Gearing Up for Civil Engineering Review of a Summer Institute for Increasing Under-Represented Students in Civil Environmental Engineering

摘要

The numbers of female and minority students enrolled in engineering schools have been increasing slowly within that previous two decades, however there is still a relatively small percentage drawn to the field of civil engineering. As a consequence, there is a need to educate young people about the profession to encourage underrepresented individuals to appreciate the contributions of engineers and encourage them to become civil engineers. The summer institute held at the University of Alabama in Huntsville consisted of bringing middle school students, to the campus for a week of interactive science and engineering experiences. The strategy of this program was aimed at producing students who know "how to find out" and "how to examine and evaluate evidence." The participants gained knowledge about the role of engineers in society, as well as practiced applying simple science concepts to solve design problems.