The American Gaming Association in association with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce recently organized a Las Vegas trip for eight college students. The students received back-of-the-house tours at Bellagio, Caesars Palace and the International Gaming Institute and met with executives from MGM Resorts International, Caesars Entertainment and Aristocrat Technologies. They also met with top executives at Maryland Live! on their way back to Washington D.C.
The students also sat in on the AGA’s Responsible Gaming Education Week panel discussion at the UNLV International Gaming Institute and toured the Institute.
The goal of the trip was to change perceptions about gaming, show how the industry works and present job opportunities in gaming, said AGA Vice President of Strategic Communications Casey Clark. “We’ve talked with our membership about the challenges of recruiting and retaining young people. This was an opportunity to give those eight students an inside look at the industry and show that gaming is IT, security, finance and so many other areas,” she said.
U.S. Chamber Vice President of Strategic Alliances and Outreach Rick Wade said the organization has built several partnerships with historically black colleges to expose students to various industries. He said the AGA was the first trade organization to get involved. “It was tremendous exposure, and some of the students were getting aspirational offers to consider jobs in the gaming industry when they graduate. That was nice to see,” Wade said.
