'Career Day' at Penn College Offers Exploration for Area Youth

By Nichole Shanefelter College Information & Community Relations Intern

Area students in grades 7-9 will visit Pennsylvania College of Technology on March 8 for "Career Day," an event offered twice each year by the College's Outreach for K-12 office.

Held in fall and spring, Career Day gives school districts the opportunity to bring groups of middle- and high-school students to Penn College to explore a variety of technical careers through hands-on activities, tours of facilities and discussions with students and faculty. More than 650 students and chaperones are registered for the spring event.

The list of three dozen activities includes "Plastic Materials and Processing," "Creating Animations With Flash," "Exciting Careers Using Electronics." "Web Cams How Do They Work?" "Radiography: What Is It?" "How to Be an Inventor Product and Systems Design," "Make a Corsage," "Forestry/Wildlife," "Computer-Aided Design With Inventor," "Precision Machining," and "Cuisines of the School of Hospitality," among others.

Outreach for K-12 has served participating elementary, middle and high schools from across the commonwealth for more than 12 years. It provides services such as professional development for teachers, counselors and administrators to help students develop the skills needed to enter Penn College's academic majors; specialized programming to respond to employment conditions; on-campus experiences for groups of students interested in technical occupations; and career-development program creation for K-12 schools.

By helping school districts develop technical curriculums that maintain strong academic standards, Outreach for K-12 enables students to become better equipped to succeed at the college level.

Ellen S. Auchter, a career specialist for Outreach for K-12, says the extensive list of services, tailored to the needs of individual school districts and programs, opens doors for students who might not consider pursuing a career in a technical field or attending college.

"Students come to Penn College to see the exciting opportunities in technical careers," she said.

Another Career Day for students in grades 9-12 will be offered at the College on Oct. 15.

For more information about Outreach K-12 and Career Day, call (570) 320-8003, send e-mail or visiton the Web.