Balsawood bridges, mousetrap cars, model bisected hearts, and trebuchets were some of the engineering designs part of the 2008 MESA Day Preliminary Competition, hosted by the Educational Partnership Center at the UCSC Jack Baskin School of Engineering on Saturday, March 15, 2008. Nearly 300 middle and high school students from 12 partner schools in Santa Cruz, Watsonville/Pajaro Valley, Castroville, Soledad, and Salinas competed with science, engineering, and mathematics projects, part of the Mathematics, Engineering, Science Achievement (MESA) Schools Program.
MESA Day is the culmination of students’ year-long efforts. Working with their MESA Teacher Advisors, students follow curricula designed to reinforce California State Math and Science Standards. The hands-on MESA projects allow students to directly apply important academic concepts that help them succeed on the college-going pathway and in their future careers. “We want to encourage bright minds to stay in math, science, and engineering and dream big and not lose their interest in these fields. MESA is an important part of our ongoing efforts to build college-bound communities, and this event helps celebrate students’ success and rewards their hard work,” said Carrol Moran, EPC executive director.
MESA Day also provides an engaging climate for students to meet and interact with engineers, university faculty and researchers, undergraduates, and business professionals. Volunteers from Cisco Systems, City of Santa Cruz, Lockheed Martin, Kaiser Permanente, and other firms joined UCSC economics and marine biology faculty as competition judges. About 200 EPC staff and university volunteers, undergraduate Academic Interns, parents, and guest judges helped to make MESA Day a huge success.
