Each year, our Chamber members have graciously supported JLCA by "Sponsoring a Student" for $250. Our members recognize the value of supporting our future workforce and promoting the vision of JLCA: to provide these students with leadership skills, exposure to career pathways, and a connection to Fort Smith.

Please consider "Sponsoring a Student" or two! Our goal is to have a sponsor for all 39 students selected for the program.

The Fort Smith Regional Chamber partnered with the Arkansas State Chamber of Commerce/Associated Industries of Arkansas (ASCC/AIA) to host the Arkansas River Valley Be Pro Be Proud Draft Day, March 14th – 16th, at the Fort Smith Public School’s Peak Innovation Center. The Arkansas River Valley event was one of only four Draft Days held across the state.

Draft Day was a workforce development initiative that matched almost three hundred high school seniors from thirteen school districts with hiring representatives from over twenty-five regional companies who were looking for individuals to interview for post-graduation job opportunities. These interviews were not just regular job interviews, but interview opportunities that matched graduating seniors with career opportunities based on their company selections and their You Science® Aptitude and Interest Assessment. Many of the jobs were full-time positions, with some companies also offering internship and apprenticeship opportunities for seniors who are going on to college.

Along with the interviewing companies, an additional twenty companies, colleges, and organizations participated in a career expo to provide seniors and high school juniors exposure to their operations, services, and career pathways. Students attending Draft Day also toured the Be Pro Be Proud Mobile Workshop, which exposes visitors to technical careers through hands-on equipment focusing on automation, robotics, and CNC machining, virtual reality tools, and simulators including truck driving, heavy equipment operator, and utility lineman.

“The Fort Smith Chamber, in partnership with the ASCC/AIA, was so fortunate to host this event that saw seniors interviewing with three, four, five or more companies and then taking the time to visit other companies’ expo booths to learn more about their career opportunities,” said Anita Brackin, Vice President of Workforce Development. “Draft Day was the perfect complement to the Chamber’s 5th Annual Signing Day on May 5th as we then highlighted and celebrated the seniors who received job offers as a result of their Draft Day experience and the companies who are providing these new high school graduates with solid career choices.”

“The Arkansas River Valley Draft Day event was a huge undertaking, and we could not have had the success that we saw without the support of our many event sponsors,” added Brackin.

To see a recap of Arkansas’ Draft Day events, visit, click to view the video below:

The Fort Smith Regional Chamber of Commerce held its fifth Annual Signing Day Ceremony, Friday, May 5th, 2023, at the Fort Smith Convention Center. The annual event recognizes high school seniors and college graduates who commit to careers with regional manufacturing, healthcare, information technology, logistics, and skilled trade companies. The honorees relevant education and technical skill training led them to be highly sought after job candidates for regional companies, with many obtaining their new career opportunity through interviews they had during the Be Pro Be Proud Draft Day event earlier in the spring.

Graduates from Alma, Fort Smith, Mountainburg, Ozark, Van Buren, Arkansas Tech University, and University of Arkansas at Fort Smith joined company representatives from ABB, ArcBest, Baptist Health, First National Bank of Fort Smith, Forsgren, Gerber, Hytrol, Johnson Dermatology, Kopco, International Paper, Mercy Health Systems, Methodist Village, Multi-Craft Contractors, Rheem, Riggs Caterpillar, and SPF America on stage to be recognized for their commitment to joining these companies, either as full-time employees or apprentices.

Emceeing Signing Day this year was Jason Green, United States HR manager for ABB and the Education Chair for the Fort Smith Regional Chamber. Green noted that while signing days have been common for decades with high school athletes selecting colleges, only in recent years have community organizations, businesses, and educators used signing day events to raise awareness about career and technical jobs.

The Fort Smith Chamber’s Signing Day event was the first of its kind to be held in Arkansas in 2018 at the Chamber’s May First Friday Breakfast. As predicted in 2022 , the number of participants increased allowing Signing Day to become a stand-alone celebration this year for the honorees to be recognized in front of their families, school representatives, company representatives, and other luncheon attendees. The Chamber looks forward to seeing the event grow again next year as our work continues to connect students to high-demand career paths available throughout the Arkansas River Valley.