Summer camps to introduce students to technology careers

The first camp, called TOTAL (Turned on to Technology and Leadership), for seventh- and eighth-graders will be held June 11-15. It is targeted toward a multicultural audience but is open for any student in those grades to attend, said Antonia Munguia, the director of diversity for the College of Technology.

The second camp, TEAM (Technology's Expanding All Minds), will be held June 25-29. The target audience is young women in eighth and ninth grades. Students will be introduced to the College of Technology through activities that will be of particular interest to young women.

Then, TAGS (Technology Advances Girl Scouts) will help girls in fifth, sixth and seventh grades become familiar with technology July 17-21.

Munguia said the goal of the camps is to help students — especially females and members of minority groups — become aware of what technology is about, the types of careers offered and the academic preparation needed to pursue the jobs of their choice.

"They've heard of the careers, but many of them don't really know what they involve," Munguia said. "These camps will give them a wonderful opportunity to discover what careers in technology are all about."

The first and second camps will be residential, giving students the opportunity to experience life on campus by staying in a residence hall. The camp for Girl Scouts will be a day camp held on campus and the Sycamore Valley Program Center.

At each of the camps, students will attend sessions that focus on hands-on activities led by Purdue faculty and graduate students from departments in the College of Technology.

In the first camp, students will attend sessions on surveying and math, exploring electronics and audio, supply chain and distribution, automated manufacturing, computer graphics and energy. Also, they will tour the Envision Center, Birck Nanotechnology Center and the Purdue Airport. A visit to the Subaru of Indiana Automotive plant will show campers technology processes and a finished product, Munguia said.

For the second and third camps, campers will have a chance to explore electronic toys and learn about digital electronics, assemble motors, use models in a Lego-building exercise to create software applications and attend team-building exercises with faculty from the organizational leadership and supervision department.

One session in the third camp will be a hands-on lesson about biometrics, or the study of automated methods for identifying people based upon physical or behavioral traits. Biometrics has applications in a number of areas, including law enforcement and homeland security. At this session, camp participants will try out devices that recognize a person's retinas, handprints and fingerprints.

"Our hope is that students will take the knowledge they learn from camp and become more interested in math and science courses in school and eventually the many programs Purdue's College of Technology has to offer," Munguia said. "Recruitment of women and multicultural students is a focus for us, and this is a great way to reach out to students and get them interested early."

To register for any of the camps, contact Beth Sharf, conference coordinator, at (765) 496-3978 or bcsharf@purdue.edu. More information, including camp fees and scholarships, is available online. Questions should be directed to Munguia at (765) 494-7522 or amunguia@purdue.edu.

The College of Technology, established in 1965, is one of the nation's largest and was one of the first of its kind in the country. It educates more than 6,000 undergraduates at eight locations throughout Indiana, including the West Lafayette campus.

The college consists of eight departments: aviation technology, building construction management, computer graphics technology, computer and information technology, electrical and computer engineering technology, industrial technology, mechanical engineering technology, and organizational leadership and supervision.

Writer: Kim Medaris, (765) 494-6998, kmedaris@purdue.edu

Source: Antonia Munguia, (765) 494-7522, amunguia@purdue.edu

Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; purduenews@purdue.edu

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