Valentine’s Day and President’s Day aren’t the only exciting celebrations around the corner ... next week is National Engineers Week. (I know, it sneaks up on me every year as well.)
The initiative, which the National Society of Professional Engineers began in 1951, is now run by a coalition of STEM-focused businesses and organizations known as DiscoverE. According to the group’s website, a large part of the mission is to expand the engineering profession by reaching out to the K-12 community.
Among the events planned for Feb. 16-21 is the 13th annual Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day (also known as Girl Day—which I, for some reason, find more palatable). On Thursday, Feb. 20, as many as one million girls will be participate in workshops, lab tours, hands-on activities, and online discussions with professional engineers, according to a DiscoverE press release. For example:
• Exxon Mobil will host engineering activities geared toward middle school girls at 16 company sites across the country.
• The Argonne National Laboratory in Lemont, Ill. will invite selected 8th grade girls in for a day’s worth of touring, seminars, and demonstrations.
• At the Boston Public Library, the MIT-run program SHINE will host a series of booths where K-8 girls and their mothers can meet with engineers and participate in hands-on activities.
Feel free to let us know in the comments section if you’re attending/planning other events next week for future engineers.