JETS Update

National Engineering Design Challenge

2006 National Finals!

First there were 57 hopeful high school teams from around the nation researching and brainstorming on ways to help individuals with disabilities enter or advance in the work force. Then there were 30 teams researching, designing, and building their idea. Now there are five teams left, and these final five teams that have survived the first two rounds of the JWOD/ JETS National Engineering Design Challenge will be coming to Washington DC on February 17, 2006 to present, demonstrate, and defend their prototype.

The JWOD/JETS NEDC is an exciting program that allows students to explore, research, design, and build a working product that will help individuals with disabilities enter and succeed in the work force. Besides gaining valuable knowledge and skills, students are able to walk away knowing that they have made a difference in someone's life.

Participating in the JWOD/JETS National Engineering Design Challenge is a cross-curricular activity that involves problem solving skills, math, science, research, writing, presentation skills, and drafting/design skills.

These talented student finalists hail from: Bacon Academy from Colchester, CT; Gulliver Preparatory from Pinecrest, FL; Staples High School from Westport, CT; Upper St. Clair High School from Upper St. Clair, PA; and Wallenpaupack Area High School from Hawley, PA. Not only have they won an all expense paid trip to Washington DC, but the best overall design will win $3,000 for the winning team's sponsoring department. Two additional "best of" awards will be given and the sponsoring departments in those schools will be awarded $1,500. In addition, each student on a national finalist team will be awarded a $50 gift certificate to the Discovery Store.

If you happen to be in the DC area on February 17th and would like to see first hand what these inventive high school students have designed, please contact Gina Ord at gord@jets.org for details on attending. For a summary on each schools design please visit our website at: http://www.jets.org/programs/nedc_natlfinalists.cfm.

You are running out of time, but there is still some space available. JETS officially kicked-off the 2006 TEAMS Competition season at a brand new host site on the campus of the University of Iowa in Iowa City. You don't want to miss out on this year's competition. With over 14,000 high school students participating in this year's TEAMS competition, you don't want to be left out. High school students will work in teams of four to eight to solve problems about ice cream production, energy efficiency and supply, water systems, and space exploration. To help your team prepare for this challenging competition you may purchase a previous years' competition packet, please visit: www.jets.org/programs/teams-resources.htm for ordering information. So make sure you are registered to participate in this exciting and educational event!

Deciding on a College Career?

High school students sometimes decide on their college career paths without really knowing what those courses of study will involve. In order to help students determine how well-prepared they are to enter an engineering or technology program in college and to answer questions students have about engineering and technology study, JETS has developed the National Engineering Aptitude Search+ (NEAS+) academic survey. The NEAS+ enables students to make informed decisions about their futures.

For more information on the NEAS+ and how to place an order please visit: http://www.jets.org/programs/neas.cfm.

JETS will be partnering with Eweek, Society of Women Engineers (SWE), and other organizations to heighten awareness of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) issues among pre-college, college, and young career women, and to address issues of concern such as retaining women in college engineering programs and the workplace.

Stay tuned for more information about this exciting event that will start at noon, U.S. Eastern Standard Time on March 23, 2005, and conclude at noon on March 24, 2005.