What’s So Cool About Manufacturing® 8th Annual Statewide Awards Announces Winners
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 13th 2026
Contact:
Kim Plyler
kim@sahlcomm.com
484-554-5582
What’s So Cool About Manufacturing® 8th Annual Statewide Awards takes place at the Whitaker Center in Harrisburg, PA
Harrisburg, PA. – May 13th, 2026 – What’s So Cool About Manufacturing® (WSCM) is proud to announce the award recipients for the eighth annual “Best of PA” Statewide Awards Event. The awards show was held at the Whitaker Center in Harrisburg, PA, and began at 12:30 pm. This year, the contest included 22 student teams competing for first, second and third place awards, and recognition for the Statewide Viewers Choice winner.
A three-judge panel, viewed the 22 entries, representing 13 regional contests across Pennsylvania and a total of 166 student videos, to select the statewide award recipients.
“The continued success of the What’s So Cool program validates its effort to generate excitement toward careers in the manufacturing sector and to promote STEM education and technical training among students and parents.” said Karen Buck, Director of Workforce Initiatives Manufacturers Resource Center (MRC). “We are so excited and proud to celebrate the Best of PA 2026 student teams and highlight their videos!”
This year’s awards are as follows:
First Place: Nazareth Area Middle School featuring B. Braun Medical Inc. (Lehigh Valley Contest)
Second Place: Saucon Valley Middle School featuring Crayola (Lehigh Valley Contest)
Third Place: Manheim Township Middle School featuring Ecore International (South Central East Contest)
Statewide Viewers Choice recognition: Springhouse Middle School featuring Mack Trucks from the Lehigh Valley Contest was recognized for garnering the largest number of regional vote totals across the state, during three days of online voting where all Pennsylvania teams competed to win their regional Viewers Choice Award.
The “What’s So Cool About Manufacturing” Student Video Contest, which originated in the Lehigh Valley and is the brainchild of MRC, has garnered over 7,000,000 combined votes by the public during regional online voting dates since its inception in 2013, and more than 60% of Pennsylvania school districts have participated in the program.
The WSCM Student Video Contest gives students the opportunity to interact with local manufacturers as they gain new perspectives about careers and technology, record their experiences, and present them in an educational and “cool” way through documentary video production. The contest was created to generate excitement that draws students toward considering manufacturing career paths to create a 21st century workforce.
Spearheading the 2026 regional contests in Pennsylvania are as follows:
Berks Schuylkill Program: Berks Business-Education Coalition (BBEC), eMediaWorks, Kutztown Small Business Development Center, Manufacturers Resource Center (MRC), and Sahl Communications
Central Susquehanna Program: Advance Central PA, Central Susquehanna Intermediate Unit, Innovative Manufacturers’ Center (IMC), and The Foundation of the Columbia Montour Chamber of Commerce
Chester Delaware Program: Manufacturing Alliance of Chester and Delaware Counties
Lehigh Valley Program: eMediaWorks, EmpowerStar Enterprises, Manufacturers Resource Center (MRC), and Sahl Communications
North Central Program: Workforce Solutions for North Central Pennsylvania
Northern Tier Program: Northern Tier Regional Planning & Development Commission
Philadelphia Region Program: Delaware Valley Industrial Resource Center (DVIRC)
Pittsburgh Central Program: Catalyst Connection
Pittsburgh East Program: Catalyst Connection
South Central East Program: MANTEC
South Central West Program: MANTEC
Southern Alleghenies Program: Bedford County Technical Center (BCTC), the Bedford County Development Association, and the Bedford County 21st Century Community Learning Center Consortium
West Central Program: Penn-Northwest Development Corporation
Funding for regional contests is provided by community stakeholders.
For more information regarding the “What’s So Cool About Manufacturing®” Student Video Contest please visit: WhatsSoCool.org/BestofPA, www.WhatsSoCool.org, https://www.whatssocool.org/video-library/
About “What’s So Cool About Manufacturing®”
Developed by Manufacturers Resource Center (MRC), the WSCM program is a video-based educational tool that increases awareness of career paths and technology in manufacturing through “peer marketing” (kids telling kids what’s so cool about manufacturing jobs). The contest is showcased on the What’s So Cool Website and shared nationally through the Manufacturing Institute and the Manufacturing Extension Partnership platforms. The Lehigh Valley contest has expanded across the Commonwealth and the country.
The “What’s So Cool About Manufacturing” comprehensive manufacturing video library was created by MRC and WSCM PA in 2020 and funded by the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development (PADCED). The interactive library of the who’s who in Pennsylvania manufacturing, garnered from the yearly regional contests, is intended to serve as an educational resource for anyone curious about manufacturing in Pennsylvania. The library can be accessed through the WhatsSoCool.org website and contains over 1600 student videos featuring 700 Pennsylvania manufacturers.
This contest allows students to connect with local manufacturers, document their experiences, and present them in an educational and “cool” way. The contest was created to generate excitement that draws students towards manufacturing career paths, and CTC and STEM education. Original funding for “What’s So Cool About Manufacturing” was furnished by a grant from the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development (PADCED).
About Manufacturers Resource Center: For over 35 years, the Manufacturers Resource Center (MRC) has helped small and mid-sized manufacturers become more competitive, adopt lean and agile processes, strategically grow their companies, and invest more effectively in their existing human capital. MRC is a nonprofit organization partially funded by the U.S. Department of Commerce’s NIST-MEP program and the State of Pennsylvania’s Department of Community and Economic Development. MRC is dedicated to creating jobs and economic opportunities in eastern Pennsylvania’s Berks, Carbon, Lehigh, Northampton, and Schuylkill counties. Learn more at www.mrcpa.org.
Kim I Plyler
CEO SahlComm
306 S New St
Bethlehem, Pa 18015
c: 484-554-5582