“When I started high school, I was interested in the sciences mostly. My two career paths that I thought I would follow were biology and chemistry. These fit into the science part of STEM. When I decided to follow the STEM pathway at Oley, I still had these careers in mind. Freshman year, I took Intro to Engineering Design with Mr. Buckner and liked it a lot. In sophomore year, I took Intro to Electronics and Principles Of Engineering. ... This is what made me focus more on electrical engineering pathways more than biology or chemistry as a career. In junior year, I took Environmental Sustainability and Computer Science Essentials. These classes were both really enjoyable and I learned a lot from both. In my senior year is when I really emphasized electronics and electrical engineering in my scheduling. I took AP Computer Science, Digital Electronics, and Intro To Microcontrollers and Microprocessors. AP Computer Science and Digital Electronics were pretty challenging, but they were two of my favorite classes ever. Digital Electronics really revealed my passion for electronics. I really enjoyed all of the STEM classes I took, but the best ones for me were the electronics and computer science classes. I feel that the STEM program at Oley has thoroughly prepared me for college." - Michael Cleaveland, OVHS Class of 2020

“I knew I wanted to go into electrical and computer engineering before high school, but the STEAM program at Oley allowed me to further explore the field I was interested in. With classes like Digital Electronics and AP Computer Science, I was able to explore both the software side as well as the hardware side of my field and discover my interests within the field. I was able to apply these skills to my senior design project, which involved programming in Python on a Raspberry Pi to create a device to help detect conditions ideal for the growth of mold in a room before it’s too late. I now study computer engineering at Drexel University and use the skills I learned at Oley’s STEAM program in my classes on a regular basis. Almost all the material I have covered in my freshman year of college has been covered at some point in one of my STEAM classes at Oley. Without this experience, I would likely have been far less prepared for engineering school.” - Brandon Oesterle, OVHS Class of 2019