Student sections receive more than $22,000 for outreach programs

Mary James Legatski
ASME Public Affairs

The efforts of 17 student sections to attract more women and minorities to ASME and the engineering community will receive financial support from the Society's Board on Diversity and Outreach (BDO).

Through its Diversity Action Grant (DAG) program, BDO awarded up to $1,500 to the sections to be used for activities that may lead more women and minorities to become active in ASME and in the engineering community. The awards were made during Congress in November.

DAG is a competitive grants program that is open to all ASME Student Sections. Detailed information about the program may be viewed at www.asme.org/communities/diversities/bdo/dag.html. The deadline for applying for grants for the 2005-2006 academic year is Nov. 1.

The 17 ASME student sections receiving grants for the 2004-2005 academic year, as well as a brief overview of each project or activity, appear below.

Student Section	Approved Funds	Project Description
Baylor University	$1,250	Engineering and Computer Science Day Workshop, in partnership with AWE and the Engineering and Engineering and Computer Science Living-Learning Center, to raise interest in engineering and computer science among high school minority and female students.
California State University, Chico	$1,500	Minds in Motion, combining STEM disciplines, to introduce and motivate K-12 students to learn STEM subjects and appreciate that they can be fun and exciting. Outreach to schools in nine Northern California counties. Partners include ASCE, SWE, Tau Beta Pi, SPS, NSBE, MESA, IEEE and others.
California State University, Fresno	$1,500	Project Initiate, partnering with SWE and MESA, to develop a hands-on demonstration to use at Engineers at the Mall during Engineers Week, fall and spring open house, and on-site elementary and junior high school visits to promote women and minorities in engineering. Display will feature projects built by women and minorities.
Cal Poly State University	$1,000	Partnering with Cal Poly MESA and SWE, will hold a competition on Saturday, March 5, bringing in over 400 local junior and high school students to participate in various technical competitions and contests to introduce mechanical engineering.
Central Washington University	$1,500	Partnering with Hellcats, Precision Flight Team and Association of Construction Managers, will invite 36 girls, age 13-16, to the campus for a weekend of hands-on activities in three fields: construction management, aviation and engineering. Activities will include an egg drop, flying an airplane and building a pop bottle rocket.
Florida State University	$500	Project will highlight minority female engineers of the past, present and future. Target audience is local elementary school students. Will research minority female engineers and develop posters as outreach tools to students
Texas A&M University & Universidad de Guanajuato	$1,500 each	Student exchange program between Texas A&M and the University of Guanajuato to improve international awareness and understanding of the global marketplace. Between 20 and 25 students from each university will participate in the program.
United States Corps of Cadets	$1,500	The Mid-Hudson Section and West Point Student Section will partner with the West Point SWE Section to invite engineers from regional industries, as well as members of regional engineering societies (especially women and minorities) to share with students and faculty insights into the practice of engineering in today's technology-driven world.
University of Akron	$1,000	Design project to recommend a better gearbox for a Little Tikes toy car that can be ridden by kids. Partners include the Women in Engineering Project, the Little Tykes Company. Goal is to recruit women and minorities into the ASME Student Section.
University of Alabama	$1,500	Girl Scout Engineering Days in partnership with SWE.
University of Hartford	$1,500	Engineering for All outreach program to teach local secondary school students about engineering. Will partner with NASA Space Grant program, ASME Hartford Senior Section, and civil and electrical engineering departments.
University of Miami	$1,300	Build It is an impromptu design competition aimed at increasing high school students' awareness of ME in inner city and greater Miami-Dade and Broward Counties. The project depicts a realistic engineering scenario — students must design a device that accomplishes an objective with limited time and materials.
Virginia State University	$1,200	The goal of Project RSVP (Restoring Science in Venturing People) is to restore interest in science in 20 female students in grades nine through 12 at Petersburg High School,. The five-week program will involve a different project each week.
Virginia Tech	$1,500	Engineering Perspectives Conference focuses on increasing active membership of minorities and women in ASME and the engineering profession. The one-day event will feature a series of design projects, educational speakers, tours and other activities.
Whiting School of Engineering	$1,500	Ready! Set! Design! is an outreach program directed at middle school girls in the Baltimore community. The half-day sessions will use fun activities and presentations to introduce the students to engineering. The objective of the project is to expand the population of engineers and arouse the engineering curiosity of an untapped source of talent. Will partner with SWE

 

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