OAKS – Rows of tables and smiling faces greeted over 1,000 students from 23 schools at the Careers of Tomorrow Expo on October, 24. The expo was hosted by Montco Works, an organization that is in charge of the development of the workforce in Montgomery County, and this event is one of the many ways they expose students to the plethora of career pathways that they have access to. 

Coming together over their curiosity about career opportunities, students had the opportunity to talk to exhibitors ranging from tradesmen to medical professionals to help them understand the vast amount of opportunities that are available in the Southeast Region of Pennsylvania. 

 “From my perspective, my job is to make sure that our workforce development system is thriving, I know that many of the exhibitors here represent careers that are absolutely going to need workers in the next 10, 15, 20 years,” the executive director of Montco Works Jennifer Butler stated.

This was only the second time they were able to hold the expo in person since COVID-19, giving students a hands-on opportunity to experience the careers that they are interested in and the ability to talk face-to-face with people who are in those fields. 

“I think nothing can beat being able to actually talk to somebody in person, be able to sample some of the equipment that they use on the job, it’s one of the reasons why I do what I do,” Butler explained. 

Because of the diversity of the exhibitors, the Careers of Tomorrow Expo also helped to open students’ eyes to opportunities that they never knew existed. 

“I was interested in health care and I liked seeing all the different kinds of people contribute to [medicine] whether it be creating technology for doctors or being the actual provider,” North Penn High School junior Sarah Salem said. “This will help me in the future because it opened my mind to how many professions [that are] within the healthcare field”