American Society for Engineering Education Conference Scheduled for 6/10-6/13/12

The annual conference of the American Society for Engineering Education will be held 10-13 June 2012 in San Antonio, Texas.  The theme for the event is "Spurring Big Ideas in Education," and will include over 400 technical sessions, professional paper presentations, distinguished lectures, and plenary sessions.  For further information and registration materials, visit http://www.asee.org/conferences-and-events/conferences/annual-conference/2012 .

"Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day" Set for 2/23/12

As part of National Engineers' Week, Thursday, 23 February 2012, is set as "Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day."  The event, in its 11th year, is designed to show girls how collaborative and creative the engineering profession can be.  Many events are scheduled nationwide to commemorate the day, and materials are available for local celebrations.  For more details, visit http://www.eweek.org/EngineersWeek/Introduce.aspx

Update on 2/27/12:  Jim Haynes, Project Lead the Way teacher at Highland HS in Palmdale, welcomed 59 young women who visited his five pre-engineering classes on 23 February as part of the "Introduce a Girl to Engineering Class" day.  This follows participation by approximately 20 young ladies included in the AV Higher Education Symposium engineering and "Focus Your Future" panels held on 11 February 2012 at the AVROP Center for Career Technical Education.

8th Annual Global Marathon For, By and About Women in Engineering and Technology Scheduled for 3/5-3/10/12

For four hours daily over a six-day period from 5-10 March 2012, "women engineers from North and South America, China, India, the Middle East, Africa, the U.K. and Europe will discuss critical topics of the profession—from how to engage girls and young women to consider engineering careers, advice on career paths and achieving life-work balance, to the benefits of networking and much more."  The 8th annual Global Marathon For, By and About Women in Engineering and Technology is a free, virtual town-hall event focusing on "exploration and adventure with numerous activities at corporations, museums and technology centers around the globe," including webcasts, live chats, and telephone conversations for pre-college, university, and professional women.  The North American regional discussion, set for 5 March, will be led by Tricia Berry from the University of Texas at Austin's Women in Engineering Program.  For more information and to register for the event, visit http://www.eweek.org/EngineersWeek/GlobalMarathon.aspx?ContentID=264

NAPE/STEM Equity Professional Development Institute Begins 4/16/12

The NAPE/STEM Equity Professional Development Institute - "Access, Equity and Diversity:  We Have an APP for That," will be held 16-19 April 2012 in Arlington, Virginia.  Monica McManus, Lockheed Martin's Chief  Information Officer, is scheduled to speak.  Brenda Dann-Messier, Assistant Secretary for Vocational and Adult Education with the US Dept. of Education, and Jane Oates, Assistant Secretary for the Employment and Training Administration of the US Dept. of Labor, are also scheduled to participate in the associated Public Policy Day on 18 April.  Registration information can be located at http://beta.napequity.org/professional-development/2012-professional-development-institute/ .

NAPE To Webcast "Is the US Producing Enough STEM-Capable Students?" on 2/21/12; Career Trailblazers Feature on Future Employment Prospects

The NAPE STEM Equity Pipeline is offering a webinar (using Adobe Connect) entitled "Is the US Producing Enough STEM-Capable Students?" on Tuesday, 21 February 2012, at 9:00am PST.  Dr. Nicole Smith, a Research Professor and Senior Economist at the Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce, will be providing information regarding STEM knowledge, skills and abilities, data on the demographics and losses of STEM students and workers, as well as wage differentials between STEM and non-STEM careers.  To register, go to http://www.stemequitypipeline.org/registration/WebinarRegistration20120221.aspx

In a related item, the CTE Trailblazers magazine provides information on future employment prospects through 2018 by career cluster, including STEM areas.  The feature also provides downloadable reports.  http://ctetrailblazers.blogspot.com/2012/01/career-cluster-predictions-employment.html

8th Annual Intermediate Space Challenge Fly-Off Set for 5/22/12

The eighth annual Intermediate Space Challenge rocketry fly-off is scheduled for 22 May 2012 at the Mojave Air and Spaceport.  Local elementary/middle school students participate in academic preparation, including an essay writing competition, rocket design and decoration, and other activities throughout the school year before the launch.  Awards are given for specific categories within the competition.  For more information about this nationally-recognized event, contact Marie Walker at Fiberset in Mojave, California.

Happy CTE Month 2012!

Knight High PLTW students work with wind tunnel

February is the annual commemoration of CTE (Career and Technical Education) Month around the US.  This year's theme is "Careers Through Education." Among other observances in the Antelope Valley, local field representatives from the offices of Congressman Buck McKeon (Jeff McElfresh), California Senator Sharon Runner (Lisa Moulton), Assemblyman Steve Knight (Sarah Tyndall), AVUHSD Board of Trustees President Donita Winn, AVUHSD Superintendent Dr. David Vierra, and other members of the business and education communities, visited the Falcon Academy of Sustainable Technologies (FAST) Academy and Health Careers Academy at Palmdale High School, as well as the Digital Design and Engineering Academy at Knight High School recently. 

PHS FAST students work in construction lab

Members of the Pasadena Educational Foundation are also scheduled to visit pre-engineering programs at Discovery School in the Lancaster School District as part of a presentation on the AV STEM pathways in grades K-20 later this week.



Pasadena Ed Fdn. and others visit Discovery School


The AV Higher Education Consortium and AVUHSD will be hosting a Parent and Student Symposium on 11 February from 8:00am to 1:00pm, including sessions on a variety of subjects including STEM-related careers and speakers.

Both Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman will be providing industry speakers to local classrooms during Engineering Week, 20-24 February.

The Antelope Valley Board of Trade is hosting its annual Business Outlook Conference on 24 February at the AV Fairgrounds, with Earvin "Magic" Johnson (boxing great "Sugar Ray" Leonard is now scheduled to speak, due to a conflict with the NBA All-Star Weekend) acting as the keynote speaker.  Local high school career academies will be having table displays regarding their programs.

Congratulations to all of the CTE educators, administrators, and industry partners in the Greater AV for being part of our celebrations!

For more information on CTE month around the US, visit http://www.acteonline.org/ctemonth.aspx#Challenge . 

"Mojave Maxine" Turtle Emergence Contest Open

Any K-12 student in 9 Southern California counties, including Los Angeles, Kern, and San Bernardino, can participate in the "Mojave Maxine Emergence Contest" to predict when the desert tortoise will emerge from her burrow for the first time in 2012.  Similar to the groundhog "Punxatawny Phil," Maxine, a desert tortoise which lives at the Living Desert Zoo in Palm Desert, tends to emerge with warmer weather and longer days. 

Students may enter one time in the contest.  Winners (with the closest date/time to her actual emergence from her burrow) will win a $50 gift certificate, a Federal Lands Pass, a visit from Maxine, Mojave Maxine t-shirts for their class, and a $100 gift certificate for their teacher.

For more information on the contest and to enter, visit http://www.mojavedata.gov/contest/.

MEEC Teacher of the Year, Student of the Year, and Environmental/Engineering Scholarship Application Period Closes 4/6 and 4/20/12

The Mojave Environmental Education Consortium (MEEC) is once again offering recognition (including cash and/or gift cards and plaques) for outstanding High Desert (Victorville and Palmdale/Lancaster areas) teachers and students, as well as five $1,000 scholarships for high school seniors declaring college majors in environmental science or engineering fields of study.  One Teacher of the Year, two Teachers of Excellence, and up to ten Students of the Year will be awarded.

Applications are due to Christie Robinson at MEEC by no later than 6 April 2012 (deadline extended for Teacher of the Year and Student of the Year to 20 April 2012!).  For more information on eligibility requirements and to download the application forms, please visit:

http://www.meeconline.com/20102011-teacher-of-the-year-nominations-now-being-accepted/
http://www.meeconline.com/20102011-student-of-the-year-nominations-now-being-accepted/ or
http://www.meeconline.com/20102011-hs-environmental-science-scholarship-announcement/

STEM Focus Continued in 2012 State of the Union Address

President Obama has once again advanced the STEM agenda in the State of the Union address delivered on 24 January.  Building upon the "100K in 10" (100,000 new highly-qualified STEM teachers trained over the next 10 years - http://100kin10.org/) theme from the 2011 State of the Union, the President asked Congress to pass legislation which would re-train 2 million unemployed American workers to obtain STEM skills.   http://www.usnews.com/news/blogs/stem-education/2012/01/25/obama-pushes-stem-in-state-of-the-union  In a follow-up story, during a town-hall social media conference held on 30 January, the President requested the resume of one long-unemployed semiconductor engineer whose wife participated, offering to circulate it to employers. http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/obama-offers-circulate-resume-unemployeed-engineer-google-hangout-article-1.1014377?localLinksEnabled=false ]. 

To see the full text of the address, visit http://www.whitehouse.gov/photos-and-video/video/2012/01/25/2012-state-union-address-enhanced-version#transcript.