Engineering Club Builds Interest
Earlier this year, students formed a new engineering club. Already 40 members strong, the club has had the unique opportunity to explore and learn at a variety of different facilities such as Nestle Purina, Washington University and Boeing.
At each of these locations, students were exposed to immense amounts of new knowledge about the engineering field. These experiences help the students learn about a vast variety of engineering fields.
“It really helped me decide what kind of engineer I want to be and what I should be expecting [from a job in that field]” said Harrison Jewell, one of the founding members.
Club members have the chance to speak with these engineers and learn about what kind of schooling a career in engineering demands. Some students might think that pursuing an engineering degree and job is all about math and science, but, as many students have discovered, good engineers are expected to be able to do a lot more.
Mr. Joseph Feld, the moderator of the engineering club, hopes that along with learning more about math and science, the students realize engineers need proficient writing techniques as well as people skills.
The club went to Ameren power plant on Jan. 30 and observed how the plant operates. They learned that Ameren converts gas produced by landfills into electricity.
In addition, the engineering club is preparing for the Boeing Engineering Challenge. For the competition the club has to create a glider that will be judged based on the straightness of the flight, duration of time in the air and distance flown. They then have to present their gliders plans to engineers from Boeing.
The students get many experiences which are unique to the club. Despite being a new group, the engineering club has already been an active force in and out of school.
