Augusta, ME. – The clock is ticking as we head toward a new high school graduation and college commencement season, and everywhere you turn the same question is being posed: Do our graduates have the skills to meet the demands of today’s job market? Hundreds of high school seniors from the Jobs for Maine’s Graduates’ (JMG) program are confident they do, and spent the day Friday at the Augusta Civic Center proving it at JMG’s 21st Career Development Conference (CDC).

Approximately 500 seniors and a few select juniors faced off against one another at this year’s CDC, competing in a variety of college- and career-readiness contests. From Public Speaking to Decision-Making these competitions give these graduation-ready students the chance to show off the skills they’ve learned in JMG.