Middle schoolers at CAL gain confidence for future careers at school's first science fair
Dozens of middle school students in the Derby City are getting a head start on their careers thanks to a newly created event at the Christian Academy of Louisville.
For the first time ever, the school held a science fair on Thursday for its seventh graders called "Engineering the Future."
"We are home to Ford motor plant," said Jalonda Blandford, the CAL middle school science department chairwoman. "We are home to innovative science, we are home to UofL Health Science, just to name a few. There are so many different places these kids can engage in the future and we can keep that talent right here in our community."
Blandford said the event was held, in part, to get kids excited for a budding workforce.
By 2033, the U.S. Bureau of Labor expects there to be more than 820,000 new openings for STEM jobs nationwide.
Coincidentally, that's right around the time the kids who participated in the event will be entering the workforce.
The other reason she said the event was held, was to let the kids know their ideas have the potential to impact the world in ways that are unimaginable.
For seventh grade student Dylan Peace, that idea is a wheelchair that can go up stairs.
"One singular home ramp costs over a thousand dollars," said Peace. "We don't feel like making people spend thousands of dollars just to get up the stairs, so we invented this so that they could go up easy."
He calls it The Third Wheel, and he came up with the idea with some help from his classmate.
They presented it to a panel of about 12 judges during the event. The judges consisted of doctors, aerospace engineers, mechanical engineers and electrical engineers.
"I'm just happy it can work," said Peace. "I know this can help people and help so many lives. With my grandpa, it took maybe two to three people just to get him in and out of the house. With this, it wouldn't be a struggle, and it would help save a lot of time and money."
A total of 176 students participated in the event. The students were split into pairs and quads.
They worked on their respective project for two months straight, and the event was like their final exam. Blandford said after the kids got feedback from the professionals, they were able to learn for themselves that they, too, have potential.
"I was the first kid in my family to graduate from college," said Blandford. "Having someone believe in me, having a teacher believe in me and say, 'You can do this' — it makes all the difference in the world."