INDIANAPOLIS — About 120 high-school students from across the state competed in 12 categories at the 13th annual Jobs for America’s Graduates Career Development Conference on May 7, and a Lawrence County student was among the top finishers at the event. Collin Spear of Mitchell High School placed third in the running for the 2021 Outstanding Senior award, the most prestigious award, honoring the student that extols the virtues of JAG and commits to doing so in the future. (Kelsey Pease, a senior from Clarksville High School, took home the top award, and Kylee Simison of Blackford High School finished in second place.)
Awards earned by other schools and students from around the region include: Chapter Marketing Plan, third place, Paoli High School; Entrepreneurship Plan, second place, Samuel Mitchell, Eastern Greene High School; Critical Thinking, second place, Morgan Walters, Mitchell High School; and Public Speaking, third place, Fernando Hernandez, Southridge High School.
The conference again was held virtually this year at the Indiana Government Center in downtown Indianapolis due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Administered by the Indiana Department of Workforce Development, JAG is a state-based, national non-profit organization that assists high-school students with earning their diploma.
The annual event allows JAG students to show off their talents and compete with their peers for financial prizes. This year, regional winners were challenged to compete virtually and send their efforts in for judging. DWD Chief Workforce Officer Mike Barnes, Associate Chief of Workforce Programs Leslie Crist and Director of Youth Initiatives Brianna Morse presented awards, which were broadcast on Facebook Live.
“The JAG program helps students to graduate from high school with a better sense of self, including their capability of setting and achieving career goals,” DWD Commissioner Fred Payne said. “JAG students participating in this year’s event received the recognition that they so rightly deserve.”