Clark, Champaign juniors, employees to participate in career exploration day

Around 100 juniors from nine Clark and Champaign County schools, including Clark-Shawnee, Global Impact STEM Academy, Greenon, Northwestern, Springfield, School of Innovation, Mechanicsburg, Urbana and Triad, are invited to participate based on their YouScience results.

YouScience is a career aptitude assessment where students in middle and high school complete several brain games that help provide information on their skill sets, strengths, weaknesses, career paths and more.

“By aligning students’ natural strengths — identified through YouScience — with meaningful, real-world challenges, Discovery Day continues to play an important role in regional workforce development. The event helps students better understand local career pathways while strengthening collaboration between Clark and Champaign Counties," Tyler said.

Tyler said this event is designed to go above the traditional career fair format. Instead of listening to speakers, students will work in small groups alongside employers and professionals to solve a real-world problem connected to public safety or human services.

“This interactive approach allows students to apply critical thinking, communication, and teamwork skills while gaining firsthand insight into these essential careers,” she said.

Participating employers, agencies and colleges include:

Discovery Days began during the 2025-26 school year as a way to help high school juniors decide what they want to do after they graduate. A total of four are held, with the others held on Sept. 30, 2025 for finance, business and IT, Nov. 12, 2025 for healthcare, and Dec. 10, 2025 for manufacturing, engineering and agriculture.