What’s in Store for U.S. National Engineers Week
Photo: Jonathon Choe IEEE-USA staff and volunteers assist promising future engineers with building rockets out of film canisters at Discover Engineering Family Day 2019. THE INSTITUTE Be a pioneer of progress during this year's DiscoverE Engineers Week. Celebrating its 30th anniversary, EWeek honors engineers and the way they change the world. Being held 16 to 22 February, activities are happening all week long with the goal of bringing engineering to the lives of children, their parents, and educators.
One of the highlights of the week is the Future City finals. Future City draws more than 40,000 students from across the United States and abroad, challenging middle-school students to imagine, research, design, and build model cities of the future. The top teams from local and regional competitions come to Washington, D.C., to present their ideas to judges. Students compete for a number of coveted awards, which will be presented at a ceremony on 18 February. IEEE-USA is sponsors the award for the Most Advanced Smart Grid.
Girl Day, also known as Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day, to be held 20 February, is a worldwide campaign to engage girls in engineering. Thousands of volunteers act as mentors, facilitating engineering activities and helping empower girls to pursue engineering as a career. Consider signing up to be a Girl Day Role Model.
The popular annual EWeek event, Discover Engineering Family Day, is on hiatus this year because its usual venue, the National Building Museum, is closed for renovations. The event is expected to return in 2021.
To get involved with EWeek, check out the calendar of events to find one near you. If you'd like to hold your own event, DiscoverE provides resources, training, downloadable activity kits, and other materials to make it a success.
Eighty-four percent of educators surveyed by DiscoverE about the benefits of engineers or technical professionals visiting their classroom say the visit helps students learn about engineering careers. Nearly 74 percent of educators say their students don't have many opportunities to meet an engineer otherwise. We can all help change that by getting involved not only during EWeek but also all year long.
Corey Ruth is the media relations associate at IEEE-USA.