More than 2,000 children and adults are expected to experience first-hand the many contributions that Maine engineers make to our communities and way of life. Thanks to our sponsors, the first 500 kids through the door receive a free T-shirt celebrating Maine and National Engineers Week (Feb. 18-24).

Maine’s top engineering firms, engineering schools, educators, government agencies, industry, and engineering societies will provide hands-on activities and exhibits throughout the field house.

The fun, dynamic, and positive environment will help encourage our youth to pursue careers in engineering and provide a diverse and vigorous workforce for the future.The event is free and open to the public, with a suggested admissions fee of $2.

National Engineers Week was initiated to publicly promote the work and contributions of our nation’s engineers. During this week, engineering professionals have a unique opportunity to increase public awareness of the positive contributions engineers make to their communities, to this nation, and to the world.

National Engineers Week has grown to involve tens of thousands of engineers in a variety of community outreach activities, including technology exhibits and presentations of student scholarships.

In Maine, Engineers Week is celebrated through an annual E-Week Banquet and EXPO, at which engineers, educators, and students gather for hands-on activities and workshops to learn about engineering and what engineers do.

The Maine Engineering Promotional Council (MEPC) works to inspire future engineers and to raise awareness about the field and the impact of engineering in Maine. The two E-Week events attract more than 2,000 to 3,000 people each year, and are held every other year at the University of Maine in Orono or on the University of Southern Maine’s Gorham campus. The sites are alternated to serve as many people as possible order over most of the state.

The MEPC board is comprised of academic and industry members who all are committed to raising awareness of engineering through the Banquet and EXPO E-Week events.

For the fifth straight year, MEPC awarded bus grants of as much as $500 to help defer transportation costs for students to attend the Expo. This year, we have awarded more than 10 bus grants to schools across Maine so that students can experience a college campus and learn more about STEM and engineering fields – and HAVE FUN!

For more information, visit www.engineeringme.com.