York County Amateur Radio Society

Youth Engagement Team initiative (YETi)

Our goal is to generate interest, inspire and motivate young people to discover the wonders of amateur radio. We do this via a wide array of hands-on STEM experiments as we demonstrate what ham radio encompasses. Middle school and high school students are also shown opportunities that may await them as licensed amateur operators, all which would otherwise remain unavailable to them.

Our intent is not to supplant teachers nor counselors, but merely support them, thereby reinforcing their curriculum. We bring the mysteries and benefits of this great hobby into the forefront. And through these efforts, we’ve seen an increase in both focus and concentration on the part of each and every student.

You might ask why is the "i" in the acronym YETi lowercase. Because this group is an initiative and in progress.  We're inventive, innovative, instructional, influential, inclusive, and inspirational. We're in motion. 

The YCARS Youth Engagement Team is very excited and proud to announce that Pleasant Knoll Middle School has been selected by the Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) selection committee to advance to the next round of the process to become a Direct Contact School in the first half of 2024. Pleasant Knoll Middle School was notified of their selection on May 11, 2023, and is one of 8 schools that has been advanced to phase 2 of the program.

The YCARS Youth Engagement Team (YETi) has been engaged with Pleasant Knoll Middle School (PKMS) since January 2023, providing several hours of in classroom instruction with our “What is Ham Radio? program and STEM based hands-on experiments. After visiting the Orlando Hamvention and meeting with the ARISS team. YETi team lead Vicki Carnes, AD3I approached the PKMS principal Cori Hustedt and encouraged the school to apply to be a ARISS Direct Connect School. The application was filed with ARISS in March. NASA and ARISS will work with the school to determine the best date in the first half of 2024 for the contact with the ISS.

The school is currently in process of establishing an amateur radio club. YCARS and the YETi team are committed to helping build the school club and mentor the next generation of amateur radio operators.

For more information on the ARISS program and organization see ARISS - Home

For More information about Pleasant Knoll Middle School see Pleasant Knoll Middle School / Homepage (fortmillschools.org)