Learning and experiencing
1,100 students attend STREAM manufacturing expo to learn about careers
An estimated 1,100 students attended the STREAM Kids Manufacturing Expo at the Santa Clarita Sports Complex on Friday morning to learn about career options in emerging manufacturing and technology fields.
The event was organized by STREAM Kids and a joint committee that included College of the Canyons, the William S. Hart Union High School District and the city of Santa Clarita.
It featured interactive booths from local businesses, as well as organizations like JPL and Lockheed Martin.
“A number of industries are represented. We have biomedical, we have the aerospace field as well as manufacturing and construction,” said Mariane Doyle, director of career and college readiness for the Hart District. “There are lots of opportunities for students to engage.”
Many of the exhibits at the expo let students take a hands-on approach to learning. COC’s welding program gave students the opportunity to learn how to use industrial welding equipment under the supervision of technicians from their program.
“We want to have more accessibility for kids and we want more children to have access to what it looks like once you’re done with high school,” said Renee Marshall, educational consultant and teacher preparation expert with the Santa Clarita Community College District. “Back in the day, people used to say that everybody always has to go to college, but that’s not the reality.”
The event organizers hoped that exposing kids to different career options at an early age will help them be better equipped to find their own paths later in life.
“It just opened the kids’ minds up,” said Marshall of the event.