PEORIA, Ill. – Eighth grade students across central Illinois are getting a feel for a wide variety of careers this week.
More than 60 schools and 4,000 students are participating in the 9th annual Career Spark at the Peoria Civic Center through Thursday. The event is put on by Junior Achievement of Central Illinois, in partnership with the Greater Peoria Economic Development Council.
The event features hands-on experiences in industries such as healthcare, agriculture, to public service, to help students explore different careers.
GPEDC CEO Chris Setti says it helps students who are starting to formulate what they want to do for a living.
“By having a hands-on experience, you really get to say ‘This is cool, this is something I didn’t even know I could do, I didn’t know this was a career.’ So that’s what this is really about,” Setti said.
Some of the hands-on activities include using surgical instruments to pull out pumpkin seeds, an airplane simulator, and radio disc jockeys.
Paxtyn Brewer of Farmington Central Junior High joined a classmate in helping “birth” a calf with the help of a veterinarian. It was one of the activities he did at Career Spark on Wednesday, but was most looking forward to the police officer exhibits.
“I put on a vest, a helmet, then I got to go back in one of the trucks and hold a bulletproof shield,” Brewer said.
Setti says the event features only central Illinois employers. He says that can help establish a pipeline of talent for the region, something employers are looking for.
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