The “What’s So Cool About Manufacturing” video contest will return this spring to offer students across Pennsylvania a chance to connect with local manufacturers.
The contest allows seventh and eighth grade students to develop, shoot, edit and produce a “cool” video that showcases their experiences partnering with manufacturers.
“What’s So Cool About Manufacturing” was started in 2013 in the Lehigh Valley by Manufacturers Resource Center (MRC), a federal and state-funded nonprofit that offers assistance to small and midsize manufacturers.
The program’s goal is to create a video-based educational tool that increases awareness of career paths and technology in manufacturing by letting kids tell kids what’s cool about manufacturing.
Student teams from each participating middle school partner with a local manufacturer to produce their video entries.
Contest entries are showcased on the “What’s So Cool About Manufacturing” website during a voting period for the public to choose a nominee for a Viewer’s Choice Award. Each region’s panel of judges selects winners.
Entries are then archived in a video library on the website that acts as a who’s who of manufacturers in the state, and features more than 600 companies.
Since its start, the contest has grown to encompass all of Pennsylvania, with localized contests now taking place in 12 regions throughout the state, and in one region in New York.
Over 60% of public schools in the state have participated in the contest, according to the Manufacturers Resource Center.
Karen Buck, director of workforce initiatives for MRC, said she was thrilled to kick off another year of the competition.
“The potential for careers in manufacturing are demonstrated firsthand by the manufacturers and the students get excited about the possibility of working in a cool, modern environment that they may never have imagined,” Buck said in a release. “We encourage students to explore CTE and STEM education as they prepare for their high school years. The program creates limitless opportunities for both manufacturers and students.”
The contest is returning to Berks and Schuylkill counties for its ninth year, with student teams from 30 middle schools participating.
“MRC is proud to bring What’s So Cool About Manufacturing to the Berks and Schuylkill area for its ninth year,” Rich Hobbs, MRC president and chief executive officer, said in a release. “The program’s continued success and impact can be attributed to the efforts the teachers and students have put forth, along with the many partners and community sponsors committed to building a future workforce.”
Videos will be posted to the contest website and will be open to public voting for a Viewer’s Choice Award on March 19. Winners will be announced at the Berks Schuylkill awards event on April 1 at the DoubleTree by Hilton in Reading.
The contest in Berks and Schuylkill counties is produced by the Manufacturer’s Resource Center, in partnership with the Berks Business Education Coalition, Kutztown Small Business Development Center, eMediaWorks and Sahl Communications Inc.
In Chester and Delaware counties, the 2025 contest is produced by the Manufacturing Alliance of Chester and Delaware Counties. Ten teams from middle schools in the region will participate.
Voting for Chester and Delaware counties will be open on the “What’s So Cool” website from March 26 through 28. An awards event announcing the winners is slated for April 9 at Penn State Great Valley in Malvern.
The contest for the Philadelphia region — which includes Montgomery County — will feature teams from 11 schools that will be matched with a manufacturer.
Voting for the Philadelphia region will be open on the contest website from March 19 to 21, and an awards ceremony will take place April 3 at the Normandy Farms Conference Center in Blue Bell.
The Philadelphia contest is produced by the Delaware Valley Industrial Resource Center.
Nominees from the regional competitions will head to Harrisburg in May to compete in the annual statewide awards, where a national panel of judges will select the state’s top three videos. In addition, the team that receives the highest number of votes per day during the contest period will be recognized with the state Viewers Choice award.
The competition has inspired similar events in other states, with the contest’s format being used in over a dozens states before the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the “What’s So Cool” website. Similar contests this year are slated for Tennessee and West Virginia.
