K-12 Outreach: Pre-Engineering Program

The UMD-MRSEC has formed a six-year partnership with Charles Herbert Flowers High School Project Lead the Way (PLTW) to implement its pre-engineering course sequence led by engineering teacher, Victoria Lee. PLTW is a pre-engineering program that introduces students to the scope, rigor, and discipline of engineering and engineering technology prior to entering college. The goals of the program is to increase the number of young people who pursue engineering and engineering technology; provide equitable and inclusive opportunities for all academically qualified students without regard to gender or ethnic origin; provide clear standard and expectations for student success in the program; reduce the future college attrition rate with four and two-year engineering and engineering technology program; provide leadership and support that will produce continuous improvement and innovation in the program; and contribute to the continuance of America’s national prosperity.

MRSEC education outreach efforts spans the four-year period of the current freshman class and will include university-based summer enhancement activities for these students. MRSEC is committed to the program and will provide these students with classroom inquiry-based activities and university-based instruction days. During these visits, students will experience materials testing by visiting labs that test the properties of different materials including: optical diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, x-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, and atomic force microscopy. These lab visits will be matched with lectures and hands-on activities taught by researchers in the MRSEC classroom. In addition, through these activities, students will have the opportunity to understand college expectations and environment.