The Ready for Hire program in Crawford County, taking place in partnership with the Bucyrus Public Library, will offer students a variety of opportunities to level up their career readiness skills this summer.

The Ready for Hire program for grades nine through 12 will run in conjunction with the Bucyrus Public Library’s Summer Reading Program, which is open to Crawford County students in grades six through 12. Registration will open on June 3, and the program will run through July 13. This year’s theme is “Your Future Awaits,” and by the end of the program, teens will have completed at least six activities out of a possible 21 that explore their passions and potential future careers.

To amplify the development of career readiness skills, an additional Ready for Hire Create Camp will be held at the Bucyrus Public Library from June 17-28 from 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Selected teens will participate in a variety of hands-on STEAM programs, such as creating digital art, coding robots, VR challenges, and creating designs for 3D printing. Participants will also select and create projects using Skillshare and a STEAM resource, such as Procreate, Fusion 360, Blender, Photoshop, and more.

Projects created by participants will also be displayed at a digital art installation at the library on July 31 from 6-7 p.m. The deadline to apply for Create Camp is May 30.

To help facilitate the Create Camp, the Ready for Hire program will provide paid student internships at the Bucyrus Public Library for short-term young adult program assistants. Applicants must be at least 16 years old, be in grades 11-12, and be a resident of Crawford County. Interested students can apply online. Selected applicants will start on June 3. Along with assisting with Summer Reading Program activities, program assistants will spend their first two weeks preparing for their roles as camp coaches by completing Skillshare courses and projects, which will provide them with the skills necessary to assist Create Camp participants.

The Ready for Hire Level Up program is a career-readiness program for students in grades nine through 12, but the Bucyrus Public Library has used library resources to expand the program to sixth-, seventh-, and eighth-grade students. The program aims to provide valuable and in-demand career skills such as animation, Photoshop, 3D printing, music production, digital illustration and design, and more.

For more information, interested parties may follow the Bucyrus Public Library Facebook page, visit the Bucyrus Public Library website, or email Crawford County Site Coordinator Kevin Fourman at [email protected] or BPL Teen Services Manager Kolter Kiess at [email protected].

Submitted by Mid-Ohio Educational Service Center.