The Pittsburgh Technical Institute (PTI) is promoting social change in the world by awarding five high school students a $7,000 scholarship.
The Promote Change scholarship requires students to do just that by creating a campaign using three projects.
Nick Talotta, senior director of admissions, said students can create posters, design websites or even sponsor a fundraising activity.
“Maybe give a speech on a cause or an initiative that’s dear to them, hold a rally,” Talotta said. “I’ve seen some young folks develop and design like a walk for heart disease through the American Heart Association; I’ve seen some folks campaign for breast cancer awareness.”
He wants millennials, who he believes are not satisfied with the status quo of society, to use this as a platform to promote change.
“They’re very attuned to what’s going on around them, and so I think it’s come naturally to them to embrace these type of things,” Talotta said. “I do believe in looking at a much broader picture they want to leave the world a better place.”
He said PTI is requiring students to find a way to use social media since it is representative of their generation.
“We are requesting that social media is incorporated with this campaign,” Talotta said. “Because that is obviously very big in the minds in the millennials and how they communicate within each other’s community.”
Promote Change is part of a larger set of new scholarships offered by PTI totaling $60,000. The others require students to create a high school banner, write an essay about something that inspired them or about how they impacted someone’s life.
The average cost of attending PTI’s two-year programs is about $40,000 to $50,000.
Talotta said the creation of all of these scholarships was inspired by the millennials.
“They’re our future, and it’s a way for PTI to reach out to the high school population to keep high school talent in western Pennsylvania,” Talotta said.
He said he has seen a lot of talented young people leave the region, and he hopes the scholarships will help students choose to stay and contribute to Western Pennsylvania.
PTI is a two-year college that offers students degrees ranging from culinary arts to electronics technology.
