Students from across Florida got an up-close view of the world of
engineering at the University of South Florida’s
(USF) annual Engineering Expo, held at
USF’s College of Engineering in Tampa, February 13- 14. The Expo is now in its
43rd year and is designed to get kids excited about STEM subjects,
as well as educate and inform them about the engineering world and the many
opportunities it offers. The Expo is a free, two-day open house event that last
year hosted more than 14,000
students, youth groups, and families. Many local engineering firms and
companies such as TECO, NASA, Honeywell, Raytheon, Sypris Electronics, and
Lockheed Martin have hands-on demonstration tables and shows. The event also
showcases the College of Engineering, USF academic departments, research labs
from across campus, and student organizations. Part of
the Expo’s mission is to “provide safe, entertaining,
and educational exhibits to our visitors, so that they might become more
passionate and more involved in engineering and to show them how STEM affects
the world around them.”
Walking around the Expo, it was
clear that its mission was being achieved – groups of excited, interested
students everywhere – asking lots of questions, touring exhibits, taking part
in interactive activities and contests. FLATE’s table this year featured our
very own “mini-manufacturing station”, manned by Nina Stokes, FESC Project
Manager. The badge making activity proved to be hugely popular and students
formed a constant line to take part. Students were given the opportunity to
manufacture their own FLATE buttons and it was great to see the looks on their
faces when they saw the finished product they had just made.
Brandon was as usual, the star of
the FLATE show and wowed students with his talents. Desh Bagley, Outreach
Manager showed students how to write simple programs and use them to control
Brandon’s movements, using a laptop at the table. Students also had a lot of
fun posing with Brandon for selfie shots! For more
information on the engineering expo visit http://expo.eng.usf.edu. For information on local engineering
technology programs at the high school and two/four year colleges visit
www.madeinflorida.org/engineering-technology-degree, or contact Dr. Marilyn
Barger at barger@fl-ate.org.
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