Volunteer Spotlight



IBM reaches out to a new generation of females and focus minority groups for EWeek 2008

Although Engineers Week doesn’t happen until February, many IBM volunteer teams around the United States have been preparing for months. It’s all part of a massive grass-roots effort by the company to build on the momentum of 2007 EWeek, when 4,800 IBMers engaged more than 200,000 pre-college students in discussions and activities related to engineering.

Some of IBM’s EWeek volunteers from Beaverton, Oregon (left to right): Rick Klocke, Alexis Bruemmer, Chandra Seetharaman. (Not pictured: Brent Yardley, Eric P Sniff, James Cassidy, Linda Wilson Bauer, Stuart Frische.)

Engineers Week is a promotion of the engineering profession, and IBM has actively supported it since 1990, serving as lead corporate sponsor in 1992 and 2001. Once again, IBM will be lead sponsor in 2008, with IBM Chairman and CEO Sam Palmisano serving as honorary co-chair.

For the past several years, IBM engineers in Beaverton, Oregon have worked as a team to brainstorm, test and create new activities for EWeek. Past exercises have focused on programming, grid computing and server routing. This year – through “Marbles in Motion” – they’re reaching out to middle- and high-school students about the engineering behind alternative energy sources.

“Basically, all we’re asking the kids to do is to use paper, tape and scissors to create a marble ramp,” says Alexis Bruemmer, a member of the Beaverton team that developed the exercise. “Through it, we introduce the engineering process as well as open the door for discussions on potential and kinetic energy as well as energy transfer.”

Reaching out to a new generation
For thousands of volunteers, Engineers Week is a chance to reach out to a new generation of engineers – particularly women and minorities. Currently only 11 percent of engineers in the United States are women, 4 percent are Hispanic and 3 percent are black.

“I think the goal with young women is to overcome the cultural perception that engineering and math is not applicable to their daily lives,” said Bruemmer. “Once they find out math can be used to creatively solve problems, there’s always a look of wonder and excitement at the engineering process.”

IBM uses EWeek to recruit IBM volunteers from female and focus minorities (FM) to serve as role models for young women and the FM population. In 2007, more than 69,000 students from these constituencies were engaged during visits to schools, events at IBM sites, and other community events.


Featured Local Activity

CH2M HILL’s Design Squad Engineering Event - Denver, CO

CH2M HILL’s Denver office hosted 20 employees’ children for a Design Squad engineering event on December 28, 2006. The event was held in preparation for Engineers Week. “It was fascinating to watch the kids figure out the activity and then try to improve on their design,” said volunteer Carolyn Brinkers. “They had fun learning about basic engineering concepts, and hopefully, we planted some seeds that will help them to consider a career in engineering.” For the full story, click here. For photos, click here.

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