Without Engineers, The World Stops
National Engineers Week 2002 Final Report

We zoomed, "flinkered" and puffed our way to a successful National Engineers Week 2002. Tens of thousands of engineers reached millions of students and teachers. For the first time, we recognized innovations in engineering education and outstanding contributions by Asian American engineers. National Engineers Week 2002 was chaired by the American Society of Civil Engineers and DuPont.

C'mon and ZOOM!
DuPont and the American Society of Civil Engineers, with WGBH-TV Boston, launched an exciting new volunteer program for engineers to work with students in grades 1-6. ZOOM™ Into Engineering (ZIE) is the first National Engineers Week program to offer volunteer training and materials aimed at the youngest "future engineers."

ZOOM Into Engineering appeals to kids because it is based on the popular PBS television show ZOOM, produced by WGBH, and promotes hands-on activity. ZIE appeals to engineers because of its strong tutorial component, engaging activities - like making an object that doesn't float or sink but "flinks," and a puffmobile that moves by blowing on it - while offering an opportunity to partner with local PBS affiliates and other community organizations. Engineering is the only profession to partner with ZOOM.

ZIE started with a Washington, D.C., education summit and training orientation in October, attended by more than 100 engineers. Trained engineers run events and train other volunteers. Over several months, teleconference briefings assisted others around the country in planning ZIE programs, such as members of Women in Engineering Programs and Advocates Network in 12 states. The American Society of Civil Engineers hosted ZIE training at regional conferences. At its national conference, the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers trained more than 60 members from around the U.S.

At www.eweek.org/ you can find a variety of ways engineers and organizations have adopted ZOOM Into Engineering. For example, Girl Scouts USA is using ZIE for summer camps. The US Conference of Mayors adopted ZIE within its Cities United for Science Progress program. DuPont will assist the conference in pilot-testing the program. In Washington, D.C., more than 5,000 attended the ZOOM Into Engineering Family Festival at the National Building Museum. The New Jersey Society of Professional Engineers hosted ZIE events and training with the Liberty Science Center. In San Diego, the American Society of Civil Engineers, Society of Women Engineers and National Society of Black Engineers held joint training sessions and school visits. Consulting engineers in Portland (OR) will run more than 20 events over several months and plan to reach more than 500 children.

An interactive Discover Engineering! telecast, produced by National Technological University, reached millions of students and teachers. Engineers distributed more than 23,000 copies of the special multicultural Engineers Week edition of the Bridge magazine, published by the National Society of Black Engineers for pre-college students.

The number of visitors continues to increase at www.discoverengineering.org, the only engineering site for middle school students. Activity peaks during the school week, indicating that the site has become a classroom and library resource. During February 2002, there were 17,000 visitors, up from the 15,000 that month in 2001.

More Girls Introduced to Engineering
More than 110 organizations signed the second Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day National Pledge Roster, up from 90 in 2001. Headlines in dozens of newspapers covered the opportunities for more women in engineering. Movie patrons in Stamford (CT) and Bloomfield Hills (MI) saw public service announcements on their screens placed by National Engineers Week headquarters. Engineers with Northrop Grumman worked with a girls' high school in Baltimore. Phillips Petroleum in Bartlesville (OK) hosted a role model luncheon for 21 high school girls. At NASA in Huntsville (AL) five engineers worked with 80 girls from Girls' Inc. At the University of Puerto Rico, Mayaguez, the electrical engineering department hosted 12 fourth-grade girls. A complete roster is online at www.eweek.org.

A Sunny Place Takes the Prize
A city of the future -- "Apricus" -- designed by students from Chippewa Middle School in St. Paul, Minnesota, won the tenth annual National Engineers Week Future City Competition™. Apricus is Latin for "a sunny place." The city's high tech industries include Mars research, medical and science centers, and hovercraft wind technology. Members of the Chippewa team received a free trip to the U.S. Space Camp in Huntsville, Alabama, donated by national finals host Bentley Systems, and laptop computers, donated by DuPont. The second place team (Rochester, MI), received $2,000 for the school's technology program, donated by the Society of Manufacturing Engineers. Third place went to a school in East Troy (WI), which received a $1,000 scholarship for their school technology curriculum, provided by The National Society of Professional Engineers. All 27 regional winning teams received an all-expense-paid trip to Washington for the finals. Print press coverage alone reached more than 20 million readers and included publications like USA TODAY and TIME for Kids. Regional and national contests were covered by 75 news programs.

Celebrating Achievement
The Chinese Institute of Engineers/USA, a new member of the National Engineers Week national board, presented the first Asian American Engineer of the Year Awards at a gala in Dallas (TX). A sold-out audience of 600 guests was on hand to honor Dr. Leo Esaki of IBM and Chancellor Chang-Lin Tien of the University of California - Berkeley, as well as winners from major corporations, universities and national laboratories.

In Washington, D.C., the National Academy of Engineering presented the Charles Stark Draper Prize and the first Bernard M. Gordon Prize for Innovation in Engineering and Technology Education to Dr. Robert Langer and Dr. Eli Fromm, respectively. Langer, of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, is credited with developing biocompatible polymer technologies that control the release of medicine over weeks or years.

Dr. Eli Fromm is with Drexel University (PA). His many years of activities devoted to educational leadership and the engineering educational reform movements include principal investigator of the Drexel E4 project and principal investigator/director of the Gateway Engineering Education Coalition program.

A traveling exhibit, Breaking Through: The Creative Engineer, finished its three-year nation-wide tour with a stop at the Space Center in Alamogordo (NM) during the summer of 2001, followed by a stay at the Science Spectrum in Lubbock (TX) in the fall and winter.

Another "travel" exhibit, this one launched in 2001 - www.engineeringsights.org/ - continues to draw praise. Most recently, the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE) named it an "outstanding program which has resulted in significant benefit to American society." ASAE also presented the site with its top prize for Internet sites.

Media coverage of National Engineers Week was strong. At the time this report went to press, print circulation reached more than 45 million readers. Gerry Schwartz, President of the American Society of Civil Engineers, participated in a satellite radio tour reaching millions of listeners in the top 15 markets. (National Engineers Week does not track other broadcast media coverage.)

Quotes:President George W. Bush: "I commend the professionals, teachers, and students participating in National Engineers Week. This week's activities will showcase the interests and talents of America's engineers and provide inspiration for our young people to set high goals and work hard to achieve them."

Middle school student "It's stuff I never heard of before. It's cool how people could come up with this stuff."

For a complete list of National Engineers Week 2002 partners, click here.

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