More than 450 high school students from 12 Houston Independent School District (HISD) schools recently visited UH's Sugar Land Instructional Site for a hands-on day of learning and exploration as part of the Technology Division's second annual Catapult Career Summit.
Described as a "STEM Pathway to Success", this initiative – made possible with generous support from Port Houston – is a partnership between the Technology Division and HISD's Career and Technical Education program. Participating Technology Division programs included Supply Chain & Logistics Technology (SCLT), Construction Management (CM), Mechanical Engineering Technology (MET), and Biotechnology.
“This program allows students who are interested in pursuing a post-secondary experience in technology fields a hands-on, tangible opportunity to learn more about their chosen industry and make the best decisions as they move forward with their educations,” said HISD Senior Program Manager and UH alumnus Dana Carmouche, Ph.D. “I think they really enjoy the hands-on perspective, as well as being able to engage with the professors and students already involved with these programs.”
"We've developed a great relationship with HISD. Dr. Balan, Dr. Zhu and I joined the Business Advisory Board for HISD Career and Technical Education (CTE), so we attend quarterly meetings and engage with efforts like providing feedback on curricula,” said SCLT Program Director Margaret Kidd. “HISD has a really strong CTE program. They have a large number of career clusters where they offer courses related to a specific endorsement, including dual-credit work, so that when students graduate from high school they've already got a basic skillset foundation.”
The Catapult Initiative was launched as part of the supply chain and logistics program's innovation initiative, and in response to the global supply chain disruptions witnessed during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. These disruptions have driven a new era for advanced manufacturing and related disciplines in the United States – especially Texas.
The initiative allows students to explore real-world problems within supply chain and logistics, construction, engineering and biotechnology while learning about the demands and opportunities in local high-demand, high-growth fields.
“Typically, when high school students visit a college, they're just doing a tour,” Kidd added. “We did activities! We had augmented and virtual reality glasses, a sales sequence where teams had to stand up and pitch the features, advantages, and benefits of a toy car, we modeled paper airplanes to examine their design and performance, and even a quality control and manufacturing challenge. I think people really learn by hands-on activities, and I think that's what sets this experience apart from the typical high school visit to a college campus.”
“I was involved in organizing the tour of our technology laboratories,” said biotechnology Associate Professor Venkatesh Balan, Ph.D. “Students were grouped into four teams and rotated through our different biotechnology labs. They interacted with our undergraduate and graduate students to learn about what they're doing in terms of research, and they got to participate in the making of some new algae samples. These students got a good impression of what biotechnology is, the benefits of studying it, how it helps the community, and how it helps to solve burning issues of food security, climate change, carbon sequestration, biofuels, pharmacotherapies, and more.”
“Our HISD Catapult event is an important recruitment tool and a great opportunity for us to connect with HISD's high school students,” said MET professor Weihang Zhu, Ph.D. “Hundreds of students toured our state-of-the-art Mechanical Engineering Technology labs, including the fabrication lab and the robotics and automation lab. Those interested in computer engineering technology (CET) also had the opportunity to observe demonstrations showcasing CET senior design projects.”
“The Department of Engineering Technology values the opportunity we had to showcase our distinctive, hands-on experiential academic programs in biotechnology, computer, electrical power, and mechanical engineering technology to visiting students from HISD,” agreed Department Chair and CET and biotechnology professor Fatima Merchant, Ph.D.
“During their visit, students had the chance to explore our state-of-the-art facilities, engage with current students and faculty members, and witness demonstrations of engineering technology senior capstone projects and faculty research. We believe that these information sessions and tours provided valuable perspectives, enabling visiting students to gather essential information and experience our unique campus atmosphere. This exposure will empower students to make informed choices about their academic and personal futures.”
With sights set on involving Fort Bend ISD, Katy ISD and Lamar CISD in the Catapult program in the future, Kidd imagines what might be a multi-day even to accommodate all interested students.
“According to the Houston-Galveston Area Council, which is the master planning organization for our eight-county region, our local growth is really going to be centered in Sugar Land and Katy over the next 30 years or so,” she said. “The job opportunities are growing quickly, and that's why this program and our presence here are so important.”