Texas Border Business
MCALLEN, Texas – The Center for Advanced Training and Apprenticeships (CATA) at South Texas College recently welcomed over 40 students from the Boys and Girls Clubs in McAllen and Mission for a hands-on, occupational workshop meant to introduce them to the vast career options made possible through STC’s Technology Campus.
Students took part in fun activities meant to introduce them to basic concepts in construction, electrician work, machining and robotics.
“When you do something, you learn something. We are introducing these students to all these occupational areas, so they remember it when they are considering their careers in the future,” said Carlos Margo, Ph.D., dean of CATA at STC. “This is the kind of hands-on experience I want them to take with them. It’s all about getting experience and work-based learning, which to me, is the best way to learn.”
Keynote speaker for the workshop was Sara Hammond, president of Atlas Electrical, Air Conditioning, Refrigeration and Plumbing Services who is highly recognized for her approach to helping emerging entrepreneurs and assisting women-owned businesses.
“The message I’m trying to convey to students is to trust themselves and to understand that working with your hands and with your brain at the same time is truly a gift because you get to recreate and redesign,” Hammond said. “And to the young females here, I want to stress the fact that now women have a place at the table. We do belong and the future is ours to create new divisions working with our male colleagues for better ideas and better creations. This is a passion of mine and I’m so excited to see all the young women here.”
Students at the workshop spent the morning getting introduced to the various technology available at the STC Technology Campus including Computer Numerical Control (CNC) machines and Fuji Automatic Numerical Control (FANUC) robotics.
They were also given a lesson on wiring by STC Electrician Technology faculty as well as construction techniques by the college’s Construction Supervision program.
“Our biggest focus is to make sure our students are workforce ready, and with this collaboration with STC it gives them an insight of what types of careers there are out there for them” said Katherine Maravilla, Boys and Girls Club-McAllen team director. “STC is helping us to ensure that students are highly aware that there are skillsets that are needed, and together we are giving them the hands-on experience they need to succeed in the workforce.”
McAllen Boys and Girl Club student Karina Medina, 16, who plans to enter a career in engineering said she was amazed at all the technology and resources available at STC and was glad to see all the faculty and staff at the college who came together to host an incredible workshop for students.
“Until now, I have never had the opportunity to see what STC was all about so this was a totally new experience for me, which I completely enjoyed,” Medina said. “I approached this as a sneak peek into my future career, so I’m thankful for all the professors who allowed me to be here and to learn through all the activities that were made available for us and even network with professionals like Ms. (Sara) Hammond.”
Another McAllen Boys and Girls Club student, Genesis Trevino, 16, said she would like to enter a career in education and was inspired by the knowledge shown by faculty in attendance at the workshop.
“I have always wanted to be an educator, so coming here opened my eyes to all the possibilities and just the professionalism of the teachers here,” Trevino said. “I feel it was extremely important to be here, and one of the biggest pieces of advice I can give to students my age or younger is to take every opportunity that comes to you because opportunities don’t come along very often. It’s so important to get all the experience you can.”
For more information about STC CATA, visit www.southtexascollege.edu/cata/.
