The University’s E-Week festivities include ‘Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day’ on February 25.

The University of Miami’s Engineering Week kicks off on Monday, February 22 with a networking session hosted by the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers and will continue with exciting events aimed at creating awareness, particularly among girls and minorities, about the awesomeness of and the opportunities in the profession.

At the networking session, which will be held from 7 to 8 p.m. at the McArthur Annex, room 202, recent College of Engineering (CoE) graduates who are entrepreneurs will talk about making career choices.

On Tuesday, February 23 at 5:30 p.m., the National Society of Black Engineers forum will feature UM President Julio Frenk, CoE Dean Jean-Pierre Bardet, and others discussing the importance of STEM careers and the crucial need for minority representation in the field. It will be held at the UM Faculty Club.

On Thursday, February 25, beginning at 9 a.m., the Society of Women Engineers will welcome more than 150 girls from South Florida high schools to the University’s “Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day,” which through lectures and activities is designed to stimulate their interest in the world of engineering. The event is also sponsored by Women in Concrete Alliance and Re-Cast, Research and Concrete Applications for Sustainable Transportation.

Although the number of female engineers has increased greatly since the early 1980s, women make up only 14 percent of today’s engineers, according to the Congressional Joint Economic Committee. The forum will be held at the Donna E. Shalala Student Activities Center.

The celebration of National Engineers Week was started in 1951 to coincide with the birthday of U.S. President George Washington, who is considered the nation’s first engineer, notably for his survey work.

For more information about E-Week at the University, visit http://coe.miami.edu/eab/eweek2016.