YOUTH TECHNOLOGY BUILDING

The 75^th Anniversary of the U.P. State Fair is a time to, not only reflect on the past, but also on the future. To keep up with the changing times, the U.P. State Fair proudly introduced the Youth Technology Building. This building was made possible only by the generosity of sponsorships, community support and volunteers.

Youth interested in technology had the opportunity to showcase their abilities in the "Technology and Agriculture / Natural Resource / Livestock Challenge" and also to enter the "Design a Placemat" contest (computer generated design), which was sponsored by DTE Energy

The Youth Technology Building took fairgoers on a time travel trip from the old fashion slate boards to the computer motherboards! As they entered the building they were able to visit a living "One Room School House", staffed by 4-H volunteers and volunteers associated with the U.P. Children’s Museum in Marquette. The students acted out the average day in school in the 1800’s – complete with games and songs.

The fairgoers then continued the journey with a UP State Fair Anniversary Display which featured quilts from contests held through the 1990’s at the Fairgrounds, a collogue of pictures that was assembled by the Delta County Historical Society-Archives, and display cases with fair memorabilia.

Students from the Escanaba Public Elementary Schools created display boards showing picture highlights from the 1930’s – 2000. The journey through the Youth Technology Building includes a stop at a Lego Mind Storm Robotics station. People were encouraged to sit down, program and run a Lego dinosaur, bug, or vehicle.

The next station featured a Computer Generated Placemat Contest where over 300 entries were on display and an opportunity for fairgoers to sit down and design and print out their own placemat.

Fairgoers found themselves in the modern classroom where "School Exhibits" were being featured. Three Imax Computers were projecting digital movies featuring the themes; Mexico, Hero’s and Dinosaurs).

The "Competitive Exhibits" that were entered for the "Technology and Agriculture/Natural Resource/Livestock Challenge" were projected on the opposite wall.

The main hub of the Technology Building was the "Editing Corner". Sue Belanger and the Escanaba Computer/Technology Club became the eyes and ears of the 2002 U.P. State Fair. Each day the students were

out on the midway, barns and buildings interviewing fairgoers, recording featured events, and capturing the Fair through the eyes of children.

They returned to the Editing Corner, and using state of the art equipment that was provided by International Paper, they transformed their clips into informational and entertaining digital movies. All of their work was projected on the wall so fairgoers could watch the stories unfold.

As people left the building they were invited to sign up to win a three-foot stuffed Husky that was donated by Wade Shows.