UA Engineering clubs and organizations are getting ready to compete with one another for a chance to win a first-place trophy during E-Week.
E-Week, which is held at the same time as National Engineers Week, is a weeklong competition that provides challenges and outreach opportunities for engineering students. The UA Engineering Student Council organized the events, which began Friday with an opening ceremony at the Engineering building.
“I actually think that every week is Engineers Week,” said Jeff Goldberg, dean for the College of Engineering, in his speech at the opening ceremony. “In fact, in no point in the last 100 years have engineers been more prominent to the public (than recently).”
E-Week events will last until this Saturday and end with a closing ceremony in the School of Music’s Crowder Hall at 5 p.m. There, engineering clubs and organizations competing in E-Week will be ranked based on their performance during events and community service projects.
“In previous years, it was more focused on the competition,” said Jose Estrada, a systems engineering junior and president of the UA Engineering Student Council. “This year we’re really emphasizing community outreach and community service events.”
This year, more than a dozen UA engineering clubs and organizations will participate in E-Week. One new aspect to the event is that clubs can earn points by organizing community outreach programs, in addition to winning them during scheduled challenges. Some of the programs planned so far include helping build homes and teaching children about engineering in schools around Tucson.
“It is important for engineering students because it brings about awareness, not only at the UA, but in the community, to show that engineers are important to our society,” Estrada said. “We also hope to show a younger generation that engineering is cool and could be a career path.”
Over the weekend, the Engineering Student Council, along with Women in Science, Engineering and Technology and Tau Beta Pi hosted a volleyball tournament and scavenger hunt. Today, the events continue with a talent show in Room 214 of the Engineering building from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m., Engineering Jeopardy and an engineering student beauty pageant in the Gallagher Theater from 6:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.
“This week helps get all of the engineering students out of the classroom and working together on fun activities,” said Jessica Mergener, a biomedical engineering freshman.
Other events scheduled throughout the week include a parachute drop competition, engineering relays and a design challenge.
“I hope (during E-Week) they get to know their classmates a little better and get to have some fun and build some relationships because the people that they go to school with, some of them are going to be their friends for the rest of their lives,” said Jim Baygents, associate dean for academic affairs in the College of Engineering.
In addition to providing competition events for engineering students, informational career sessions will be held for companies like Intel, Micron and BAE Systems, Inc.
The College of Engineering will also host its 20th annual Engineering Industry Expo on Tuesday, where students interested in getting an internship or job in the engineering field can talk to company recruiters.
“When I look at our faculty and I look at our students,” Goldberg said, “we are exactly top and center where we should be relative to helping this country get better, maintain economic status and really move us into the future.”
