During the February National Engineers Month, Portland Metro STEM Partnership, Hillsboro School District, and Intel have joined forces to bring an engineer to every 4th grade classroom in the Hillsboro School District. The enthusiasm for this project is remarkable; especially from our Intel partners who have produced over 200 volunteers. A project like this requires a great deal of coordination of logistics as well as seamless communication. Oregon Connections is our tool for managing all of the details of this ambitious effort. From the specifics of classroom procedures, activity planning, and student expectations to the logistics of date, time, and place; Oregon Connections manages strategic details so that teachers and volunteers can focus on their passion for inspiring youth
Over 200 Intel employees are preparing to bring the Pop Fly Engineering Challenge to
4th grade classrooms in Hillsboro during National Engineers Month.
Oregon Connections is a web-based system that puts hundreds of local volunteers at educators’ fingertips. The program matches teachers with industry volunteers to set-up in-person classroom visits, facility tours, STEM Nights, career fairs, and more. Currently, Oregon Connections is the central mechanism driving a collaboration between the Portland Metro STEM Partnership, Hillsboro School District, and Intel. These partners have committed to bringing an engineer to every 4th grade classroom in the Hillsboro School District for National Engineers Month. Intel’s enthusiasm for the project is especially exciting. They have over 200 volunteers ready to head out into classrooms.
While Oregon Connections simplifies the logistics of in-person, classroom visits for large projects such as National Engineers Month; it is just as effective at matching a volunteer to a single classroom for a visit. Here too it coordinates visit details, offers examples of successful interactions, and centralizes communication. Additionally, access to in-person interactions is free for all educators in Oregon. At its heart, Oregon Connections is a community of students, industry professionals, and educators that offers career inspiration to Oregon’s youth.