Lake County Gazette

Lake County’s big Jobapalooza Job Resource Fair is coming up on March 3. 

The fair is sponsored by the Job Center of Lake County and the College of Lake County Career and Job Placement Center.

“Jobapalooza is a fair for young adults that are 16 to 21 in the Lake County area where we provide opportunities for students to become employees,” Sylvia Johnson-Jones, executive director of Career Services at the College of Lake County, told the Lake County Gazette. “We have resource providers where they can learn information regarding the various services for youth out in Lake County, and also training providers where they can get training for their age group as well.”

Johnson-Jones said the aim of the fair is to get young adults employed in jobs that are part time, seasonal or perhaps full time.

“So the goal is to have these opportunities available, to bring in all employers in one location for our students to begin to search for opportunities for jobs that are either now available or will be available during the summertime when they will be out of school,” Johnson-Jones said.

More than 30 employers will provide job information on various employment opportunities. Young adults are encouraged to bring their resumes or create a personal business card to give to employers.

“It is a win-win for both," Johnson-Jones said. "So the employers get the opportunity to come out and recruit some of Lake County’s finest youth, and the youth get to (seize) the opportunity to come out and speak with employers, network with employers, and perhaps make a connection where they perhaps get an interview or a hire."

Jobapalooza has been held for more than two decades and is marketed toward high school juniors and seniors. This year, Johnson-Jones said the Job Center is expecting 81 employers, resource providers and training providers – more than in past years.

When the economy was down, jobseekers had a limited number of opportunities. But now that the economy has picked up, there has been a big shift.

“Now there is a diversity in choices here," Johnson-Jones said. "So we’ve seen an increase in folks that have signed up. They have been from the entertainment world, our local park districts, landscaping and food services. They are the industries that are attending this fair for our youth."

Jobapalooza will be held at the College of Lake County, Grayslake from 6-8 p.m.