“What’s So Cool About Manufacturing®” Announces 2023 Lehigh Valley Awards
Online Votes Tally 339,663 and over 1,000 People Attended the Event, Broadcast Live on WFMZ
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Kim Plyler
kim@sahlcomm.com
484-554-5582
LEHIGH VALLEY, PA – MARCH 14, 2023 – Manufacturers Resource Center (MRC) is proud to announce the award recipients for the What’s So Cool About Manufacturing® Lehigh Valley Student Video Contest awards, which featured 33 middle schools and manufacturers from Carbon, Lehigh, Monroe, and Northampton counties. The ceremony was broadcast live on WFMZ, thanks to generous contributions from Air Products, Workforce Board Lehigh Valley, and WFMZ in partnership with Manufacturers Resource Center. Over 1,000 people attended the event, held Tuesday, March 14, 2023 at the ArtsQuest Center at SteelStacks Bethlehem, PA.
Over a three-day voting period, the contest, which featured two-minute videos produced by each student team, received 339,663 votes. The video with the most votes received the “Viewers Choice Award.” Student videos were also reviewed by a panel of judges for awards in ten other categories, including Outstanding Videography and Outstanding Creativity.
Preceding the main program, culinary arts programs from Bethlehem Area Vocational-Technical School, Career Institute of Technology, and Lehigh Career & Technical Institute hosted a dessert reception and Cupcake Competition, judged by Carlo’s Bakery and Factory. Water and candy were provided by BlueTriton Brands and Just Born Quality Confections.
“Ten years ago, we started work on What’s So Cool about Manufacturing. We hoped to engage and inspire Lehigh Valley students, but could not have imagined that millions would be interested in middle school videos of manufacturing facilities,” says Karen Buck, Director, Workforce Initiatives at MRC. “The community has come to expect the information about careers and technology the student teams so diligently spotlight in their educational and creative media messages. We applaud the efforts of the 33 student teams who raised awareness about cool career opportunities and broke all previous voting records.”
The 2023 video contest award winners are:
- Outstanding Overall Program: Lower Macungie Middle School – B. Braun Medical Inc.
- Outstanding Editing: Springhouse Middle School – BlueTriton Brands
- Outstanding Creativity: Bangor Area Middle School – Victaulic Company
- Outstanding Cool: East Hills Middle School – ProtoCAM
- Outstanding Team Spirit: Orefield Middle School – Precision Roll Grinders
- Outstanding Educational Value: Nitschmann Middle School – ABEC
- Outstanding Videography: Northeast Middle School – Stanley Black & Decker
- Viewers Choice: J.T. Lambert Intermediate School – Ultra-Poly Corporation
- Outstanding Outreach Plan: Saucon Valley Middle School – Kitchen Magic
- Outstanding Career Pathway: Trexler Middle School – Lutron Electronics Co., Inc.
- Outstanding CTE Story: J.T. Lambert Intermediate School – Ultra-Poly Corporation
Visit WhatsSoCool.org for more information and resources and follow on social media @wscmlv.
This year’s educational media resources, GoPro Camera kits, professional media training, materials, and project costs were funded and made possible by the following:
Leadership Sponsors: Air Products and Workforce Board Lehigh Valley
Technology Sponsor: Lutron Electronics Co., Inc.
Website Sponsor: Hammer Marketing
Platinum Sponsors: ABEC, ATAS International, B. Braun Medical Inc., Embassy Bank, Follett Products, LLC, J.G. Petrucci Company, Inc., Stanley Black & Decker, and Univest Financial
Networking Sponsor: Banyan Partners
Gold Sponsors: Aerotek, Crayola, E-MediaWorks, Fulton Bank, Gross McGinley, LLP, JPMorgan Chase & Co., Lehigh University, Lehigh Valley Health Network, Lehigh Valley Plastics, M&T Bank, Mack Trucks, Members 1st FCU, Mid Penn Bank, Miller-Keystone Blood Center, Ocean Spray Cranberries, Inc., OraSure Technologies, Inc., PNC, PPL Electric Utilities and Sahl Communications, Inc.
Silver Sponsors: Bosch Rexroth Corporation, Eastern Surfaces, Fidelity Bank, Fromm Electric, HMK Insurance, JULABO USA, Lehigh Carbon Community College, Lehigh County, Lehigh Valley Economic Development Corporation, Northampton Community College, Piramal Critical Care, Precision Roll Grinders, ProtoCAM, and Victaulic Company
Bronze Sponsors: Bethlehem Area Vocational-Technical School, Carbon Career & Technical Institute, Carbon Chamber & Economic Development Corporation, Carbon Lehigh Intermediate Unit, Career Institute of Technology, C.F. Martin & Co., Just Born Quality Confections, Lehigh Career & Technical Institute, National Museum of Industrial History, Northeastern Pennsylvania Industrial Resource Center, and U.S. Anodize
Media Sponsors: 99.9 The Hawk, Adams Outdoor Advertising, Lehigh Valley Business Journal, LehighValleyNews.com, WDIY, and WFMZ 69 News
Cupcake Competitors: Bethlehem Area Vocational-Technical School, Career Institute of Technology, and Lehigh Career & Technical Institute
Cupcake Judges: Carlo’s Bakery and Factory LLC
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Kim I Plyler, CEO
SahlComm
+1 484-554-5582
kim@sahlcomm.com