AOE is extending an invitation to Detroit educators to attend a free information session being held at Focus:HOPE to learn more about what AOE has designed for 9th-12th grade students in urban areas in preparing them for exciting careers in engineering and engineering technology.
The Information Session is scheduled for Tuesday, June 23, 2009 from 8:30 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. at the offices of Focus:HOPE located at 1355 Oakman Boulevard, Detroit, Mich. Attendees should register online at www.AcademyofEngineering.com - Members of the media are welcome guests and are invited to attend at will.
The Academy of Engineering initiative is a collaboration of the National Academy Foundation (NAF), Project Lead The Way and the National Action Council for Minorities in Engineering (NACME). The first 13 Academies of Engineering opened in 2008; more schools will join the program each year until there is a national network of 110 academies.
The goal of AOE, a fast-growing, national organization, is to recruit and encourage students to choose careers in engineering and engineering technology; increase the participation of women and underrepresented minorities and prepare students to pursue post-secondary engineering and engineering technology degree programs.
Detroit’s involvement in offering this unique session complements those being offered this year in Los Angeles, Dallas, Washington, D.C., Phoenix and Miami – areas in critical need of providing educational opportunities for youth.
Demand for qualified, highly-trained engineers in the United States is on the rise. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, four of the top 30 fastest-growing occupations through 2014 will be related to engineering. As a group, engineers earn some of the highest average starting salaries among those holding bachelor’s degrees. The bureau projects more than 386,000 new engineering job openings, but current trends show the supply of U.S. educated engineers is waning. Not enough students are graduating from high school with sufficient math and science skills. The academies were created to address the acute shortage of engineers entering the workforce and to encourage students, especially minority students in urban schools, to focus on engineering fields.
Focus: HOPE is a nationally recognized civil and human rights organization in Detroit founded in1968 after the Detroit riots. Throughout the years, Focus: HOPE developed numerous programs in its efforts to overcome racism, poverty and injustice. It offers a food program, which assists 42,000 seniors, mothers and children each month; career training programs in machining, engineering and information technology; a child care center, a community arts program targeted to high school students, and neighborhood revitalization initiatives. Through Focus: HOPE, thousands of individuals – especially women and minorities – have become financially independent. www.focushope.edu.
Project Lead The Way®, Inc. (PLTW) provides the curriculum development expertise for core engineering studies and PLTW teacher certification, and classroom requirements.
National Academy Foundation supports career-themed academies in high schools across the United States with its model incorporating curriculum, paid internships and local advisory boards.
National Action Council for Minorities in Engineering, Inc. processes vital connection to engineering scholarships and programs via university and corporate partnerships, as well as provides engineering awareness materials to students, teachers, parents, and counselors.
About the SME Education Foundation:
The SME Education Foundation is committed to inspiring, supporting and preparing the next generation of manufacturing engineers and technologists in the advancement of manufacturing education. Created by the Society of Manufacturing Engineers in 1979, the SME Education Foundation has provide more than $29 million since 1980 in grants, scholarships and awards through its partnerships with corporations, organizations, foundations, and individual donors. Visit www.smeef.org and award-winning website, Manufacturing is Cool!
