Students in the Commercial Baking and Pre-Engineering & Engineering Technology programs teamed up to produce LCTI’s Cupcake Wars entry.

BETHLEHEM, Pa. | Lehigh Career & Technical Institute won second place Tuesday in the inaugural What’s So Cool About Manufacturing? Cupcake Wars at SteelStacks.

LCTI was bested only by Bethlehem Area Vocational-Technical School in the battle for sweets supremacy. Carbon Career & Technical Institute, Career Institute of Technology and Monroe Career & Technical Institute also participated in the competition judged by representatives from Carlo’s Bakery.

Students from the Commercial Baking and Pre-Engineering & Engineering Technology programs teamed up to prepare LCTI’s Cupcake Wars entry. Baking students whipped up 400 cupcakes — red velvet with cream cheese frosting and caramel with buttercream frosting — while Pre-Engineering students programmed a robotic arm to serve the treats. The high-tech cupcake delivery system was a big hit at a dessert reception following Dream It. Do It. PA’s What’s So Cool About Manufacturing? Video Contest awards ceremony.

Cupcake Wars is an offshoot of the video contest, which raises awareness about manufacturing career paths among middle school students by challenging them to produce video profiles of local manufacturers. Thirty-one pairs of middle schools and manufacturers participated in this year’s contest, which culminated in Tuesday night’s awards ceremony at the ArtsQuest Center.

Hundreds of people — most of them students, parents and educators — turned out for the fourth annual event. PBS39 WLVT Executive Producer Laura McHugh served as emcee and Pennsylvania Department of Economic & Community Development Secretary Dennis Davin delivered remarks. Pretaped remarks from Gov. Tom Wolfe were played, as well.

The following Lehigh County schools left the ceremony with trophies and bragging rights:

• Northern Lehigh Middle School won the Outstanding Educational Value Award for their video about ProtoCAM. They tied with Saucon Valley Middle School.
• Orefield Middle School won the Outstanding Cool Award for their video about Wacker Chemical Corporation.
• Trexler Middle School won the Outstanding Team Spirit Award for their video about Atlas Machining & Welding, Inc.

As in past years, LCTI’s Precision Machine Tool Technology instructors and students made the trophies presented to each of the winning teams.

Kudos and congratulations to all of this year’s What’s So Cool About Manufacturing? Video Contest and Cupcake Wars participants and winners!

Learn more about how the Commercial Baking and Precision Machine Tool Technology, and Pre-Engineering & Engineering Technology programs prepare students for success.

Read the complete news release.

Media Contact: Precious Petty, Public Relations Coordinator, 610-799-1450, pettyp@lcti.org