Scientific Innovation

The Pittsburgh Community rallied around the #UcanB Career Education Program. A vast array of organizations and individuals contributed to help educate youth.   More than 50 guest speakers from more than 50 local organizations and businesses visited #UcanB classrooms, participated in #UcanB events and hosted #UcanB students for tours. This allowed #UcanB the opportunity to expose students to a multitude of career paths and job opportunities. Students met with a diverse group of businesses representing government, retail, IT, entrepreneurship, military, media, advanced manufacturing and more! Some of the programs at Propel Braddock over the years are described below. Erik Ross of Bitcore and Scott Albert from #UcanB led a STEM seminar at Propel Braddock. Students in the Media and Technology Courses at Propel Braddock participated in the program. This included 10th-12th grade students who are preparing for and learning skills needed to compete in the IT, Media and/or Gaming Industries. Topics for the seminar included Careers in IT, Careers in Media, IT Skills Needed to Succeed, Video Game Design and Entrepreneurship. The #UcanB Program at Propel Braddock ended with one of the year’s most unique presentations. Drew Cady, Sound Engineer for Seismic Island Labs in Seattle, concluded the 5-week IT seminar with a Skype presentation for students. The accomplished sound engineer, whose experiences include sound design for Pirates of the Caribbean and Finding Nemo, shared with students the creativity process he now applies to the video game series Guild Wars 1 & Guild Wars 2. Mr. Cady shared videos of his team creating sound effects out of everyday items such as cardboard boxes, musical instruments, animal calls, and even scrap metal turned to fireballs! Every student in the class had the opportunity to ask specific questions. Mr. Cady was very gracious with the time he spent with each student. In addition to the presentations, every student at Propel Braddock received a FREE online career portal accounts. This most recent UcanB program at Propel Braddock was made possible through the generous support of the Verizon Foundation. Previous to that, the program was made possible through the suport of the Education Foundation. Classes in 2018, focused on careers in entrepreneurship, the entertainment industry, softskills and networking, and careers in criminal justice. Recent speakers included: Aaron Aldrich – Bridgeway Capital Lee Davis – Presidental Award Winner, Braddock Native, and Entrepreneur Julius Boatwright – Julius Boatwright, MSW, LSW – Person-Centered Community Servant – Will Allen Foundation Jessica Albert – US Probation – Careers in Criminal...

U can B – programs and efforts align with nationwide trends. Americans have always taken pride in having the best-educated workforce in the world, but now that is no longer true. In Tough Choices, Tough Times, the New Commission on the Skills of the American Workforce reports that over the past 30 years one country after another has surpassed the United States in the percentage of its population entering the workforce with the equivalent of a high school diploma, and many more countries are on the verge of doing so. Thirty years ago, the U.S. could lay claim to having 30 percent of the world’s population of college students. Today that proportion has fallen substantially, to 14 percent, and continues to decline. American students place anywhere from the middle of the pack to the bottom in all three continuing comparative studies of achievement in mathematics, science, and general literacy among advanced industrial nations.Students from low-income families are six times more likely not to finish high school than those from high-income families. Building Bridges is a 501(c)3 organization that educates and empowers through: • Live and virtual business education and workshops • Coffee With Film Series on CBS/KDKA digital with a 1.4 M home reach. • U can B teaching program • Student portal with data analytics • and Building the Bridges across the business and workforce ecosystem. Our mission is to strengthen the economic vitality of the region by providing educational programming and opportunities for small business and students to connect with vital resources. The U can B program highlights – • Proven curriculum – Taught in school and after school programs. • “Coffee With…” videos and in person interactive discussions are used to educate students on their purpose, passion and career options. • Educational programming – for students to connect with vital business resources. The students that U can B reaches will use the analytics dashboard that allows schools to follow participating students, gain meaningful and measurable analytics, and keep up with them longitudinally as they progress. • Follow Students • Internal Messaging • Post OpportunitiesImpact • See How They Compare • Show Certifications • Organize Achievements • Geographic Data • Skills Breakdown • Test Score...

  Girls Rock Science℠ Weekend Cost: Free with Admission Date: Oct 3, 2015 Daily until Oct 4, 2015 Women make up about 50% of the workforce in the United States but hold only 25% of STEM jobs. Carnegie Science Center is working to reverse this disturbing trend through a wide range of programs, including Girls Rock Science℠ Weekend on Saturday, Oct. 3 and Sunday, Oct. 4. Carnegie Science Center is partnering with KDKA TV for a weekend designed to get girls excited about science and technology and to acquaint them with a wide range of STEM careers. Throughout the building, STEM professionals from a wide range of organizations will staff tables of interactive demonstrations and hands-on activities. On Oct. 3 only, “NCIS: Los Angeles” star Renee Felice Smith, who plays Nell Jones on the hit TV show, will headline the event and will meet and talk with families. Girls who have participated in our STEM competitions, like our Pittsburgh Regional Science & Engineering Fair and the Future City Competition, will bring their projects to display and discuss with visitors. A STEM Chat feature is being planned to foster conversations between girls and STEM professionals. STEM Chats will take place in the Works Theater, Body Stage, Planetarium, and Omnimax theaters before and after featured shows. These conversations will allow girls to talk about careers and interests with women in STEM...

  While pursuing her PhD in Biomedical Engineering at Carnegie Mellon University, Innovesca’s Founder Mary Beth Wilson came across an alarming fact that launched the idea behind Innovesca. Science has shown that when you eat a carrot up to half of the vitamin A goes waste. This is because the human body has a difficult time breaking down the rigid cell walls of plant-based foods. As a result, much of the nutrition remains physically trapped inside of the plant’s cellular structure, inaccessible for the body to absorb during digestion Inspired by this knowledge, Mary Beth founded Innovesca to apply scientific innovation towards developing whole food ingredients that deliver more nutrition per bite. As part of their unique approach, Innovesca focuses on underutilized, nutrient-dense plants that already exist throughout the world but go to waste as robust and sustainable sources of natural nutrition. Initial research and development behind Innovesca’s first ingredient based on amaranth leaves has been funded by the Gates Foundation and National Science Foundation. In addition to scientific innovation, Innovesca aims to maximize impact through their operations. By sourcing raw underutilized plants directly from smallholder farmers in developing regions, they are able to pay farmers for crops that have traditionally been considered as waste or of low value — creating new market opportunities for these farmers. Ultimately, Innovesca aim to impact global nutrition through the consumption of their ingredients. Mary Beth talks with Christopher Evans on Coffee With… about her business journey. Mentorship and support from local Pittsburgh organizations has played a key role in developing Innovesca’s commercialization strategy and overcoming challenges in starting a small business. Coffee With… is an informal interview with prominent business, community and government leaders covering a wide array of issues from business planning to entrepreneurship, and business challenges that affect the economic landscape of the region. Watch the latest installment to see more about Mary Beth Wilson and...