Students and faculty at UALR’s Donaghey College of Engineering and Information Technology (EIT) will host seminars, contests, and a technology Olympics during the week of Feb. 18-25 to celebrate National Engineering Week.

Vernard W. Henley, director of recruitment and outreach at EIT, said the Arkansas Alumni Extension Chapter of the National Society of Black Engineers will host the first of four seminars designed to generate high school student interest in engineering careers.

“Introduction to Engineering” from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 18, in the EIT auditorium will feature presentations by NSBE members on what engineering is, a description of the different engineering disciplines, as well as how students should prepare themselves for a career in engineering.

The seminar also will include a frank discussion by Leroy Randolph from the Arkansas Department of Health about pitfalls that can derail a promising student.

Twenty teams from regional high schools already have signed up to compete in the UALR Technology Student Association’s Tests of Engineering Aptitude, Mathematics, and Science (TEAMS) Competition. The event will be from 8:45 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 21, in the Donaghey Student Center Ledbetter Hall.

Participating schools include eSTEM High School, Russellville High, Paris High, LISA Academy, Arkadelphia High, Little Rock Catholic High, Little Rock Central High, the Arkansas School for Mathematics, Sciences, and the Arts in Hot Springs, and J.A. Fair High School in Little Rock. Cooper Yeshiva High School in Tennessee will also participate.

Teams of eight students each will work together to solve actual engineering problems designed by university faculty during the open-book, open-notes test.

“The TEAMS Competition is an opportunity for high school students to apply the knowledge they acquired in their science and math classes to solve real engineering problems,” Henley said. “Students will be able to compete on a level playing field because they will be ranked against similar schools based on size.”

On Saturday, Feb. 25, students from more than 100 middle schools will compete in the Engineering Olympics – Junior Division from 9:30 a.m. to 2:15 p.m.

Students will compete in a variety of engineering contests that show off their technical skills. Competition events and sites include:

• Toothpick Bridge Construction; EIT Auditorium
• Critical Thinking Problems; EIT Room 203
• Quick-Stop Racer Competition; EIT Fourth Floor

Schools already entered to compete include Oakbrooke Elementary, Central Magnet, Dardanelle Elementary, Bethel Middle, Bryant Middle, Henderson Middle, Mabelvale Middle, Pulaski Heights Middle, Horace Mann Middle, and Marvell-Elaine Elementary.

For more information about Engineering Week competitions, contact Henley at 501-569-8203.