Pottstown High School Advanced Computer Applications students, along with their teacher Mr. Dennis Arms, learned some valuable lessons by visiting several community partners. The students first met with Pottstown Mercury Editor Mrs. Nancy March and Community Engagement Editor Diane Hoffman. The Mercury Community Media Lab Center, located at 24 N. Hanover Street, was the site of the student visit. Students learned how they can be part of the community focused news gathering and engagement efforts by starting a blog that would appear on The Mercury website. They also found that the Community Lab could serve as a place for them to do homework and host club meetings. March and Hoffman were very happy to share with the students how The Mercury uses technology and the career opportunities that are available in the media industry. Nancy March noted, “We are happy to be able to share with students the various opportunities they have to help improve the quality of life in our community.” The students then took a short walk to 130 King Street, the home of “iCreate Cafe” to meet the owner Ash Khalil. Mr. Khalil took the students on a tour of his very unique computer training center and café. Students heard firsthand from a local business owner the process he followed to create his business from business plan into grand opening of the iCreate Café. The class was surprised to learn that they could enrich their skills by taking classes at the café that included Adobe Photoshot, web design, CAD, programming, and Arabic. In addition to learning about technology, students also explored some new food choices as they were treated to some of the café’s staple items – including hummus, baba ghanooj, and manaeish. Mr. Khalil expressed, “I am very happy to be able to host the students who are eager to learn about the technologies that will be the stables of the 21st century economy and communications.” Computer Applications teacher Dennis Arms pointed out, “Our students gained some very valuable knowledge today and we were able to do that by simply taking a walk downtown and sharing knowledge with our community partners.”
