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‘What’s So Cool About Manufacturing’ begins in Berks, Schuylkill counties
Stacy Wescoe//January 14, 2021
‘What’s So Cool About Manufacturing’ begins in Berks, Schuylkill counties
Stacy Wescoe//January 14, 2021//
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It’s time for middle school students in Berks and Schuylkill counties to learn “What’s So Cool About Manufacturing.”
The counties have begun their fifth year of the video competition organized by the Manufacturer’s Resource Center that pairs students with manufacturers in the region to learn about manufacturing careers.
This year, manufacturers like Palram Americas, Sweet Street Deserts and SOLO Laboratories Inc. will be working with student groups.
There will be a total of 21 manufacturer/student teams representing 19 school districts in the region.
Students will tour the manufacturers, interview management and staff and create a video explaining what is so cool about the manufacturing work being done there.
There will then be a virtual competition for the region and a statewide competition for the different What’s So Cool About Manufacturing programs around the state.
The goal of the competition is to get young people excited about careers in manufacturing at a time when they’re just beginning to consider their professional options.
“This career awareness program continues to excite students and manufacturers as it expands in Pennsylvania and spreads across the country,” said Karen Buck, manager of Workforce Initiatives at MRC. “The program is a win-win for students and manufacturers. The students get to experience what modern, cool manufacturing looks like and the manufacturers get to demonstrate well-paying careers in manufacturing while exciting the next generation about technical education and STEM curriculum.”
Students participating in this year’s competition will have a little extra boost for the first time.
The MRC has created an online video library of past student-created videos for them to reference as they begin their own projects.
Online voting on videos and awards ceremonies will be held in mid-April.
