By Stephen Witt
Presidents of 14 borough colleges, business leaders, city officials and the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce came together last week to announce the borough’s first College to Career Expo. The event is scheduled from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., Wednesday, May 3 at the New York Marriott at the Brooklyn Bridge, 333 Adams Street. “I want employers and educators to walk away with how this is going to work,” said Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce President Kenneth Adams at the breakfast meeting. “You bring us the best and brightest and we’ll bring you real jobs,” Adams added, challenging the borough college heads. Among the institutions that will allow for graduating seniors and associate degree graduates to come to the expo include Brooklyn College, Long Island University, Medgar Evers College, the New York City College of Technology, Polytechnic University, Pratt Institute and St. Francis College. Additional schools include St. Joseph’s College Touro College, ASA Institute, Boricua College, the Institute of Design and Construction, and the SUNY Brooklyn Educational Opportunity Center. The event will feature two expo sessions and a number of seminars as well as actual job interviews. The seminars will cover everything from how to conduct a successful online job search to steps for a successful interview to tips in securing health care on the job. Adams said businesses that want to suggest other possible seminars are also welcome. Among the suggestions that came out at the meeting included seminars on how to deal with the emotional roller-coaster of the interview process and money management once employment is secured. There will also be job postings in a variety of industry segments including business and finance, health care, hospitality and tourism, information technology, insurance, the public sector, retail, real estate and utilities. Adams said there are already 25 businesses committed to the expo and the goal is to have between 75-100 businesses at the event, accepting resumes and starting the hiring process. While many of the businesses participating are from Brooklyn, Adams emphasized that the jobs garnered from the expo will be citywide. Among the businesses already committed to the Job Expo include such blue chip companies as Citibank, Con Edison, Commerce Bank, HSBC Bank, MetLife, the Mount Sinai Medical Center and KeySpan Corporation. “I grew up here and Brooklyn is a great place to do business,” said KeySpan Corporation Chief Executive Officer Robert Catell. “Brooklyn has the most diverse community in the country and that’s good for the workforce,” he added. Catell, whose company is reportedly looking at a merger, buyout or takeover, also noted that the KeySpan Corporation recently renewed their lease at One MetroTech Center for the next 20 years and has no plans to leave the borough. There is no charge to schools, employers or students to participate. However, the job expo is only open to 2,500 students to keep it from getting too crowded. In order to register, either as a business or student, log onto www.brooklyncareerexpo.com with the site launching on March 10. Both expo and seminar admission tickets will be e-mailed. Robert Walsh, the commissioner of the City’s Department of Small Business Services, said the reasoning behind the expo is to stimulate the department’s Brooklyn Workforce 1 Career Center, at 9 Bond Street on the 5th Floor. The center encourages job seekers to walk into the center when seeking employment. Additionally, the event will help contribute to the Brooklyn brand as a great place to live, work and go to school, Walsh said, adding a special thanks to Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz for his help in putting the Job Expo together. “My hope is this is our first year and that we will continue to improve on this,” said Walsh. Kingsborough Community College President Dr. Regina Peruggi said the Job Expo will be of great help to students at Kingsborough, especially in the school’s excellent Department of Hospitality and Tourism.
