6th, 7th, & 8th Grade Summer Engineering Workshops
Participants learn about exciting engineering concepts at MEP's Summer Engineering Workshops.
The Summer Engineering Workshop (SEW) programs were developed in 1976 with the objective of increasing the pool of interested and qualified students choosing to pursue engineering study; especially in the College of Engineering at Purdue University.
Each summer, two one-week engineering workshops are hosted on the Purdue West Lafayette campus for select, high-potential students who have just completed the sixth or seventh grades (Week 1) and eighth grade (Week II).
Participants are recommended for participation by their school counselor, math or science teacher. Until the Summer of 1984, the program was limited to eighth grade underrepresented students of color enrolled in targeted junior high schools from the state of Indiana. Due to additional financial support and the urgent need to reach students from these populations at an earlier age, the program was expanded to include sixth graders, as well as students from several cities throughout the United States and Puerto Rico.
Participation in these summer engineering workshops is generally the first exposure the students have to the field of engineering, to higher education, to college life, and to the opportunities they afford. Workshop activities generally consist of hands-on engineering-related projects; tours of the general campus as well as engineering laboratories and facilities; discussions with engineering students and professionals who serve as role models and who may potentially become mentors; presentations from and discussions with counseling professionals on the importance of enrolling in the appropriate junior and senior high school courses in preparation for technical studies at the college level; and introductory 'Life-Planning' sessions, which cover topics such as goal-setting, values exploration and clarification, along with time-management and study skills techniques.
These two programs have touched the lives of more than 3000 students of color since 1976. While the majority do not ultimately enroll in the College of Engineering at Purdue University, a significant number have gone on to college, and to study and earn degrees in math-based fields.
Due to the sustained partnerships and generous support - financially and with other resources - developed with many corporate friends, the MEP has been fortunate to host these and other similar programs on an annual basis and keep the costs reasonable for parents/guardians of the participants. As our Minority Engineering Program (MEP) Alumni base expands, we will focus our efforts more directly on a variety of methods to allow "Alumni Forging Our Role to Create 21st Century Engineers (A-FORC2E)."
6th & 7th Grade SEW 2008 (June 15-19, 2008)
8th Grade SEW 2008
(June 15-19, 2008)
If you have any questions about the PREFACE program, please feel free to contact Cindy Divan. She can be reached at
cmdivan@purdue.edu.
