CLC Students, High Schoolers Consider Next Steps at MN Education Fair

Central Lakes College students, local high school students, and youth being homeschooled had the opportunity to take part in CLC’s annual Minnesota Education Fair on Tuesday morning.

Over 60 different college and university representatives from across Minnesota and the U.S. gathered in CLC’s gymnasium in Brainerd so the next generation could learn more about their futures.

“[Students hear] from some of our local two-year schools or universities here, part of the Minnesota State system, or even colleges from out of state: North Dakota, South Dakota, Michigan, Wisconsin,“ said Central Lakes College Enrollment Representative Nathaniel Warnke. ”A lot of students get an opportunity to meet with those representatives from other schools, figure out what programs are they looking for. What are those steps? How do they get in enrolled at that school?”

The event is sponsored through the Minnesota Association for College Admission Counseling, which aims to support education professionals as they guide students and families in the post-secondary education planning process.

“For students that are looking towards what comes after high school, there’s always questions, and sometimes you don’t know what you don’t know,” said Ryan Wright, another CLC Enrollment Representative. “You are nervous, excited. Students need someone to help guide the process. It’s about ,what do you need as a student? What are you looking for? What is your end goal?”

The Minnesota Education Fair is free to any students interested, and those at the event were more than happy to have such an opportunity available to them in central Minnesota.

“We always have a really great turnout for our fair,” Warnke stated. “The students from our local communities are very engaged. The reps always leave very happy with the interaction that they have here, so I think students definitely take advantage of it. Some of them don’t get that opportunity from some of the smaller towns. Maybe their school gets overlooked, so we’re able to bring them in from some of our local schools to meet with these reps here, so a really good opportunity for our students.”

CLC says the fair embodies their values of excellence, innovation, inclusion, and community while also working to meet the college’s vision of inspiring learning, advancing innovation, and transforming lives, whether those goals are met at CLC or at a different college present at the fair.

“It’s important because each student matters, and their future matters,” added Wright. “It matters for themselves, it matters for their families, it matters for our community, other communities as well. It’s part of who we are. It’s part of building futures, and so to be able to host that at CLC is a great opportunity.”

More than 400 students stopped by the fair on Tuesday morning.