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1. Join the DesignSquad This Month
You can join the Design Squad this month in Houston, San Jose, and Bellevue (Washington). Design Squad is a new reality-based series designed to spark kids' curiosity about engineering. The National Engineers Week Foundation is an education outreach partner. You are encouraged to attend a workshop at the Children's Museum of Houston and try your hand at Design Squad activities like a rubber band car or hidden alarm onFebruary 10 and 11. Help build a giant newspaper dome, create a pulley system to deliver goods to the Design Squad clubhouse and much more. There's also a special television premiere party. Contact Jennifer Brownlee at jbrownlee@cmhouston.org.

In San Jose, California, The Tech Museum of Innovation partners with San Jose's public broadcast station and local engineers on February 24 for hands-on engineering activities throughout The Tech. Visitors can build a whimsical kinetic sculpture, design a circuit and switch to turn a buzzer on and off, or even build a device to launch a ball high in the air. Visitors will also have the chance to see clips from the show and talk with local engineers about the fun of problem-solving. Contact is Melissa McAlexander at melissam@thetech.org.

The American Society of Civil Engineers will host volunteer outreach training in Bellevue, Washington, at the end of the month. The event is not limited to ASCE members. Volunteers will be among the first to see a screening of the new Design Squad television series, learn how to use hands-on activities and create public events. It's free but advance registration is required! Contact outreach@asce.org.

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2. "Now I See Why People Become Engineers"
Sarah Lewan, a 14-year-old student at Helen Keller Middle School in Royal Oak, Michigan, says she always wanted to be a teacher but since participating in the National Engineers Week Future City Competition "...now my imagination has been sparked by engineering. Now I know why people become engineers." Dan Sipzner is 13 and a student at Farnsworth Middle School in Guildford, New York. He says, "Future City is right up there with tae kwon do." Hundreds of students, parents, engineers, and teachers descend on Washington, D.C. this month for the February 21 Future City Competition finals.

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3. U.S. Congress Recognizes Engineers Week
The U.S. House of Representatives has passed House Resolution 59 (Report No. 110-5) in recognition of Engineers Week 2007. The resolution states that the House of Representatives supports the goals and ideals of Engineers Week and will "work with the engineering community to make sure that the creativity and contribution of that community can be expressed through research, development, standardizations and innovation." For complete text of the resolution, go to www.eweek.org later this week.

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4. In Local News
The National Coalition of Girls Schools has rolled out a variety of projects for Engineers Week 2007. Member schools (108) will receive copies of Changing Our World: True Stories of Women Engineers, released last year, and the new "Design Squad Educator's Guide." NCGS is collaborating with Google in New York City and Seattle for Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day 2007. Outreach contact is Kitty Burns at kitty_burns@comcast.net

At California Polytechnic Institute, engineering students will host a variety of activities on campus, such as competitions, banquets, and social events. They promote their profession off-campus via outreach events, including learning programs at area elementary schools and an Engineering Club Fair. See more details in theEWEEK Local Events Forum. Contact for the Cal Poly events is cltippin@calpoly.edu.

The Central Florida Chapter of the Florida Engineering Society will host an Engineering Expo and Project CREATE on February 23 at the University of Central Florida. The chapter will host 4th and 5th grade elementary school students who will present their projects. The acronym CREATE stands for CReative Thinking from Elementary Aged ThinkErs. The Chapter provides the students with an engineering challenge. The students act as engineers by solving the problem through teamwork and research. This year's challenge was to design a city for one of three different environments (desert, space or sea) on a newly-found planet. Chapter members also mentor the students by attending class sessions and providing guidance. The program is highlighted by the Engineering Expo, held during Engineer's Week, where students participate in an egg drop competition, paper airplane contest, and, this year, a bridge building competition.

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Founded in 1951 by the National Society of Professional Engineers, Engineers Week (February 18-24, 2007) is celebrated annually by thousands of engineers, engineering students, teachers, and leaders in government and business. In 1988, the National Engineers Week consortium expanded its scope and now includes more than 100 engineering, scientific, and education societies and major corporations dedicated to enhancing the public understanding of the engineering profession and to promoting pre-college interest in math, science, and engineering as a career option.

Previous issues of the EWEEK ENEWS available here.

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National Engineers Week Foundation
1420 King Street   Alexandria, VA 22314
tel. 703.684.2852   email: eweek@nspe.org