More than 50 presenters help guide 8th through 12th grade students toward college or career paths
BY JIM BEERS
Friday November 6th Chester High School hosted its annual College and Career Day. This year marked a special addition to the CHS event. Chester High School and Chester Grade School have traditionally handled their own Career Day activities. This year, CHS Student Services Director, Jill Miesner and CGS Assistant Principal, Kristin Petrowske collaborated to combine the CGS 8th graders and the CHS student body together for one, super fantastic College and Career Day.
Chester High School’s Colbert Memorial Gymnasium was a very active and popular place Friday November 6th as more than 20 exhibitors spoke to 8th through 12th Grade students at the 2026 Chester High School and Chester Grade School College and Career Day. Jim Beers Photo
The event was held at Chester High School. All classrooms as well as the Professor Sharp Media Center, Juergens Gymnasium and Colbert Memorial Gymnasium were utilized for presentations and exhibits. CGS 8th graders were bussed to CHS and all high school students reported to their first hour classrooms for attendance and instructions pertaining to the day’s activities.
Dr. Kristin Petrowske said, “This entire event has been a wonderful experience for us at CGS. It has been great working with Jill Miesner at CHS and together I think we have developed a pretty good schedule of presentations and activities for the students. Bringing our 8th graders out here to CHS will also serve as a great introduction to high school life for the kids.”
Jill Miesner, CHS Student Services Director, said, “We have a wonderful program for the students today. There are more than 50 different college and career professionals here today to help introduce the kids to potential career paths once they graduate from high school”.
“Today we bring career paths to life! More than 50 representatives are at out career fair. Students rotated various sessions in order to connect with college recruiters, military personnel, and numerous local employers. From hands-on trade insights to business owner presentations, every classroom offered a glimpse into future opportunities.”
Every classroom at CHS was busy with 40-minute presentations. Up-close-and-personal, students had the chance to learn about a wide variety of educational and career choice possibilities. Classroom presentations included Speech Pathology options, Banking, Healthcare, EMT and EMS fields, Career Pathways, Physical and Occupational Therapy, Culinary Services, Baking, Realtor-Home Sales, Illinois Department of Transportation opportunities, the Field of Education, Randolph County Sheriff’s Office, Illinois Department of Transportation, Civil Engineering, Ranken Trade School, Crop Insurance, and Social Influencing. A professional Author even gave a session on writing and creating various written documents.
In the large-group sessions groups of students were together for special presentations. For example, in Juergens Gymnasium, Jill Miesner guided entire class levels in completing interest inventories.
In the CHS Band Room, Audrey Langum addressed large groups of students regarding ISAC (Illinois Student Assistance Commission). This information informed students what financial assistance is available to help with post-high school educational opportunities.
The entire Colbert Memorial Gymnasium Rocky Bridges Court was filled with approximately 22 other booths from both local employment entities, colleges and trade schools, businesses, and organizations offering educational and employment opportunities.
Throughout the day, students had five separate 40-minute sessions scheduled as well as a FREE 40-minute lunch period. Students were able to pre-select sessions in which they were interested. This helped to make the Career Fair and College Day presentations much more interesting and enjoyable.
Jill Miesner said, “Joining forces with Chester Grade School was a great addition to our College and Career Day. Hopefully the CGS 8th graders will feel more comfortable with their transition to CHS next fall after being in our building all day and having to negotiate our hallways and classrooms. We are also very appreciative of the time our presenters and career day information providers gave our students for such a beneficial experience!”
Much thanks is extended to all of the following presenters and information tables that made the 2026 CHS/CGS College and Career Day so successful and meaningful. These dedicated professionals BROUGHT CAREER PATHS TO LIFE Friday November 6th at the CHS/CGS College and Career Fair.
Randolph Country Sheriff’s Office Illinois Department of Corrections
EMS and EMT’s Troy Pilbean and Misty Leffler TNT Farms
Gateway FS (Farm Service) Jami Papenberg, Author
PW McKinney Dr. Kristin Petrowske
Jill Miesner ISAC, Audrey Langum
Southwest Illinois College (SWIC) Ranken Trade School
Adrianne Kern, Career Pathways Dieterich Bank, Dianne Hecht
Illinois Department of Transportation Roeslein
Colin Wingerter, Social Influencer SC Crop Insurance, Cheri Lange
Casey Peters, Speech-Language Pathology Southern Illinois University-C
Beck School of Nursing Jeff Ferrell, Conservation Officer
Red Bud Industries (RBI) SWIC Running Start Program
Randolph County StartUP Program Luhr Brothers
U.S. Air Force ROTC Illinois National Guard
United States Army United States Marines
United States Navy CHS Workforce Program
Southeast Missouri University (SEMO) Southern Illinois Transfer
Sally Crook, Sally Cakes Kristen Gonzalez, Realtor
Ashleigh Collier presents regarding Physical and Occupational Therapy at the 2026 CHS-CGS College and Career Day. Jim Beers Photo
Casey Peters of Chester presents regarding the field of Speech and Language Pathology at the 2026 CHS-CGS College and Career Day. Jim Beers Photo
Colin Wingerter, a former Chester High School student, presents about his very successful career as a Social Media Influencer. He is quite a popular chef, has a great following, and makes a good living cooking on his social media platform. Jim Beers Photo
Diane Hecht, Branch Manager of Chester’s Dieterich Bank, presents regarding the banking industry at the 2026 CHS-CGS College and Career Day. Jim Beers Photo
Dr. Kristin Petrowske, Chester Grade School Assistant Principal, was a Co-Coordinator of the 2026 Chester High School and Chester Grade School 8th Grade College and Career Day. She also presented sessions regarding Educational Pathways. Jim Beers
Chester High School Student Services Director, Jill Miesner, was one of the coordinators of the 2026 combined Chester High School and Chester Grade School 8th Grade College and Career Day hosted at Chester High School Friday November 6th. Besides her duties as coordinator of the event, Miesner conducted one of the large group sessions in Juergens Gymnasium regarding Student Interest Inventories. Jim Beers Photo
An Educator from the Ranken Technical College conducted very lively and interesting sessions about the numerous opportunities in the field of technological careers. Jim Beers Photo
Ryan Coffey of the Randolph County Sheriff’s Department presented small group sessions regarding opportunities in the field of criminal justice in Randolph County. Jim Beers Photo
Aubrey Langum of the Illinois Student Assistance Commission (ISAC) hosted one of the large group sessions Friday November 6th at the 2026 CHS-CGS College and Career Day. Financial considerations were presented throughout the day to students to help them prepare for potential college and career opportunities. The session was held in the Chester High School Band Room. Jim Beers Photo
Adrianne Kern, a Chester High School Educator, presented a small-group session pertaining to career and education opportunities in the field of Early Childhood Education. Jim Beers Photo
Chester High School staff members Lisa Davison (left) and Rylee Courtney (right) were responsible for providing hospitality for the presenters at the 2026 Chester High School-Chester Grade School 8th Grade College and Career Day Friday November 6th. Davison teaches Foods at CHS and Courtney is the SEL Coordinator. Their headquarters was located in the very nice and popular, State of the Art Professor James F. Sharp Media Center. Jim Beers Photo