Area K-12 students learn about STEM careers during Albany Tech’s Engineering Week

ALBANY – Albany Technical College instructor Dennis Courtney can give up to 90,000 reasons for students to pursue a two-year degree in an engineering field, which corresponds to the $90,000 starting salary that he said some people can earn.

This week Albany Tech hosted students from area schools for three days during Engineering Week, celebrating science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).

“A kid can come out to Albany Tech and get a two-year degree or a certificate or a diploma and make $60,000 to $90,000 starting out,” Courtney said during an interview in between speaking with groups of students making their way through the building. “That’s outperforming four times the jobs that someone might get coming out of high school, making $15,000 to $20,000.”

There also are a number of employers eager to hire workers with training in STEM fields, the instructor and chair of electrical and computer engineering technology said. Those include Georgia-Pacific, Marine Corps Logistics Base-Albany, Molson Coors and Procter & Gamble, among others. 

“For every four engineering positions for technology, electrician, we only have two applicants,” Courtney said. “The pace of growth over the next decade is going to be 15% in filling those jobs.

“That’s why your two-year technology institutions are vital. You come out here for two years, and they’ll hire you. They’ll be looking for you.”

During the three days of Engineering Week, students participated through interactive STEM stations featuring robotics, drones, electronics, engineering design challenges, automation technologies and other real-world applications of engineering concepts. Students get to experience college-level labs and equipment and learn about career pathways.

The week is about sparking imagination and showing students that STEM careers can be exciting, accessible and achievable, Courtney said, and to see themselves as problem-solvers filling those roles.

In another classroom, Ebony Johnson, an instructor and chair of the industrial electrical/electrical construction and automation and robotics technology programs, used a “Simon Says” STEM game on a screen that is designed to enhance cognitive skills and memory.

“It’s an applied instructive game, so they can test their senses and get them familiar with the different programs,” Johnson said. “They get an extensive amount of knowledge that they can take with them. They’re also having a good time.”