MONTICELLO, NY — More than 40 local businesses, nonprofit organizations, colleges and government agencies joined Robert J. Kaiser Middle School (RJK) and Monticello High School (MHS) students for an afternoon of exploring post-graduation possibilities at MHS’s annual career fair.  

Participants ranged from colleges offering advanced degrees to entrepreneurs who launched successful businesses without post-secondary education, from representatives from the U.S. military to civil service agencies, and everything in between.  

The RJK and MHS counselors who organized the event created a list of groups to participate, organized by MHS’s educational pathways so that students who are confident in their post-secondary plans could easily identify relevant groups that align with their future plans. 

For students who are still exploring options, the counseling team also created a bingo card. The card listed attributes such as “includes creativity and innovation,” “has flexibility or nontraditional hours,” or “relates to environmental sustainability work,” and challenged students to match attributes with participating groups, sparking many conversations between students and vendors about opportunities and pathways, the school said. Students could exchange a completed card for a chance to win an array of donated raffle prizes.   

By the end of the event, “all students left with a new sense of possibility and direction for what awaits on the horizon, thanks to our innovative counseling team and the many local organizations who lent their time, expertise and experiences to create another successful career fair at Monticello High School,” the school said.

The school thanked the participating people and groups: New Hope, a physical therapist with G&D Therapy Services, a director from the Department of Juvenile Justice, a barber, Lasell University, Gap Inc., the YMCA, Hospice of Orange & Sullivan Counties, the New York State Police, Sullivan County Human Resources, the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision, Callanan Industries, Forestburgh Playhouse and Forestburgh Tavern, Sullivan County Probation, the New York State Unified Court System—3rd Judicial District, the Arc Greater Hudson Valley, Sullivan County Bureau of Fire/911, Sullivan 180, SUNY Orange Plus, Adult Career Continuing Education Services Vocational Rehabilitation (ACCES-VR), Optum Health, Sullivan BOCES CTE, Bethel Woods Center for the Arts, Dominican University New York, Sullivan County Public Health, the Center for Workforce Development, Catskill Veterinary Services, the Sullivan County SPCA, Mercy University, SUNY Cobleskill Ag & Tech, Hartwick College, SUNY Sullivan, the Sullivan County District Attorney, Monticello School District’s Human Resources department, the Army, the Marines, Sullivan County Cadets, the National Guard, Scotchtown Tech, Jeff Bank, the Monticello High School IT department, the Center for Discovery and the Hurleyville Performing Arts Center—and another “thank you” to the local businesses who donated raffle prizes: Urban Air, the Halal Hen, Serenity Touch Unisex Salon, Colosseo, Salt and Pepper, Monticello Greenhouses, De Filippis, the Museum at Bethel Woods and the Monticello Bagel Bakery.