The university’s Black Engineers Society is trying to build an intergenerational pipeline. Aiming to draw more young minorities into the math and science fields, the group works with local programs, hoping to show the community a different kind of engineer.
In recognition of their efforts in this area, the university’s chapter was named the National Society of Black Engineers’ distinguished chapter of the year at their annual convention in Las Vegas and will receive a variety of prizes, including an all-expense-paid trip to San Diego, Calif., for a ride aboard a U.S. Navy nuclear submarine, members said. But regardless of the prizes, the group’s members said it’s the opportunities for outreach to students at local high schools and middle schools that drove them to be a part of the group – and what sets them apart.
“We’re going along with the [engineering school Dean Darryll Pines’] mission of more minorities in this field,” said society member and senior mechanical engineering major Bryan Henderson. “I’m really excited for the younger generation.”
The relationships formed between society members and high school students are ones that last for years, one of the main reasons why their community programs have such a big impact, Henderson said.
“We’ve been able to make a bigger impact, and that sets us apart from different societies,” he said. “In the same way someone reached out to them, someone reached out to me. The pipeline is amazing. We’re not just a bunch of students. We operate like a business.”
While the society is a collegiate group, substantial focus is put on younger students. Through programs such as the Pre-College Initiative and working with the Center for Minorities in Science and Engineering, the Black Engineers Society works with Prince George’s County Schools to spark minority youth interest in the engineering fields and in attending college.
The group invites students to come to the campus during shadow days and last year’s Engineering Day, where they learn about the different opportunities available to them, igniting an interest in the engineering fields.
“It’s geared toward getting young kids and minorities interested,” chapter president and senior mechanical engineering major Sidney Ngochi said. “The parents get into it, too. The parents know what engineering is when we’re done.”
Beyond helping the next generation of engineering students, the society also looks to encourage the current one by working closely with both university departments and its corporate sponsors for funding and support. Companies such as Cisco, Boeing, the National Security Agency and Google provide not only a financial backbone to the group, but an educational one, as well.
The group’s members also provide valuable support to one another.
“We are like a family,” Ngochi said. “Because in engineering, you can’t go solo.”
But the group is not limited to minority engineering majors, Henderson said. Student members come from a variety of cultural and academic backgrounds such as computer science, math and psychology.
With its work in the community and in the classroom, the group is looking to change the public’s definition of an engineer – not limited by race, gender or economic standing, Henderson said.
“We’re really trying to make engineering sexy,” he said.
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