March 5, 2015
For Immediate Release
March 5, 2015
For more information, contact:
Natalie Lester, Public Relations Counsel
865-599-4051
[email protected]
Iman Jefferson, U.S. Cellular
773-355-3737
[email protected]
KNOXVILLE, TN (March 5, 2015) – To celebrate science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education, U.S. Cellular is visiting schools and community organizations to help increase understanding of and interest in engineering and technology careers. An engineering associate from U.S. Cellular visited the Haslam Family University Boys & Girls Club in Knoxville for an “Ask an Engineer” session that gave attendees a hands-on look at how the company’s high-quality network operates and provided students with information on career opportunities in engineering.
Jeremiah Benjamin, a member of the Haslam Family University Boys & Girls Club, listens as Joey Chandler, network operations manager for U.S. Cellular in Tennessee, explains how the company’s performance car monitors the 4G LTE network. Chandler spoke to 30 club members on March 4 about career opportunities in engineering and encouraged students to pursue a science, technology, engineering and math-related (STEM) education.
The goal of the “Ask an Engineer” sessions is to bring engineering to life for children and show them the different jobs that are available with a technical or engineering education. U.S. Cellular wants to motivate youth in East Tennessee to explore career opportunities in engineering and encourage a more diverse workforce in that field in the future.
“These engineering visits provide a behind-the-scenes look at how a cellular network operates, and they show students how our engineers keep the network running so that every time you make a call, send a text or check email, you have a great experience,” said Joey Chandler, Network Operations Manager for U.S. Cellular in Tennessee. “U.S. Cellular is dedicated to supporting education, and we hope these sessions inspire students to learn more about pursuing a career in engineering.”
As part of today’s event, U.S. Cellular engineers visited the Boys & Girls Club with a network performance car to demonstrate how the network operates and how U.S. Cellular regularly monitors it. Approximately 30 Boys & Girls Club middle school members attended the presentation and toured the COLT truck. Chandler also talked about how he entered the field and the lessons he has learned along the way. He emphasized the impact that visits like these can have on students.
“Opportunities, like our visit today, allow students to see the importance of the material they are learning in school,” Chandler said. “Students sometimes question why teachers cover certain topics in school and wonder if they will ever use it in the real world. This visit and others like it expose them to what their futures can look like if they study hard in math and science.”
U.S. Cellular provides its customers with national coverage and a high-quality network that works wherever they want to go. Currently, more than 93 percent of U.S. Cellular customers are covered by a 4G LTE network. Last year, the company invested $66.7 million in the network in Tennessee. Of that total, $47.3 million was spent in Knoxville.
4G LTE not available in all areas. See uscellular.com/4G for detailed coverage info. 4G LTE service is provided in partnership with King Street Wireless. LTE is a trademark of ETSI.
About U.S. Cellular
U.S. Cellular provides its customers with unmatched benefits and industry-leading innovations designed to elevate the customer experience. The Chicago-based carrier has a strong line-up of cutting-edge devices that are all backed by its high-speed network. Currently, nearly 93 percent of customers have access to 4G LTE speeds, and more than 93 percent will have access by the end of 2014. U.S. Cellular was named a J.D. Power and Associates Customer Champion in 2014 for the third time in four years. To learn more about U.S. Cellular, visit one of its retail stores or uscellular.com. To get the latest news, promos and videos, connect with U.S. Cellular on Facebook.com/uscellular, Twitter.com/uscellular and YouTube.com/uscellularcorp.
