The Greensburg Community High School gymnasium was filled with local high school students looking to get a leg-up on their post-secondary education Thursday night.

College recruiters, branches of the military and additional educational support services set up booths around the gym in hopes of enticing local youth to further their academic careers. The Decatur County College Fair provided students and parents with numerous future learning opportunities.

The fair also gave families more information about financial aid and helped them better understand the different ways to pay for college. Schools from across the state and beyond set up shop at the college fair, including larger universities like Ball State and Purdue as well as smaller schools like Taylor University and Ivy Tech.

According to GCHS guidance counselor Jennifer Morrison, this year’s Decatur County College Fair saw a good turnout with representatives as well as students. For her, the goal was to get all of the information in one place and make it simple for students to plan for the future.

“There’s something here for everyone,” Morrison said.

On hand to discuss the students’ military options after high school was Sgt. Jeff Zentz. For him, the college fair provided a good opportunity to explain to students pre-enrollment programs before they go to a university. Military training can take the place of college credit hours, meaning less classes the students would have to pay for, he said.

The Decatur County College Fair was not only open to students in the county. Two students at the fair, high school juniors Matt Bohman and Logan Ricke, traveled to Greensburg from Oldenburg Academy in Franklin County. For the most part, the boys said, they were finding the information they needed.

“’I’ll be lucky if I know what I want to do when I get to college,” Bohman quipped.

The college fair, now a yearly tradition, has helped countless students find their paths for the future.