ROCKVILLE, MD — WorkSource Montgomery (WSM), in partnership with Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) and Montgomery College (MC), hosted around 2,500 MCPS eighth-grade students during its recent inaugural MoCo CAP Worlds of Work (WoW) experience. The three-day event held the week of March 17, 2025, at the MC Rockville campus, let students get a feel for what professions look like day-to-day through personal interactions rather than mere observation.
“This groundbreaking career exploratory event is a great example in demonstrating how well-positioned Montgomery County is from a talent pipeline standpoint,” said Anthony Featherstone, WSM Executive Director. “By exposing thousands of students to amazing industries, businesses, and professionals here in Montgomery County, we hope to create awareness of local opportunities that may not have been on their career radar.”
WoW is a trademarked event started by West AlabamaWorks in Tuscaloosa, AL. WSM and its partners adapted the model for MoCo CAP (Montgomery County Career Advising Program) with the goal of bringing together a large breadth of industry representatives in varied roles to introduce their vocation to students with engaging hands-on exhibits.
This pilot year focused on eighth graders as 13- and 14-year-olds are less likely to have preconceived notions about careers than their older peers. Middle school is also a time where course selection starts to become more refined, and students can choose to pursue something on the career and technical education (CTE) program track.
Students engaged in interactive activities and spoke with industry representatives and MC faculty about related courses.
Argyle Middle School student Nathaly, who identifies her main RIASEC theme as Investigative, said she plans to study forensics and was able to connect with an MC advisor about the college’s biology program.
“They really told me what came with forensics, which was really interesting,” she said. “I think the two-year program here is something I want to do when I’m older…I thought the only opportunity I had was out of Montgomery County, but now that I know it’s here, I want to come here.”
The event showcased over 175 local employers and businesses from Montgomery County and the surrounding areas. Several buildings across MC Rockville’s campus hosted the six “worlds” that showcased different businesses and industries:
- World 1: IT, Engineering, Manufacturing, VR
- World 2: Hospitality, Arts, Fitness, Retail, Recreation, Entertainment, Education, Social Services, Cosmetology, Culinary
- World 3: Healthcare, Life Sciences, Mental Health, Behavioral Health
- World 4: Energy, Utilities, Green, Government
- World 5: Professional Services (Financial, Consulting, Law, Real Estate), Entrepreneurship, Business, Journalists, Media
- World 6: Automotive, Construction, Trades, Public Safety, Military
Reid Henkel with KID Museum, a child-oriented museum and maker space based in Bethesda, MD, said the organization decided to participate in MoCo CAP WoW to help expose the eighth graders to an array of opportunities.
“I think it’s incredibly important for teenagers to see not just one or two different career paths, but a wide variety,” he said. “For us, we are in education, but we are in informal education and so understanding that teaching in a classroom is not the only way to get involved in education, I think is incredibly important.”
MoCo CAP would like to thank our partners and every staff member, employer, and volunteer who helped make this innovative experience happen. We look forward to making MoCo CAP WoW 2026 even bigger and better.
Be sure to check out the following:
A digital flipbook showcasing the MoCo CAP WoW employers and their industries is available at https://heyzine.com/flip-book/312e6818d3.html.
MC’s video recapping the ground-breaking event can be found here: https://youtu.be/EM6CfRSJ3cA?si=zYLnL-0z9f7g3qiY.
MCPS’ MoCo CAP WoW video is available here: https://youtu.be/Dqdt4fqsJ4Q?si=9lL4vdloKO04tTMA.
