YouCUBE Youth Explore STEM Careers

Toys, cookies, and lots of free stuff!  While the Youth Careers Utilizing Engineering Program (YouCUBE) participants came away from the program with many freebies, they also came away with a unique experience which allowed them to glean much insight from industry insiders about the manufacturing field, employer expectations and career paths.  Whether they were learning about the passion it takes to turn a small college venture into a company or about the many twisting paths taken by many employees, the youth discovered the wide-ranging opportunities in Westmoreland, Allegheny and Washington counties available to youth as they begin thinking about and developing their career paths and goals.  The youth also spent 13 days completing hands-on STEM activities.  Beginning June 13, the YouCUBE Program’s summer component lasted 14 days, and also featured tours, speakers and hands-on activities.

From handcrafted to high technology, both smaller local manufacturers and larger global manufacturers were featured.   During the first week, the youth toured Channel Craft Toys in Charleroi, Quadrant EPP in Delmont, Comtrol Corp. in Irwin, and Phillips Respironics in New Kensington.  Next, the youth toured Firestone in Youngwood, Otis Spunkmeyer in Export, Waste Management in Irwin, and UPS in New Stanton.   Finally, they toured Control Analytics in Export. Each company presented details about the company’s history and production, career opportunities within the company and the varying levels of education and skill required. 

Four post-secondary schools were highlighted this year.  The YouCUBE youth toured Robert Morris University in Moon Township.  While on campus, they toured the Learning Factory and learned about the engineering programs the school provides.  They were given the opportunity to run robots and view how a 3D printer works.  The University of Pittsburgh was a popular tour with the youth.  After receiving program-specific packets, the youth were given a tour of the Oakland campus and saw everything from a classroom to the dorms.  Triangle Tech visited the youth at PIC and used an interactive quiz show presentation to share the school’s programs with the youth.  Associate Executive Producer MK Haley of Carnegie Mellon University’s Entertainment and Technology Center also visited the youth at PIC. She spoke with them about ETC’s one-of-a-kind Master of Entertainment Technology degree program.

STEM-based hands-on activities provided the youth with the chance to apply what they were learning on their tours to engineering activities.  The youth used household items to extract DNA from a strawberry.  They used hot glue and pasta to build bridges for our annual Pasta Bridge contest.  They constructed both water bottle rockets and hot air balloons.  They created Rube Goldberg-inspired-cartoons.  They built catapults and participated in a team competition in which they had to defend their castles from invaders.  They constructed vests and superhero costumes from duct tape.  They built and programmed LEGO Mindstorms robots.  They tested their projects on the final day of the program.  Youth were recognized for their designs and project results during an awards ceremony.

The PIC Youth Staff is currently accepting applications for the 2011-2012 YouCUBE Program.  There are some eligibility requirements.  For more information, please contact the PIC Office in Greensburg at 724-836-2600 or in Uniontown at 724-434-5627.