With the end of the school year on the horizon, high school students are looking for summer or full-time work after graduation. Dr. Jennifer Price, principal at Grandview High School, set as one of her school’s goals to provide options for students to seek employment.

Her Caring for Kids partners quickly set to work to prepare students through all stages of gaining a job. During advisory, students were given information on preparing resumes and cover letters and dressing for a successful interview. Next, the community partners reached out to various organizations throughout Kansas City to either hold a mock interview and/or participate in the job fair. One of the partners, Morrill and Janes Bank and Trust, had 12 volunteers from their bank participating in the mock interviews. In all, about 30 professionals conducted interviews and students had the opportunity to interview with two different people. They also watched a panel interview presented by the National Guard.

On the day of the job fair, tables were set up inside the gym for juniors and seniors to visit prospective employers. “I loved it. They were so nice. They had so much information,” said Knailah Britton, a junior at Grandview High School. “It was amazing. I really loved it.”

The aim of the job fair is to get students talking with local employers while learning which jobs might be a good fit for them. “I’m thinking wow, if I don’t work at a fast food place, I’m not working until I’m 18,” said junior Brandon Butler. “But seeing all these other career options that I could do right now really opened up the world for me.”

Sixteen employers attended the job fair, including the Kansas City Zoo, Worlds of Fun, the U.S. National Guard, Grandview Parks and Recreation and more. Among the booths was Camp Fire Heartland, one of the high school’s Caring for Kids partners. Other community partners who assisted in finding information or professionals to assist in the interviews or job fair included First Baptist Church of Grandview, International House of Prayer KC, Treaty and Transfer Pricing, Morrill and Janes Bank and Trust, North America Savings Bank, and the Grandview Chamber.

The need for students at Grandview High School to have a job is growing. “Some of these kids are actually helping parents or they’re trying to fight homelessness for themselves,” said Porsche Seals, Caring for Kids partnership director in the Grandview C-4 School District.

The school plans to continue the job fair in the future, giving lowerclassmen something to look forward to in their junior and senior years.