Opportunities grow for Hillyard students

By Marcus Clem

Students from around the region got a glimpse at their future careers in technology on Thursday.

The 2024 Hillyard Tech Center Career Fair is as much about finding a path in life as it is finding a job, because the students who earn a certification from the center are in especially high demand. This has only become more the case since the center’s expansion broke ground last year, with 22,000 square feet to be added at a cost of about $55 million. The center has also steadily added new programs, such as a certification in the study of early childhood development.

“It really opened up like, a lot of point of views from my friends and I, because we were able to like realize that there was more than just Hillyard’s out there, that sort of deal,” said Rayven Moore, an East Buchanan High School student. “So, we could go to college for something more.”

On Thursday, more than 45 firms were present to try to catch the attention of students who are often ready to get to work as apprentices immediately after they finish high school. The industries invited have operations in many fields, such as precision machining, computer-aided drafting, automotive service, diesel technology and welding.

“It makes getting started in these fields much easier,” said Devin West, a Mid-Buchanan High School student. “A student who didn’t go through here would have to do all of high school and then have to choose what field they wanted to go, find some sort of program that doesn’t require past experience. Whereas this, they build that past experience, so that the people who are looking for ready-to-work apprentices can come find us here.”

The Hillyard Tech Center has about 500 students enrolled from high schools throughout Northwest Missouri. Students as usual showed up in a morning session and then an afternoon session to participate in the career fair before returning to their sending high school.