The Wagner Community Memorial Hospital-Avera sponsored a 12th annual 8th Grade Career Fair on Thursday, January 19, 2023 at the Wagner National Guard Armory. Partnering with the South Dakota Department of Health, the event also included “Camp Med Lanes”, which featured several different healthcare career choices. The event was coordinated by hospital employee, Connie Kaufman, BSN.

Eighth graders must select career paths for high school registration; thus, the goal of the career fair is to expose students to the wide variety of educational opportunities and career paths available to them. The emphasis was handson activities which were directly related to the promoted careers. A variety of career choices were present, including exhibitors from local and regional businesses as well as South Dakota colleges. Students were able to walk through an innovative, inflatable brain; learn coping skills and 988 resource, while constructing a calming jar; speed challenge for adding bank deposits; view a counterfeit $100.00 bill; watch a demonstration of a rollover simulator; take a photo with a professional digital camera; demonstration of equipment used by a lineman; how to maneuver a robot; stepping inside an ambulance, as well as watching a mechanical chest compression device; use a demo fire extinguisher to put out a simulated fire; have a body composition done; practice CPR skills and demonstrate removing skin staples and stitches in addition to many other hand-on opportunities.

Approximately540studentsparticipated from 24 area schools. The schools that attended were: Andes Central, Armour, Avon, Bon Homme, Burke, Corsica-Stickney, Crow Creek; Dakota Christian, Ethan, Freeman, Gayville-Volin, Gregory, Hanson, Irene-Wakonda, Marty Indian School, Menno, Mount Vernon, Netherland Reformed Christian, Plankinton, Platte-Geddes, Scotland, Tripp-Delmont, Wagner and Winner.

Exhibitors included: Army National Guard-Wagner Unit; Avera Workforce Planning; C&B Operations-Wagner; Charles Mix Electric; Commercial State Bank; Dakota Wesleyan University Nursing; Dakota State University; Mount Marty University-College of Nursing; National Resources Conservation Service; Peasants Forever; Photography by Denelle; SD Department of Health/Charles Mix Community Health; SD Department of Labor; SD Division of Behavioral Health & Lewis and Clark Behavioral Health Services; Sioux Falls Fire & Rescue; SDSU Extension 4-H Advisor and Health Educator; SD Game Fish & Parks; SD Geological Survey; SD Highway Patrol; South Dakota State University- College of Pharmacy; Southeast Technical Institute; United States Secret Service/Homeland Security; University of South Dakota-College of Physical Therapy; Wagner Indian Health Service; Wagner-Lake Andes Ambulance; West River Area Health Education Center; West River Health Science Center and Wagner Community Memorial Hospital-Avera.