For the second year, UC Merced has partnered with the Campos Foundation to host the Campos ENgage Engineering Summer Bridge Academy, a weeklong summer program aimed at supporting underrepresented minority and female students interested in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM).
Held from July 26-31, the program welcomed 25 rising seniors from high schools across the Central Valley, including Buhach Colony High School in Atwater; Sunnyside High School and University High School in Fresno; Le Grand High School in Le Grand; Matilda Torres High School in Madera; El Capitan High School, Golden Valley High School and Merced High School in Merced; Thomas Downey High School in Modesto; Patterson High School in Patterson; Tulare Western High School in Tulare; and Redwood High School in Visalia.
The 12 high schools across 10 cities are up from nine schools in the program's first year, signifying the academy's growing reach throughout the region.
The initiative is designed to offer students direct exposure to engineering through hands-on experiences, mentoring and academic workshops. Participants were also introduced to the UC Merced campus and learned about the university's welcoming and accessible environment.
"I have never been so invested in a team-based activity until now, and making a product and showing our effort is something I will never forget," one student-participant said.
"When a student sets their mind to solving a difficult open-ended problem and then builds a solution to that problem with their own hands, that student has started on the path to becoming an engineer," said Alejandro Gutiérrez, associate teaching professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering and associate dean for student success. "We are helping them realize, often for the first time, that they have what it takes to do this work."
