Schuylkill County schools fall short in statewide ‘What’s So Cool About Manufacturing’ contest

Hyun Soo Lee, Republican & Herald, Pottsville, Pa.
·2 min read

More than 20 middle schools, including two from Schuylkill County, competed Wednesday in the annual “What’s So Cool About Manufacturing” contest, where three schools were ultimately awarded for videos they made highlighting manufacturing.

The state level of the competition, held in the Whitaker Center in Harrisburg, included 22 finalists who had advanced from an initial pool of 155 student groups in 11 regional contests.

This year’s winners were:

• First place: Broughal Middle School, Bethlehem Area School District, Northampton County, highlighting Weaver Popcorn Manufacturing.

• Second place: Greater Johnstown High School, Johnstown Area School District, Cambria County, highlighting JWF Industries.

• Third place: Bangor Area Middle School, Bangor Area School District, Northampton County, highlighting C.F. Martin & Co. Inc.

Mahanoy Area High School and D.H.H. Lengel Middle School were among the four finalists from the Berks Schuylkill region. Their videos featured EMD Electronics and Cardinal Systems Inc., respectively.

The winners were selected by a panel of four judges.

“The continued success of the What’s So Cool program validates its effort to generate excitement toward careers in the manufacturing sector and to promote STEM education and technical training among students and parents,” Karen Buck, director of workforce initiatives at Manufacturers Resource Center, said in a news release. “We are so excited and proud to celebrate the Best of PA 2024 student teams and highlight their videos.”

The “What’s So Cool About Manufacturing” program includes a Pennsylvania Department of Education-approved lesson plan that is in use across the commonwealth. The contest was created to generate excitement that draws students toward considering manufacturing career paths to create a 21st century workforce.

The 2024 contest included teams from the following regional programs: Berks Schuylkill; Central Susquehanna; Chester Delaware; Lehigh Valley; North Central; Northern Tier; Philadelphia Region; Pittsburgh Central; Pittsburgh East; South Central; and Southern Alleghenies.

Funding for regional contests is provided by community stakeholders.

For more information about the “What’s So Cool” contest, visit WhatsSoCool.org or whatssocool.org/video-library.