Students and employers came together at the Opening Doors for Tomorrow Career Fair inside the Art Hauser Centre. (Derek Craddock/paNOW Staff)

By Derek Craddock

Opening doors for tomorrow

P.A. career fair moves to Art Hauser Centre for first time

Oct 12, 2023 | 6:00 AM

Each and every year it continues to grow, so much so that the annual career fair in Prince Albert needed a bigger venue.

Thankfully, the Art Hauser Centre was available to house the Opening Doors to the Tomorrow career and job fair.

Previous job fairs have been held in at the Prince Albert Exhibition Centre but organizers needed more space for the amount of students and employers expected on Oct. 11.

Before the event even started, organizers anticipated at least 3,500 high school students would attend. Patricia Bibby with the Saskatchewan Rivers Public School Division said they exceeded that number.

“We have all Grade 9 to 12 Students from the Saskatchewan Rivers Public School Division, Grade 9 to 12 students from St. Mary High School. We also had a couple of other school divisions and education authorities that sent students.”

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The fair was also open to the general public as several local and national employers were on hand. They included The City of Prince Albert, the Fire Department, Parkland Ambulance and the Police Service.

(Derek Craddock/paNOW Staff)

Correctional Service of Canada, Canadian Armed Forces and Sask Power were some of the provincial and national employers that took part.

Bibby also mentioned that the post-secondary schools work alongside some of the businesses to find people, especially in the area of trades.

“Broda Group may be looking for entry level but they may be looking for trades people. We know the Saskatchewan Apprenticeship and Trade Certification is here for them.”

Some of the post-secondary schools that were at the fair were the University of Saskatchewan, Saskatchewan Polytechnic, First Nations University of Canada, Lethbridge College and Carlton Trail College.

The Broda Group, which is behind a number of projects such as The Yard District, welcomed many students to their booth eager to learn more about them.

Tim Leonard with the Broda Group said they were extremely busy from the time the doors opened at 9 a.m. to just past 3 p.m.

Leonard added the company even brought along its rock truck in front of the centre Wednesday morning to the amazement of students coming to the fair.

He added that being at the fair was important for them and other local companies to show prospective workers of the opportunities in Prince Albert.

“We work across Western Canada but home base is here. The more local people we can put to work, the better it can be for the community and us. Guys get their roots down and they know they’re going to stick around for years so it’s a bonus for us.”

For Bibby, she said every year has been a success as more students find work or a university path.

“This is a safe opportunity for students in Prince Albert and surrounding area to come and check out not only the post-secondary institutions but also the local employers. They can go, they can have a face-to face conversation with someone.”

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Derek.craddock@pattisonmedia.com