JETS Update

National Engineering Design Challenge

Thirty Teams Nationwide Advance to Round II!

The votes are in. Thirty teams have been chosen to advance to Round II of the JWOD/JETS National Engineering Design Challenge. "We are thrilled about the number of participating teams and the quality of their entries," said Leann Yoder, executive director of JETS.

Teams selected to move to Round II completed the research phase of the competition and used the engineering design process to solve a problem that helps people with disabilities to join the workforce or be more productive in it. Students selected from six scenarios or developed their own problem to solve. Among the creative solutions submitted were an electronic counter, sleeping bag roller, maintenance cart, and box opening device. The panel of judges selected teams to advance to Round II based on the quality of their research, solution developed, and sketches submitted.

The research phase consisted of an Internet scavenger hunt to help students gain a stronger understanding and empathy for individuals with a disability. Among the topics covered were identifying facts and myths about disabilities, understanding disabilities, and different engineering fields that focus on improving the quality of life for individuals with disabilities.

In addition to their research, teams completed four steps of design process in solving a problem. They identified the problem, researched the need or problem, developed possible solutions, and selected the best possible solution. To be eligible for consideration for Round II, teams also drafted a sketch of their solution to illustrate how their prototypes would work once constructed.

The next challenge for participants is building, testing, and evaluating their prototype solutions, which are due on January 6, 2006.

In addition to moving to Round II, 15 teams applied for and were granted scholarships to help cover the cost of materials to participate in Round II and build their prototype.

JETS would like to wish all of these talented teams good luck in the next phase of the competition!

This year, over 14,000 high school students are gearing-up and preparing to participate in the TEAMS competition. 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.

Registration for the JETS TEAMS Competition has also begun. Itasca Community College in Grand Rapids, Minnesota, Norfolk State University in Norfolk, Virginia, and the University of Iowa in Iowa City, Iowa are our new locations this year! Please visit www.jets.org/teams/siteSearch.cfm for the nearest competition site and register today!

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.