Transportation Jobs for Young People is Focus of UMaine Institute
Contact: Sheila Pendse, 581-1427; Philip Dunn, 581-2326; George Manlove, 581-3756
ORONO — After a hiring surge in the 1960s, many employees in the state’s transportation industry are now starting to retire, creating a growing need for new blood in a field many young people may overlook.
In a concerted effort to make young people aware of the multitude of job opportunities in the transportation industry, the University of Maine, in conjunction with state and federal highway agencies, is hosting a Maine Summer Transportation Institute for Bangor-area middle school students.
Area school guidance counselors have been asked to select students to apply to the institute, scheduled at the Foster Student Innovation Center on the Orono campus August 4-15. Approximately 20 sixth-, seventh-, and eighth-grade students will learn about new frontiers and adventures in the transportation field. Accepted students also will participate in computer training, academic enhancement activities, field trips and relevant student projects.
Philip Dunn Jr., an assistant professor of construction management technology in the university’s School of Engineering Technology and a 20-year veteran of the Maine Department of Transportation, is technical director of the institute. He says some transportation industry jobs may not seem as glamorous as some higher-profile careers, but they are equally important.
“Some people don’t appreciate the career opportunities the industry has to offer,” says Dunn. “Everybody just expects when they go out that there are going to be bridges and or a train to get from point A to point B. The infrastructure is there but it’s not always visible.”
Nor is the work that goes into highway and bridge design and construction, and other aspects of the industry — including alternative fuels, industry law and regulations, construction materials, moving people and cargo, inter-modal transportation and safety, among others.
The institute is the first of what is expected to be an annual event, according to Sheila Pendse, program development associate at the Foster Center and project director of the institute. The 2008 session is supported by a grant from the Federal Highway Administration and Maine Department of Transportation.
It is open to students attending public and private schools, and students from low-income families, underrepresented ethnic backgrounds and geographical locations, and girls are encouraged to apply.
The institute is “an extremely intense and structured learning opportunity” for youth in the middle school systems of Maine, Pendse says.
Students selected for the expenses-paid institute must be in the fifth, sixth or seventh grade for the 2007-2008 school year, have an interest in engineering, science, transportation or a technology-related career, and provide letters of recommendation, grade reports, and essays explaining why they want to participate and how the experience will assist in meeting individual career goals.
Applications are due by June 10. Additional information is available by calling Pendse at 581-1427 or Dunn at 581-2326, or by emailing sheila.pendse@umit.maine.edu or philip.dunn@umit.maine.edu
Application forms and other information can be downloaded from the Innovation Center website (http://www2.umaine.edu/innovation/k12/msti).