Education Outreach

Over this past summer ESWP continued our Strategic Partnership with the Career and Technical Education Division (CTE) of the Pittsburgh Public Schools. For the second year, ESWP facilitated the CTE’s “Educator in the Workplace” program. The program places teachers into a variety of workplaces for a three-day visit, so that they may learn more about a specific industry. Though not limited to technical workplaces, ESWP’s emphasis was on engineering worksites. Additionally, ESWP provided an additional flare by allowing teachers to visit three different workplaces during their involvement so they were able to expand their insight threefold. The teachers that visited these sites came back with a heightened awareness of these workplaces, and were able to meet with a number of different positions in each. According to one teacher: “I swear the visits get better and better! It was great. I really got to talk to many of the workers and even took a number of pictures. I am wondering why I didn't do this last year and will definitely will do this again next year! You should be commended for taking this responsibility on and doing a great job of managing it. Thank you for arranging such great experiences for me!”

A great big “thank you” to those firms that hosted teachers this summer. Firms include Aquatech International Corporation, Sargent Electric, CSD Engineers, Wayne Crouse, Inc., Michael Baker Corporation, Penn DOT District 11-0, and ASTORINO. Each of these firms played host for one day, so as not to create a major interruption to their workday. ESWP appreciates the commitment it takes to host any visitor, especially when this visit is intended to educate the visitor. Our hosts each all provided a full agenda for the visit, and scheduled time around “their shop” for teachers to gain a wealth of experience in a short timeframe. Some hosts even combined in-office and field experience for their visitors. (If you are interested in hosting a teacher in the future, please contact ESWP.)

The ESWP Scholarship Committee is pleased to announce winners of the 2010 Member Scholarships. Congratulations to Austin Blackert (student member and son of member Don Blackert), Stephanie Bonk (daughter of Dan Bonk) and Matthew Johnson (student member and son of Wayne Johnson). These 3 individuals distinguished themselves among a very talented pool of applicants who responded to this year’s program.

While limited financial resources permitted awarding only three scholarships, all of the applicants are very deserving of our support as they further their education towards an engineering or natural science degree. All applicants displayed volumes of extracurricular activities and keep a very full schedule. We encourage those who are eligible to apply in the future for the 2011 ESWP Member scholarship. Good luck in your future endeavors!

This summer the National ACE Mentor Program was awarded a grant from the City of Pittsburgh, PA for the ACE Mentor Summer Youth Internship Program. Eight high school students have been placed with local engineering firms in the Pittsburgh region to learn about the career opportunities available in the fields of architecture, construction management and engineering.

Students report for duty with their host sites every Monday through Thursday and then spend their Fridays at the Engineers’ Society of Western PA (ESWP) building sharing their new insights about the worksites, practicing their presentation skills, and increasing their awareness and understanding of building-related careers. Two facilitators assist the students in learning “soft skills” that will assist them in developing positive workplace behaviors. This new learning experience is essential for students to understand the requirements of the workplace, as well as to hear about some of the cultural and global influences on the world of work.

The facilitators, Sarah Grossman and Grace Heo, each from the School of Social Work from the University of Pittsburgh, work with the students every Friday and visit them at their business host site during the week. Through a curriculum developed by YouthWorks, called JumpStart for Success, they discuss workplace behaviors and expectations, work performance, successful work activities and limitations that may arise throughout this summer learning experience. Also, through arrangements made by the National ACE Mentor Program, students are given the opportunity to learn more about “green” building construction and energy conservation as well as OSHA safety requirements for building construction.

During the upcoming school year, the ESWP cosponsors the ACE Mentor After School Program where twice monthly high school youth get a closer look at the day to day activities of designing, plan development and building construction. This year a special ACE Mentor program will result in the building of a scale model of the building design developed by student participants.

Design Squad Year End Event!
On Friday, May 28, more than 70 students and 15 professional engineers gathered in the studios of WQED to participate in the year-ending event of the Design Squad. The event was the conclusion of Year 1 of the Design Squad program in the Pittsburgh Region. Students represented public and parochial schools, and in-school and after-school groups, and ranged from Grade 5 thru 11. The day began with the student “draft” where students were grouped into 4 teams, each wearing team jerseys that matched them with their mentors. 2 of the teams went right to work on Design Squad activities such as the Rubber Band car, the Newspaper Table and the Confetti Launcher, while the other 2 teams attended a lecture and question & answer session that gave the opportunity to talk with their mentors about career and education paths. Following lunch the teams reversed their roles, giving all groups a chance to learn in two different environment. At the conclusion of the day, all 4 teams worked on their final Design Squad Challenge, while they were timed adding an element of pressure. Each of the teams announced and unveiled their design to the assembly, then students were able to try out the different entertainment models that were produced.

One of the added benefits of holding the event at the WQED studios was the video production of the entire event, plus interviews with students and mentors. The video will be posted online at the WQED site, and used to help further promote Design Squad around our region. You can view photos of the event here: http://share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=0RbNXLlyzZuKA

More than 3 dozen teachers, educators, counselors and school administrators joined the ESWP Annual Banquet as Guests of many sponsoring companies. In addition, 20 college-level students were hosted at corporate tables. The idea to extend the invitation to our education outreach partners came from ESWP President Deborah Lange (Carnegie Mellon University, Steinbrenner Institute for Environmental Education and Research), who sees great value in building the networks within these groups. “This is a great way to bring the ESWP membership together with members of the regions students and teachers, to allow them to learn more about their assets and needs, and the various and many ways to work more closely together.” All of these special guests to the Banquet received a warm welcome from Banquet Keynote Speaker, Dr, Robert Ballard. Ballard’s keynote delivery highlighted some of the student outreach projects that he oversees, including the JASON Project, which Ballard founded in 1989 with National Geographic to encourage students to learn more about science. Dr. Lange hopes to build upon the first year success of bringing teachers and students to the ESWP Annual National Engineering Week banquet and make the offer a standing invitation.

More than 500 students from throughout the region will vie for a trip to Washington, D.C., as they compete in the Pittsburgh Regional Future City Competition at Carnegie Music Hall in Pittsburgh on Saturday, January 16, 2010.

Participants were challenged to design a city of the future displaying residential, commercial and industrial areas, power plants, transportation, and communication systems—all with attention to “green,” environmentally friendly concerns. Students will address important issues such as pollution, traffic density, taxes, and budgets while creating their city. The students have worked in teams for the past several months under the guidance of a teacher and volunteer engineer mentor to research, design, and build their city, first in the SimCity™ 4 Deluxe software, and then as a physical model for the competition.

Students also write an essay as part of the competition, this year addressing the theme “Providing an Affordable Living Space for People Who Have Lost Their Home Due to a Disaster or Financial Emergency.”

“The students participating in the Pittsburgh Regional Future City Competition are highly motivated, inquisitive, and eager to develop new solutions for everyday challenges,” says Carol Schoemer, Carnegie Science Center staff educator and Future City Competition regional coordinator. “The can-do spirit among these kids is inspiring and fun to witness. Every year they surprise me with the ingenious designs and processes they create to solve problems present in cities in the competition. It’s hard to believe they are just seventh- and eighth-graders. It really makes you hopeful about the world they will create one day.”

The top winners of the 2009 Pittsburgh region have registered for the 2010 competition: Mary Queen of Apostles School (first place) and St. Bede School (second place). A complete list of schools registered for the current Pittsburgh region competition is available below.

First-place winners from each qualifying regional competition receive a trip to the 18th annual Future City National Finals in Washington, D.C., February 12–17, 2010, during National Engineers Week. National grand prize is a trip to U.S. Space Camp in Huntsville, Ala., provided by National Finals Host Bentley Systems, Inc. Other prizes include scholarships, computers, and savings bonds. In addition, teams will be eligible for special awards and recognition sponsored by engineering societies and other organizations. More than 33,000 students from 1,100 middle schools are expected to participate nationwide.

In Future City, one of the nation’s largest engineering education programs and among the most popular, students create cities on computers using the SimCity™ 4 Deluxe software and then build three-dimensional, tabletop models to scale. To ensure a level playing field, models must use recycled materials and can cost no more than $100 to build. Students also write brief abstracts describing their city and must present and defend their designs at the competition before a panel of engineer judges who test the depth of the teams’ knowledge.

That knowledge is often extensive, as shown by the competition’s essays, which require seventh- and eighth-graders to explore complex challenges and ideas that most adults would consider over their heads.

The Pittsburgh Regional Future City Competition is presented by Carnegie Science Center and the Engineers’ Society of Western Pennsylvania, and is sponsored in part by Shell Oil Company.

On September 27, 2008 representatives of the Engineers' Society of Western Pennsylvania met with about 25 high school teachers on the campus of Carnegie Mellon University to explain what civil engineers really do! The seminar was part of the 'Engineering Workshop for Science and Mathematics Educators' program which is funded by the Siemens Foundation, and facilitated by Judy Hallinen at the Leonard Gelfand Center for Service Learning and Outreach at Carnegie Mellon. ESWP Directors Dominick DeSalvo, Dan Tis and Deborah Lange each spoke about the path of their respective journeys into the world of engineering through high school, college and employment. The teachers also viewed portions of the new video program produced by Rick Sebak (WQED), “Invented, Engineered and Pioneered in Pittsburgh.”

The session began with 'concept mapping;' an exercise which demonstrated that many people think of civil engineering as being limited to the design of roads and bridges. Throughout the course of the day, we discussed many other facets of civil engineering, including land development, water and wastewater treatment, building construction, earthquake design, nanotechnology, and much more including and the link to other fields of engineering such as biomedical and mechanical. The group then explored the profile of a student that might be interested, the courses that might be offered and the wide range of opportunities that await graduating engineers - from engineering practice to medicine to law to business!

The teachers were quite engaged in the discussion and provided feedback about how the ESWP might assist them in their teaching and guidance efforts going forward. Out of 25 teacher participants, the following services were selected by the number at the end of the statement.

The ESWP is considering this input (and welcomes additional input!) as we embark on our Engineering & Outreach Program. If you would like more information about the programs that are available, please contact Dr. Deborah Lange through the ESWP at 412-261-0710.

To encourage the interest in the engineering profession in today's youth, we provide links to sites that encourage this pursuit.

Volunteers

ACE Mentor Program Western PA Chapter is seeking Mentor Volunteers.

The ACE Mentor Program provides high school students the opportunity to connect with professionals in the ACE industry. Volunteers are asked
to:

This is a great opportunity to join a new chapter and make a difference in the lives of young people. These young people are the future of the ACE Industry!

Recent events were hosted by the ESWP, Green Building Alliance, DMJM Harris, the International Masonry Institute (IMI), and P.J. Dick. In January 2009, the IMI hosted 25 students at BAC Local 9 to participate in hands-on masonry trades. Volunteers from Cost Company, MARSA, Inc., and MI Friday assisted the students.

For more information, please visit http://www.acementor.org/668

For more information on the ESWP's Programs, please e-mail eswp@eswp.com

ESWP: Education and Outreach

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