“Our students did an outstanding job, and motivated young people with their projects," said Rendee Doré, engineering outreach coordinator.
By the Charles W. Davidson College of Engineering
What can one sheet of plain paper, five paper clips, two blocks, a ruler and a stack of pennies help grade school kids discover about engineering? It’s called the Penny Bridge Challenge: students build a bridge with these materials and learn how civil engineers come up with innovative ideas to rebuild critical infrastructures.
The penny challenge was only one of many fun science discovery activities SJSU engineering students had in their arsenal to delight Bay Area K-12 students at the first-ever Science Discovery Day at AT&T Park, sponsored by BayBio, last weekend. More than 50 SJSU students from three groups – the Engineering Ambassadors Program, materials engineering classes, and the Robotics Club, hopped aboard Caltrain and headed to San Francisco where they participated in the day-long event. This science extravaganza program featured more than 170 interactive exhibits, experiments and other activities for an audience of approximately 15,000. All to inspire young people and their families and to demonstrate that science is fun.
Guiding the engineers of tomorrow
Rendee Doré, engineering outreach coordinator, applauds the successful first-time outreach partnership between the Engineering Ambassadors Program and the other SJSU groups. “Our students did an outstanding job, and motivated young people with their projects. The EAP students truly exemplified their new slogan, ‘Guiding the Engineers of Tomorrow.’ They mentored high school students at the Project Lead the Way tables, sponsored by Chevron, throughout the day. They were true advocates for the message that STEM learning provides an educational pathway for students from middle school to a four-year college.”