Multiple organizations host Fair Chance Opportunity Fair at Knicely Conference Center

BOWLING GREEN, Ky.- Monday, March 9, Goodwill Kentucky, along with United Healthcare Community Plan of Kentucky, Kentucky Chamber of Commerce and Fifth Third Bank hosted the Fair Chance Opportunity Fair at the Western Kentucky University Knicely Conference Center.

The fair offered individuals a chance to participate in an expungement clinic and provided them numerous resources for jobs and housing as they try to move on from their past.

All the organizations, including Goodwill, wanted to assist those in attendance and help them move forward in their lives and emphasize that your past does not define you.

“Our goal is to make people understand that your background is not your future. If you’re willing to put in a little work and work on that background to be able to talk intelligently on how you’ve come up. That’s all Goodwill’s mission is,” said Chad Spencer, regional director of career services with Goodwill Kentucky. “We want to help those who want to help themselves.”

The organizations at the event were able to provide expungements for 90 people and introduce them to several different employees.

With their records getting expunged, community members can look at jobs past entry level that will be more financially beneficial. Along with that, expungement will allow them to finally regain privileges and opportunities they wouldn’t have had before.

“I have people that have come through our expungement process so that they can volunteer in their children’s school. So expungement means I get to be a full member of society,” Spencer added.

Studies show that those in recovery or just released from incarceration are two times as likely to stay with that employer and are 20% more productive.

And as the City of Bowling Green grows and more jobs open up, opportunities from events like today will help give these individuals a second chance.

“The community in Bowling Green is growing economically. You all have been on fire for several years now, and when that happens you have more jobs than you have people. And so we need everybody working and contributing in the workforce. Not only is it good for those companies, but it’s good for your citizens. It’s good for your community to be able to pull everybody forward,” said Beth Davisson, senior vice president of the Kentucky Chamber Foundation.

Learn more and find upcoming clinics at this link.