On January 24, 220 eighth-grade students attended SUNY Broome SPARK.
SPARK is an immersive career exploration event devoted to highlighting the educational and professional opportunities available in the area. Geared for eighth graders, the event aims to spark interest in fields ranging from healthcare, to engineering, to computer science, to skilled trades, and beyond. Students learned how to power electricity to their homes via a live line demo from NYSEG, prepped for surgery with Lourdes, and installed drywall with the NASRCC Local 277 Carpenters. They combatted cyber fraud with M&T Bank, built potato batteries with iM3NY, and operated heavy machinery with Smith Site Development.
SPARK is a collaboration between SUNY Broome, Greater Binghamton Education Outreach Program (GBEOP), Broome-Tioga BOCES, Broome-Tioga Workforce, and Leadership Alliance. Together, the group formulated a plan to tackle the region’s growing workforce concerns of attracting and retaining local talent through early career exploration for pre-high school students. Nearly 2000 eighth graders from across the region participated.
