Engineering Technology Contest:

Brent Kindred
August 2006
Wisconsin SkillsUSA

As engineering curriculum further penetrates the educational arena both at the secondary and post-secondary levels in the state of Wisconsin, the need to recognize student achievement cannot be ignored by SkillsUSA any longer. The infusion of Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) into students everyday classes has become commonplace in the lives of students and teachers alike.

The SkillsUSA national office has recently been involved in the federal STEM movement and has been recognized by the United States Department of Labor (DOL) and the National Coalition for Advanced Manufacturing (NACFAM) for efforts in exploring ways to integrate STEM as part of the movement to reform our nation's high schools. A state and national competitive event in pre-engineering/engineering would lend more credibility to SkillsUSA as a national leader in promotion of rigorous academics and the inclusion of STEM in our most visible national program.

An Engineering Technology contest has been proposed, and accepted, to recognize outstanding engineering students for their ability to design an innovative engineering project and present those ideas. During the presentation, students shall perform as a professional team, presenting their ideas/project to a panel of judges from the engineering field.

More specifics about the event will be provided in the coming months.