Mayor Henry Continues Effort to Retain Talented Young People
Commits to Paid Internships for Top High School Students
Mayor Tom Henry underscored his commitment to young talent by announcing that the City of Fort Wayne will create paid intern opportunities for high school students interested in careers in technology. He also highlighted the April 16 TechFest at Sweetwater Sound, a STEM career showcase wrapped in an all-day video-game tournament.
“Our youth are a vital and precious resource. Our challenge today is do things that will help bond our young talent to our community and to create opportunities for them to stay or return to build their adult lives here,” said Mayor Henry. “The specific focus of this initiative is to get more students to go into the STEM fields of science, technology, engineering and math fields; to heighten awareness of the excellent programs in these areas offered by our local universities; and to promote our region’s many leading companies that can provide quality job opportunities for young people attracted to these fields.”
Joining Mayor Henry were representatives from the Allen County Commissioners and ATOS Origin, the City/County technology provider. All have committed to hiring high school students for a six-week paid summer internship. Additionally, Waterloo business, R.P. Wakefield has committed to an intern.
Last October, Mayor Henry initiated the formation of the Fort Wayne/Allen County Community Engagement Committee. The committee included the City of Fort Wayne, Allen County, ATOS Origin and the Fort Wayne Allen County Economic Development Alliance, working together with the Greater Fort Wayne Chamber of Commerce’s Graduate Retention Program. The committee is actively working with businesses in the community to arrange additional internships.
Any business interested in participating in the internships program should contact the committee through the Chamber of Commerce at 424-1435.
Students will find the internships posted on the web at Indianaintern.net. Postings will begin Monday April 18, 2011.
This Saturday, the group will host over 300 hundred local, high-achieving high school students who will gather for northeast Indiana’s first annual TechFest. The event features video-game and problem-solving competitions, educational events, as well a job fair focusing on career opportunities in STEM fields.
“TechFest is about our youth, our talent and our future. Events like TechFest are the key to engaging students who are interested in science and technology, and stopping the brain drain from northeast Indiana,” said Mayor Henry. “These students truly represent the next generation of our community’s economic growth. These talented youth are the future leaders who can create the next Google, Apple or Microsoft, right here in our own community.”
The first annual Northeast Indiana TechFest is Saturday, April 16, from 9 a.m. through 6 p.m. at Sweetwater Sound headquarters on U.S. 30.
Pre-registration is encouraged and is available at the Northeast Indiana TechFest web site, www.neitechfest.com. Students can also register at the door. A registration fee of $10 will allow students to participate in any two events listed below. Spectators can enter for a $5 fee.
Some of the games scheduled for the event included:
Madden Football: contestants competed head-to-head throughout the day for a $500 scholarship, with prizes for second and third place as well.
Problem Solving Competition: A real world, team based problem-solving competition presented by Fort Wayne Metals.
Wii Team Trivia, Mario Cart, Dance Dance Revolution, Guitar Hero, Wii Boxing and Downhill Skiing, and Speed Texting.
Event sponsors include, ITT, Atos Origin, Aaron’s Sales and Leasing, Sweetwater Sound, Coca Cola of Fort Wayne, Sweetwater Sound, the City of Fort Wayne, the Chamber, Best Buy, Fort Wayne Airport, NETech, Aptera, Marriot-Downtown, Creative Signs, Commissioner Bill Brown and Suzette Brown, Indiana Tech, ITT Tech, Ivy Tech, Northeast Indiana Innovation Center, Pizza Hut of Fort Wayne and Trine University.
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