The height of summer has come and gone and whether Bloomington residents and IU students want to admit it, autumn grows closer every day. For those in the area still trying to hunt down that perfect job before the leaves start to fall, the 2006 Bloomington Job Fair might be the place to start.\nThis year, the fair boosts more than 1,300 jobs being offered by over 55 different regional businesses. The all-day event will be held from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. July 10 at the Bloomington North High School.\nSome of the major career opportunities that will be at the job fair include those in the manufacturing, construction and health care fields. WorkOne Bloomington, a division of Indiana's workforce development program, will also be offering assistance at the job fair.\n"We're going to help with the resource room, as we're calling it," said Susan Stein, of WorkOne Bloomington. "We'll be providing services to individuals coming to the job fair." \nIn addition to helping job seekers fill out applications, WorkOne will also be giving
resume writing expertise, interviewing tips and other career counseling services.\nAmong the companies looking for employees, which include representatives from IU, the City of Bloomington and local food and discount store chains, is French Lick Springs, a recently renovated resort and casino that is reopening in November 2006. \n"Primarily what we are looking for are people in the operational areas," said Tracy Pfeiffer, the employment manager at French Lick Springs. "We've had one job fair already, and were very successful with that, and we're going to give this one a try." \nJust south of Bloomington in the town of French Lick, the luxury hotel is offering numerous opportunities for people interested in summer or year-round jobs in the hotel and service industry. The jobs range from management and casino supervisor positions to part time spots doing general maintenance at the resort.\nSome employers are attending the job fair even if they don't have any specific positions open at the moment. WCLJ-TV, a regional station based out of Greenwood, will be at the fair handing out infor-
mation regarding their community issues programming, talking with residents in the area to assess their broadcasting needs and accepting resumes for future positions that may open up.\n"If there was an opening you could leave a resume and we'd have it," said employee Jill Hayden, explaining that the small, charity-based organization is always looking for people to work not only at their station, but at others that are part of the Trinity Broadcasting Network around the nation.\nIn addition, the station is always interested in volunteers and interns, who are often on-air talent at the station. \n"It's a good way to get your foot in the door if you are interested in television," said Karen Sears, another employee.\nThe job fair, which is in its second year, is sponsored by congressmen Steve Buyer, R-4th and Mike Sodrel, R-9th, as part of a joint effort to help boost Indiana's economy. \n"They decided last year that they wanted to do a job fair," said Michelle Proctor, a field representative in Buyer's office. "There were over 1,000 people that ended up coming there throughout the day." \nLast year, the event was held at the Indiana Memorial Union, but was moved to Bloomington North this summer because of a lack of venue space on \ncampus.
