With graduation on the horizon, area high school students and their families explored the services available to make a smooth transition to life after high school at the Transition Expo Thursday night in Bemidji.
The Bemidji Area Community Transition Interagency Committee organized the new event, which featured about 50 area agencies ranging from colleges to social services at booths in the Bemidji High School Commons.
"We believe strongly that there needs to be a transition plan in place," said Bob Vaadeland, assistant superintendent/director of special education for the Bemidji School District.
Vaadeland and Brenda Story, work experience transition facilitator at BHS, pitched the idea for the expo to the Bemidji Area CTIC Committee. Originally, the idea was to hold an expo for students with disabilities, but organizers expanded it to encompass all students because they all face transition after high school, Vaadeland said.
He noted that he was pleased with the number of agencies that participated in the expo.
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"It's a really neat thing having everybody in the same place," Vaadeland said. "It's kind of a one-stop shop."
Mark and Pam Arndt stopped by the expo with their son Taylor, who is a junior at BHS.
"We wanted to talk with Northwest Technical College and Bemidji State University," Mark Arndt said.
"We found some helpful information for planning post-high school opportunities," Pam Arndt added.
Another BHS junior, Jared Vondal, also visited the NTC and BSU booths.
"I'm here to see what my opportunities are when I get out of school and where to go after that," he said.
Meanwhile, Melvin Bush visited the expo to see what resources are available to help him find employment after graduation from BHS.
At the Minnesota WorkForce Center booth, Janice Moberg, youth services coordinator for Rural Minnesota CEP Inc., spoke with students and their families at the expo. She noted that the center's main goals are employment, training and self-sufficiency.
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Moberg said she was pleased with the interest shown by those who stopped by the center's booth.
At another booth, Cass Robinson, executive director of Arc Headwaters in Bemidji, shared information about the services the agency provides.
"We provide information, support and advocacy for people with disabilities," she said.
Red Lake Nation College also had a booth at the expo.
"We're excited about taking part in this," said Mary Ringhand, the college's president. "We've had a lot of people stop by so far."
The booth had pamphlets and other items for students and their families to pick up.
"I think it really is important for our young people to know what's out there so they can make good choices," Ringhand said.
