Pittsburgh Penguins Tech Academy, Powered by CGI

Last month Seneca Valley sophomore, Max Wagstaff was named a “CGI Pittsburgh Technologist of the Year” in the Pittsburgh Penguins Tech Academy, powered by CGI. Mr. Wagstaff was on Team Guentzel with other students from Mt. Lebanon, and their impressive group proposal about integrating the ‘Penguins Digitron’ into the in-game experience awarded Seneca Valley $5,000 for tech services and upgrades.

“I couldn’t be prouder of Max,” said Ms. Jeanne Probst, Seneca Valley Intermediate High School teacher. “He stepped out of his comfort zone and took advantage of the opportunity provided to him. Max is an outstanding young man with enormous potential.”

The Pittsburgh Penguins Tech Academy powered by CGI hosted a Welcome Event at PPG Paints Arena in January where selected applicants were invited to meet one another and tour the facility. Students were split into groups throughout the Tech Academy where they listened to Pittsburgh Penguins and CGI professionals, rotated through multiple departments and received an immersive in-the-field technology experience. Stations included information on the technology used in Pittsburgh Penguins analytics and research, the control room, mobile ticketing, CRM, sports and exercise science and more.

After the Tech Academy concluded, students were posed with a list of questions. Each group had one month to collaborate on their proposal with the chance to win prizes for themselves and their school, present their idea to a group of technology professionals at the Pittsburgh Penguins Sports and Technology Conference Powered by CGI and ultimately be named “CGI Pittsburgh Technologists of the Year.”

Mr. Wagstaff’s group proposed the idea of utilizing the jumbotron to give fans a more interactive experience by voting on things like songs played in the arena, digital games and upcoming chants within the arena. Within the proposal, the group specified that fans could only get the interactive voting access if they have a ticket on the Penguins app to ensure security.

Lydia Miller, Seneca Valley junior also attended the Pittsburgh Penguins Tech Academy powered by CGI. “It was an amazing opportunity,” said Ms. Miller. “At the Welcome Event we formed ideas as to the struggles fans might face as they make their way through the arena and brainstormed what we could do to better their experience.”

At the end of February, the winning project was announced and Mr. Wagstaff’s group, Team Guentzel, was announced as the winner. Team Guentzel attended the championship ceremony in March where they were invited to a pregame reception to network and present their winning project.

“We went to PPG Paints Arena for a draft day, and we got to learn about what takes place behind the scenes of a game, which gave us the idea of what we were going to try and add to the organization,” said Mr. Wagstaff. “Out of all 27 groups they decided we had the best overall idea. I was shocked and very excited we won.”