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Charlotte, NC’s CATS Hosts Middle School Students To Create Interest In STEM Careers “Charlotte, NC’s, Area Transit System recently hosted 25 middle school students from the Elizabeth City area of North Carolina to tour the system, talk to transit professionals and inspire the next generation toward careers in STEM via transportation,� according to a press release. The event was part of a summer program through Elizabeth City State University that was partially funded by the North Carolina Department of Transportation. The tour started with riding the LYNX Blue Line light rail system, then touring the vehicle maintenance facility led by CATS’ Director of Rail Operations, Allen Smith III. Smith spoke with students about the several different variations of engineering needed to operate, maintain and manage a rail system. Following the tour of the rail facilities, students learned about bus operations and maintenance, with a tour led by Assistant
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General Manager of Bus Operations, Reggie Arrington. Arrington also spoke to students about apprenticeships with CATS Bus Operations. Students rode CATS bus services to the Charlotte Government Center, where they met with CEO John Lewis, who encouraged students to keep their minds open to different career options. “Growing up, I always thought I was going to be a lawyer, then one day while working on Capitol Hill, I fell in love with infrastructure and transit, and began pursuing those dreams,� Lewis told the group. “CATS is a department of the city of Charlotte, and is governed by the Metropolitan Transit Commission. CATS is the largest transit system between Washington, D.C. and Atlanta offering bus, rail, streetcar, vanpool and special transportation services,� according to a press release.