From June 24 through July 12, underserved students from different areas of San Diego attended the annual SEEK camp. SEEK, which stands for Summer Engineering Experience for Kids, is a camp held in various areas of the country, though this year, it was San Diego that turned in the largest number of youth. During its first two years of production in San Diego, SEEK was held on the campus of San Diego State University, though this year it was brought to the community, held at Lincoln High School.
The SEEK Program is designed to be a fun and engaging educational experience, led by NSBE engineering students and technical professionals dedicated to pursuing professional excellence and giving back to the community. Students were exposed to a hands-on design curriculum developed by SAE International (Society of Automotive Engineers) and were led by mentors throughout the duration. Student activities and lessons included team projects where they were encouraged to solve problems and create products while discovering the underlying math and science principles involved in these processes. Each week introduced a new project, culminating with a presentation and design competition. The awards and recognition students received for learning an engineering lesson and being able to communicate and present in engineering terms and vocabulary their particular project proved to be invaluable.
This year’s camp welcomed over 700 students and 100 mentors. The role of NSBE is unique in that they have a perspective as African Americans to promote and actively impact underserved communities reflecting their race. NSBE intricately pieces together resources which empower and educate young people seeking a career in the STEM (Science Technology Engineering & Math) fields.
The SEEK program is a commuter-based program that spanned three educational-packed weeks for current third through eighth graders every day from 8:30 am until 3:30 pm. By the camp’s end, students were exposed to the roles and responsibilities of engineers, as well as the endless career opportunities education in the STEM fields bring. Mentors ranged in age and experience from collegiate, to recent graduates and teachers. Each mentor was awarded a $2000 stipend.
It is important that the SEEK program was held at Lincoln High School, a location pushed for by District E School Board member, Marne Foster. The goal of this program is to reach youth in underserved communities, and having the camp at such a location promoted its founding principles. To effectively present the opportunity of STEM careers to disadvantaged students, particularly African American youth, they must see people who look like them achieving success in those fields. The SEEK program does just that.
This year’s SEEK program involved a great deal of production and planning, led by NSBE’s Executive Director, Dr. Carl Mack, creator of the SEEK program, National SEEK Director Franklin Moore, SD NSBE Chairman Grady Gordon III, Lincoln High School Principals Dr. “O” and Dr. Martinez, Area Superintendent Dr. Shirley Wilson. Sponsors and partnerships included San Diego Gas & Electric and San Diego State University. The NSBE San Diego Chapter has been selected as the number one chapter in the country.
For more information on NSBE, please visit http://www.nsbe.org/.
