Over 100 high school students experience Engineering Day at Penn State Scranton

DUNMORE, Pa. -- Over 100 students from Blue Ridge, Scranton and Wallenpaupack Area high schools recently visited Penn State Scranton for Discover Engineering Day, a collaborative event by the Penn State Engineering Ambassadors Program and Penn State Scranton and University students, faculty and staff. The goal of the event was to highlight the engineering profession and how engineers help communities.

The Engineering Ambassadors are current, outstanding Penn State engineering students who are passionate about inspiring K-12 students to improve the world through engineering. They worked with all of the students in hands-on activities to showcase the creative, fun and practical sides of engineering, inspiring them to explore diverse opportunities in the field beyond its traditional science and math aspects.

“We’re able to show them that engineering isn’t just math and science – it’s also a lot of fun," said Julia Kline, a fourth-year engineering science major.

Students also got to hear from Penn State Scranton students during a panel discussion about college life, and explore the Penn State Scranton campus with the campus’ Lion Ambassadors, including a tour of its Mechanical Engineering Building and labs.

“We appreciated collaborating with Penn State Scranton on our Discover Engineering event,” said Maureen Kelliher, assistant director of the Engineering Ambassadors program. “This opportunity allowed us to introduce high school students to a variety of engineering careers while highlighting a local Penn State campus.”

After welcome messages from Engineering Ambassadors Program representatives and Penn State Scranton’s Admissions Office, students were divided into groups to participate in a series of engineering challenges, designed to use an interactive approach in applying engineering principles to solve problems and design solutions.

Students worked with small robots to learn how to program them to draw a picture and play music. The second activity involved using engineering concepts to design a landing pad that would catch an egg without breaking it, skills which are critical in the entertainment industry to ensure that any stunts being performed are safe for the actors and stunt performers.

The event also offered students a chance to interact with and talk to their college counterparts who are already pursuing a career in the engineering field.

“It’s creative,” said Alexia Minarro, a third-year industrial engineering major. “We want them to know that engineering can be fun.”

Some students who attend programs like Engineering Day may not be sure which career field they want to pursue, or they may be thinking about engineering but are not sure it’s for them. Having an opportunity to inspire those students and show them the importance of engineers is the best part of the program for Minarro.

“We worked with robots and did a session on movie magic. We were able to show them there’s a lot you can do with an engineering degree and encourage them to pursue [a career in] engineering," Minarro said. "Some students underestimate themselves, and then they work on these projects and think, ‘I like this; I could do this.’ It’s really cool to see that happen.”

"That’s what I like about it," Elizabeth Mahoney, a third-year industrial engineering major, agreed. “It’s instilling confidence in them, while having fun.”

Mahoney initially got involved in the Engineering Ambassadors because of that opportunity, she said.

“I wanted to provide these kids exposure to engineering and everything you can do with it," Mahoney said.

For Kline, this Discover Engineering Day was bittersweet, as it was her last after three years of being part of sharing her love of engineering with potential future engineers and giving them a better understanding of the profession. She's set to graduate from Penn State in May, and after that, she'll enter the workforce. She currently has a job lined up at Walt Disney World in Florida, where she will be working on the park’s monorail systems.

 “Our hope is to make these students enjoy the trial-and-error part of engineering," Kline said. "That’s what the exercises we did with them were really about: to teach them to not be afraid of failure or making a mistake, because that’s how you learn.”

Engineering Day events are financially supported by the David and JoEllen Sallack Engineering Ambassadors Program Fund in the College of Engineering. David is a University alumnus with a degree in community development; his wife, JoEllen, received her bachelor’s degree in individual and family studies from Penn State.

“We are grateful for the generous support of Penn State alumni Dave and JoEllen Sallack. Their gift enables us to bring students to campus and engage them in this program free of cost to the local schools,” said Lori Miraldi, director of the Engineering Ambassadors Program.