MAy 2008 Issue
BRANCHING OUT
Fort McMurray Visitors Bring Messages and Fun
To Fort Chip Students
BY JASON KACHUR, P.ENG.
Fort McMurray Branch Chair
STRONG STRAWS
Fort Chipewyan students take on the straw tower challenge, during a visit of Syncrude APEGGA members to their community in December.
On Dec. 10, 2007, three professional engineers flew from Fort McMurray to Fort Chipewyan to visit local students and demonstrate that science professions do have a connection to Aboriginal cultures. Cases in point — Wayne Kosik, P.Eng., and Dan Brown, P.Eng., the two other Syncrude professionals who volunteered their time for this trip.
Wayne, an Alberta Métis Aboriginal, did the bulk of the presentation in Fort Chipewyan, where most students are Aboriginal. Dan is a treaty status Indian.
Wayne told the ninth-through-12th-grade students about his grandfather, who, as a fur buyer, made many trips to Fort Chipewyan until 1976. In 1992 Wayne was there to inspect the construction of a pump house built to bring water to the Fort Chipewyan Lodge.
Flying time was approximately 55 minutes each way. Upon arrival, we rented a van from a local resident and went to the local lodge for lunch. Afterwards, we began with a 40-minute presentation to more than 35 students on engineering and other careers regulated by APEGGA.
Dan and I discussed electrical and chemical engineering careers, respectively. I stressed the importance of APEGGA as a regulatory body that governs all engineers, geologists and geophysicists in Alberta.
We let students know that we understand their difficulty in completing university entrance requirements in their community. We let them know that if they wanted to pursue a career in engineering, universities do offer transition years to help them. We then discussed qualifying by first going to a college and then transferring.
I believe that, as representatives of APEGGA, we demonstrated that role models are available and APEGGA professions are attainable.
Then came the fun part. After the presentation, we held a competition to build a tower out of straws, which had to hold a small ball.
First place went to four boys for a tower with a height of 49.5 inches to the bottom of the ball it held. In second, four girls reached a height of 37.5 inches. And, in third place, a group of four girls managed 17.5 inches.
Each student placing first received $25, second $10 and third $5. Each winning student also received an APEGGA pen.
Our total time with the students ended up at close to two hours. Teachers said it went very well, particularly once the competition kicked in.
Afterwards we met with the principal and talked about future trips. It was agreed that once a year would be beneficial. The principal said it would be great if the same people made the trips, each year, to build a relationship with the kids.
For each student, we left behind Syncrude career DVDs, APEGGA pamphlets and cube puzzles.