United States Postal Service, Universal Industries, Inc., Universal Pediatrics, USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service, VA Central Iowa Health Care System, Versova, Vetter Equipment, Warren Transport, Inc., Wells Blue Bunny, WesleyLife, Woodman Controls Company, and Work In Ames.

 The Spring Career Fair is one of two held on campus each year, with a Fall Career Fair held in October. 

Original source can be found here.