STEM

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...

As another successful UcanB school year comes to a close, I would like to take a minute to thank the people who make our Career Education Program possible. Our guest speakers share invaluable, real-life experiences with local 6-12th grade students to help our kids better understand the realities and expectations of future careers. The following individuals helped educate thousands of Western Pennsylvania students throughout the 2017-18 school year…   Rocco Cozza – The Cozza Company Shannon Krohe – UPMC Health Plan Domenic Mantella – I Got a Guy Solutions Gino Palmosina – Councilwoman Theresa Kail-Smith’s Office Joe Martelli – BOSS Labor Group Joe Ellis – UPMC Magee Dan Deasy – PA State Representative Jessica Albert – US Probation & Pretrial Services David Holzer – Pittsburgh Combat Club Erik Ross – Bitcore Jessica Lee – Jazz Vocalist/Vive Venture Jim Gabriel – Sevan Multi-Site Solutions Traci York – Career Training Academy Walt Bentley – Local 5 Electricians Union Dan Quigley – Quigley Photography Paul Sheldon – Dreamosophy Patrick Sullivan – Civil Environmental Consultants Erin Long – Omni William Penn Ross Acuri – Brightwood Career Institute Breanna Logan – Student @ Penn State University Anita Williams – Penn State University Greg Hojdila – Local 712 Electricians Union Julius Boatwright – Steel Smiling Lee Davis – Lee Davis & Associates Earl Lamar – Mon Valley Initiative Aaron Aldrich – Bridgeway Capital Amy LaSota – Bidwell Training Center Anjali Martin – Partner4Work/Learn n Earn Cheyenne Lamar – Partner4Work/Learn n Earn James Protin – Mackin Engineering/Author & Speaker Patrick Stefano – PA State Senator Alexander Nichols – Omega Business Consulting Camera Chatham Bartolotta – PA State Senator Corey O’Connor – Pittsburgh City Councilman Students from dozens of local school districts participated in guest presentations. These included Pittsburgh Public Schools, Sto-Rox, Springdale, Carlynton, Hopewell, Propel Schools, Clayton Academy, Belle Vernon, Laurel Highlands and more! Pictured below are some highlights from guest presentations. Jessica Albert of US Probation & Pretrial Services of Western Pennsylvania discussed Careers in Criminal Justice with students at Hopewell Junior High. Mrs. Albert visited Hopewell School District twice this school year. She also spoke with students at Sto-Rox High School, Springdale High School, Carlynton High School, Westinghouse Summer School and Propel Braddock High School. Chief US Probation Officer Belinda Ashley spoke with students at Pittsburgh Classical Academy. US Probation and #UcanB were solid partners throughout the year. Our two organizations also partnered to organize and host a community career fair on behalf of State Representative Dan Deasy and PA Senator Wayne Fontana. Julius Boatwright of Steel Smiling visits students at Propel Braddock High School. Mr. Boatwright also visited Clayton Academy Middle School students. His presentations included a career overview and a message to give back to the community. Julius Boatwright was both informative and inspiring for our #UcanB students. We look forward to having him back as a partner for the 2018-19 school year. State Representative Dan Deasy has been a regular guest speaker for the #UcanB Career Education Program for three years now. Mr. Deasy visited Sto-Rox for the second year in a row to discuss Careers in Government & Politics. He has also visited Pittsburgh Classical Academy. In addition, our organization and Rep. Deasy have partnered to host a number of career fairs and hiring events for adults in Pittsburgh’s West End Communities. The examples go on and on. It truly was a great school year. And, much of the thanks goes to our fantastic list of guest speakers. The #UcanB Program looks forward to summer and next year…and a continued partnership with all of our wonderful speakers. Thanks again for all that you...

Pittsburgh’s own Alcoa is a proud partner of our U can B program. Alcoa is a longtime supporter of education and diversity in the world marketplace – through the Alcoa Foundation, thousands of nonprofits, schools, and organizations have been able spearhead sustainable, educational, and career-building initiatives. Alcoa’s partnership with Building Bridges expands the U can B program into more schools in the Pittsburgh region, most recently being Freeport Area School District. For over 60 years, Alcoa Foundation has been a champion of supporting nonprofit organizations worldwide. Alcoa Foundation attentively supports sustainability, STEM, innovation, communities, and students on a daily basis. Funding provided by Alcoa Foundation supports leading nonprofit education and environmental organizations, building strong long-term partnerships that produce meaningful and impactful results. Recognizing the ever-growing challenges of tomorrow, Alcoa Foundation directly supports initiatives that produce an innovative and competitive workforce. At the end of the day, all of the funding decisions that Alcoa Foundation makes are driven by two imperatives: environment and education. The Alcoa Foundation has a vibrant history of supporting STEM education programs, helping thousands of students every year. Our global economy and marketplace is constantly evolving. To prepare the communities where Alcoa operates for the world to come, the Alcoa Foundation focuses on projects that increase the number of students enrolled in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) studies. Seeking to promote a more diverse workforce, Alcoa Foundation places emphasis on engaging girls, women, and other underrepresented groups to enter into science and technology fields. Some of Alcoa Foundation’s several STEM initiatives include Junior Achievement, Academy of Model Aeronautics, Society for Science and the Public, and US 2020. US2020 and Alcoa Foundation aim to bolster the STEM movement by working together to create an online mentoring program to reach 20,000 students and professionals. In line with Alcoa Foundation’s spirit of promoting innovation and education is their current support of U can B. By partnering with nonprofits like Building Bridges, Alcoa Foundation continues to contribute to economic success, environmental excellent and social responsibility worldwide. See the positive change that Alcoa Foundation enables by looking at their website....

  U can B @ Clayton High School will conclude in May with ‘Career Days at Clayton High’! Career Days will begin with an Interview Competition on May 1th. This will be followed by an in-school Career Fair on May 20th. The Building Bridges for Business U can B Program, a series of career awareness classes aimed at high school and middle school students, launched its first classes at Clayton Academy in Pittsburgh’s North Side on March 2, 2016. U can B classes at Clayton were provided through support of the Verizon Foundation. Topics for middle and high school students ranged from Career Interests to STEM-related Careers to Job Readiness Classes. Students in the middle school were registered for FREE online career profiles via STEM Premier. Students in the high school at Clayton focused specifically on topics such as Work Readiness, Job Search, Interview Skills, and Networking in preparation for Career Days. May 11th Interview Day Students are currently working on resumes and cover letters as a class project. These will be completed and reviewed by Clayton teachers prior to the Interview Day. On May 11th, students will participate in a panel style interview. U can B teachers, Clayton staff, and volunteers from the community will make up three panels. Students will cycle through for individual interviews. A scoring rubric will be used by the panelists to assess students’ interview performance. Three Awards will be selected: Best Interview, Best Resume, Best Cover Letter. Certificates and prizes will be presented to the winners. Certificates of Participation are to be presented to all students who completed the U can B Program. Winners to be announced at the May 20th Career Fair. May 20th Career Fair The U can B team has organized a Career Fair which will take place at Clayton on May 20th between 10:00-12:00. The Fair will be followed by a cookout and celebration. Students, teachers, U can B staff, employers, and volunteers are invited to attend the cookout. Approximately 65 students are expected. Awards will be presented during the cookout and celebration. The Career Fair and Cookout will be a wonderful way to conclude the school year. Students have put a lot of time and effort into the U can B Program at Clayton, and the May 20th event is their reward for that hard work. In addition to the celebration, students will have the opportunity to discuss jobs and careers with representatives from several Pittsburgh-area businesses including but not limited to United States Probation & Pretrial Services of Western PA, Allegheny Health Network, IBEX Global, Career Talk on KDKA, Legal Shield, and Arias Agencies. Arias Agencies, a division of American Income Life, has agreed to participate and present certificates of completion to the students. Title sponsor of Career Talk on KDKA, Arias Agencies has been an on-going supporter and hiring partner of the...

Description of Services – U Can B Group Sessions U Can B group sessions include a variety of activities designed to engage students of all backgrounds, levels of ability, interests, and skill level. The classroom sessions offer learning experiences through a number of hands-on and lecture-based presentations. Topic areas include the following: 1.) Work Readiness & Soft Skills – U Can B teachers and guest speakers offer a plethora of content related to work readiness and soft skills. Through video, lecture and activity, students learn about Teamwork, Communication, Critical Thinking & Problem Solving, Professionalism, Interview Skills, and Workplace Culture. 2.) Networking & Job Search – U Can B students learn from teachers and local HR representatives the most up-to-date and effective job searching techniques. These include Networking, Using Social Media, Using Social Media Responsibly, How to Work a Job Fair, Job Applications, Resume Writing, and more! 3.) Career Awareness – U Can B guest speakers provide students with first-hand career awareness and exposure to careers in IT, Health Care, Film & Media, Green & Sustainable, Veterinarian & Animal Care, Trades, Government & Politics, and Entrepreneurship. 4.) Basic IT Skills – Through the use and access to O*Net Online (a DOL career exploration database), Career Talk on KDKA, and other technologies, U Can B students have an opportunity to enhance and/or improve basic IT skills. The U Can B Program supplements classroom learning with other activities designed to educate students, give students exposure to the world of work, and to generate potential employment opportunities for high school students and/or soon-to-be graduates. U Can B services are for sure unique. The program stands alone in that it currently operates in local schools and interacts daily with the local business community. U Can B services offer a unique educational experience to local high school and middle schools students while simultaneously serving as the bridge between young, local talent and employers in the public and private sectors who are seeking the next generation of Pittsburgh’s talented...

PRESS RELEASE Aziksa, Inc. Partners with Pittsburgh based U can B to Provide Access to Life Learning Courses for High School Students Students can learn about Entrepreneurship, STEM, Trades, Politics, and More Pittsburgh, PA, May 2, 2016: Aziksa, Inc., a strategic learning platform company, inked a multi-year contract to provide a cloud based, blended learning system to U can B (Building Bridges) to expand access to courses that will allow local students to learn more about life after high school and college. The blended learning partnership will allow students to take courses online and via their mobile phones and devices at a significantly reduced cost.  This is a new blended learning partnership. “We are excited to work with U can B and the Building Bridges for Business organization,” said Aziksa President and CEO Santosh Jha. “We are committed to offering easy to use classes to young people and this partnership will allow more students to take advantage of the U can B offerings. Students can expand on their formal classroom learning by taking courses in entrepreneurship, science and technology, green and sustainable science, and a variety of trades.” The Aziksa (www.aziksa.com) cloud based, blended learning platform is designed specifically to enhance interaction between students and teachers in the online atmosphere by using the Virtual Classroom and Virtual Lab to maximize contact between the instructors and the learners. Students can sign-up online and participate in the courses from the comfort of their home and still take advantage of the many benefits of interacting with fellow learners and the instructors. Students can even access the class sessions and course with their mobile device to accommodate those on the go. “We are very pleased to be working with Aziksa. They really understand how best to deliver online learning in today’s world and I know students will benefit from the increased interaction. We looked at many blended learning options and we think Aziksa offers the best choice for our purposes,” said Linda Handley, Founder of U Can B. Entrepreneurs and businesspeople, along with the non-profit organization Building Bridges for Business, are giving local students the chance to see what life is like after high school and college. The U can B curriculum is tailored to meet your school’s needs and includes a variety of life learning courses like entrepreneurship, website design and SEO, graphic design and animation, veterinarian study and animal related careers, career preparation and networking, and green and sustainable practices and careers. The program further engages the students with our proprietary Coffee With Film series, which showcases industry leaders and politicians with a variety of insight in those careers. The program is augmented by In person speakers and experts that share real world experiences and advice in career development and planning. For more information about U can B and the Building Bridges initiative, please visit their website at https://buildingbridgesforbusiness.org or send an email to info@BuildingBridgesforBusiness.org. Building Bridges/U can B is located at 625 Stanwix Street, #1605, in Pittsburgh, PA...