College Students Win First Place at National Competition

Lone Star College Kingwood News

Published on: June 25, 2015
LSC-Kingwoods project management class earned first place at the American Fuel and Petrochemical Manufacturers (AFPM) Challenge in Houston. Pictured in back are Timothy Thurmon and Daniel Goncalves. In front are Jennifer Taylor, Ashley Gallegos, and Andrew Chapman. The students were led by Mike Griffith, management and marketing professor, far right.
A project management class at Lone Star College-Kingwood received an opportunity of a lifetime when they begin the spring 2015 semester.
The students were approached by EdVenture Partners to come up with a successful recruitment campaign for the petrochemical industry. After discussion and a vote, the class decided to accept the project that ultimately led them to winning first place at the American Fuel and Petrochemical Manufacturers (AFPM) Challenge in Houston. The students heavily competed against the University of Houston and the University of Texas at Arlington.
We were excited, but nervous that we were the only community college that was selected as one of the three finalists, said Ashley Gallegos.
I think it was a huge boon that we spread out and socialized with various CEOs the night before the presentation. They got to know more about us and we got to learn more about the industry, said Timothy Thurmon.
The project management class created an integrated communication marketing campaign to highlight different fuel and petrochemical manufacturing careers and primarily craft professional opportunities to the millennial generation. They focused on three demographics: pre-college, college, and post-college.
The biggest misconception is that only blue collar jobs are available. I was unaware there were a variety of jobs available for people right out of high school, trade school, or college, said Andrew Chapman.
This project turned out to be a great real life experience on how to work in a group, work with deadlines and how to solve challenges, Thurmon said. It was intense, but rewarding.
Before and after ...

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