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WVU-P hosts employers, prospective employees at job fair

J.C. Penney brought examples of proper interview clothing. Celinda Rogers, cashier supervisor, is hiring for multiple positions. (Photo by Candice Black)

PARKERSBURG — More than 100 businesses and organizations and 300 job seekers participated Friday in the third annual Mid-Ohio Valley Job Fair sponsored by West Virginia University at Parkersburg and Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va.

Participants took job applications and provided information to prospective employees.

Manchin was unable to attend this year’s fair, but sent a message that said the WVU-Parkersburg fair was the 48th he has hosted in West Virginia.

“While I am sad that I was unable to make it because of official Senate business, I know that my staff are there to make this year’s job fair successful. I am proud to have so many employers in attendance to connect hardworking West Virginians with job opportunities across the state,” he said. “Thank you to WVU-Parkersburg and all our partners for their efforts to improve our workforce and help people find a new career.”

Mara Boggs, state director of Manchin’s West Virginia leadership team, said 48 job fairs all over the state have taken place over the past two and a half years.

English professor Traci Dolan-Priestley helps direct participants and answer questions. She has been at West Virginia University at Parkersburg for two and a half years. (Photo by Candice Black)

“We partner with different organizations; this one Jennifer (Randolph) has the lead on (at) WVU-Parkersburg and we work together to put together a coalition of a chamber of commerce, other schools, local development agencies (and) workforce West Virginia and then we host these job fairs,” Boggs said.

Boggs said Randolph, director of career services at WVU-Parkersburg, “does a wonderful job putting this together and every year, we look forward to this one because it’s well organized.”

After registration, job seekers had multiple resources available to them, including resume stations and free headshot photographs. Stations were set up around the building to accept resumes that were scanned into a Google drive so all employers present would have access to them, Boggs said.

“Particularly in West Virginia, this works well. People like coming to job fairs,” Boggs said. “If they don’t get to talk to everybody, the employers still get to see (their resume).”

Randolph said that after the institution partnered with Manchin, the number of participating employers went from 50-70 to 125 this year.

Employers, totaling 125, were set up all over campus. (Photo by Candice Black)

“We love bringing the community onto our campus and if we can get employers here, we want them to see our campus,” Randolph said.

Around 100 participants were present within an hour, Randolph said. Students from Wood and surrounding counties attended.

“Some of them are actually ready to get in the workforce,” Randolph said.

A job and resource fair is how Boggs described the event. Not only are participants able to look into jobs, they are able to receive any needed services through the Department of Health and Human Resources and Workforce.

Candice Black can be reached at cblack@newsandsentinel.com.

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