Panther Valley students got a message against bullying and a short hands-on lesson in STEM as well this week thanks to the U.S. Army.

The Army STEM truck made its first-ever stop in Northeast Pennsylvania this week. More than 400 students went through the presentation.

After going through a presentation from Army recruiters encouraging them to speak up about bullying, students got to try out a robot which, according to Sgt. 1st Class Alfredo Beltran, costs $25,000.

Beltran said they give a presentation about what the Army has to offer, and then talk about anti-bullying initiatives.

“So they know it’s a bad thing,” he said. “A lot of kids think that being bullied, that’s the standard for youth.”

Maj. Gerald New, JROTC instructor for Panther Valley High School, said the program will hopefully spark students’ imagination to look at the careers which are available. He said Thursday’s presentation could be a kickoff for future STEM programs.

“This gets them to understand what STEM means, to understand that they could work for a company doing this in the future,” he said.

While using the robot, students had to work together as one operated the robot via a military-issued laptop equipped with a video game controller. The other student gave instructions as their classmate attempted to pick up prizes like pop sockets, which are plastic stands for cellphones.

The truck is one of 16 that travel to high schools around the country to educate kids about STEM careers in the Army. Beltran said the truck visiting Panther Valley is the only one with the anti-bullying lesson. The others have different STEM demonstrations.

“Anywhere me and my partner can go and talk to the kids is a good thing,” he said.