Building Futures Together: Creative Neighborhoods × ACE Mentor at Pickathon

This year at Pickathon, Creative Neighborhoods was proud to partner with ACE Mentor of Oregon, a program that supports high school students exploring careers in architecture, construction, and engineering. Together, we created opportunities for students to gain hands-on experience while contributing directly to the design and flow of the festival.

With the help of two ACE Mentor students, the Wild Horse backstage area came to life. From concept to completion, these students worked side by side with our team, applying classroom knowledge to real-world problem-solving in a fast-paced, collaborative environment.

Another ACE Mentor student took on a leadership role assisting our installation art site lead. From coordinating artists to helping place public art installations across the festival grounds, this student gained invaluable project management experience—an introduction to the kind of big-picture thinking that’s at the heart of placemaking and creative design.

For Creative Neighborhoods, Pickathon is more than a festival. It’s a living classroom, a space where young people can test ideas, learn new skills, and see their efforts shape an environment enjoyed by thousands. By working alongside professionals in design/build, sustainability, and arts integration, ACE students got to experience what it means to bring vision into reality.

This partnership exemplifies our mission: to cultivate the next generation of builders, makers, and creative leaders. We look forward to deepening our relationship with ACE Mentor of Oregon and creating even more opportunities for students in future years.

Together, we are building not only stages and installations—but also the pathways to tomorrow’s careers.