By Dawn Williams —
OAKHURST — Going on a field trip is always exciting. Sierra Tel recently rolled out the “red carpet” to arrange an informative field trip for Oakhurst Elementary School’s 59 fourth grade students. It was a great day to see their operations and meet some of their employees.
Students learned about Spool Forest, fiber optics, cables, and were able to see all of the telephone and internet lines that entered and exited the server rooms. They were shown how a GPS tracker worked and were able to see on the projector screen where they walked.
A highlight was seeing the “BIG” equipment. Students tried on hard hats and reflective vests and took pictures in front of the giant tractors. Snacks were provided twice while students roamed the hallways of the main building and conference room at Sierra Tel.
Students were amazed and asked many questions about how STI was able to lay Internet cable across Bass Lake. As we passed through the Human Resources office, a student asked, “what do I have to do to work here?”
After walking through the main building where students saw the dispatchers working, students walked to the park for lunch. Sierra Tel gave each student a popsicle to enjoy before they headed back to school.
That wasn’t the end, though.When the students returned to their class at the end of the school day, they were given a special gift from STI that had a lunch box and a few mementos featuring the company logo.
What a day to remember for the students at OES. Thank you to all the staff at Sierra Telephone and Internet for your hospitality!
Dawn Williams is a fourth grade teacher at OES.
Oakhurst Elementary School is part of the Bass Lake School District.