More than 500 Montgomery County Middle School Students Expected for Dec. 1 ‘Journeys in Engineering, Technology and Science’ Day at Universities at Shady Grove

More than 500 Montgomery County middle school students and 300 parents will be venturing out to The Universities at Shady Grove (USG) campus on Saturday, Dec. 1 to take part in USG’s action-packed “Journeys in Engineering, Technology and Science (JETS)” day. The 4th annual free event, which will run from 9:30 a.m. to 2 p.m., aims to energize students about careers in science and technology with hands-on activities and presentations, while relating the information to their middle school science curriculum.

Hundreds of students and parents attending the event will be armed with information regarding academic pathways and programs that will prepare them well for joining the future workforce of the science and engineering industries. Dr. Joshua Starr, Superintendent of Montgomery County Public Schools, and Dr. Stewart Edelstein, USG Executive Director, will welcome participants to the day’s activities. Among the day’s highlights will be:

• Two special opening presentations: “Weird Science,” featuring Dennis Regling and “Physics is Fun,” and hands-on workshop by Mobile Ed Productions.
• Demonstrations on robotics, computer programming, and engineering, and a planetarium exploration.
• Dozens of sessions and presentations, focused on three areas: bioscience and medicine; engineering and environmental science; and computer science.
• A STEM Pathways Expo, in which students will be able to meet professionals from major companies and federal agencies involved in the science, technology, engineering and mathematics fields, such as Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, NASA, MdBio Foundation, and Rockville Science Center.
• An essay competition awards presentation for participating students, who will have the opportunity to earn prizes such as summer camp scholarships and an Apple iPad.

For more information on JETS 2012 at The Universities at Shady Grove or to register students and parents for the event, please visit http://www.shadygrove.umd.edu/jets.