Minority Introduction to Engineering summer program kicks off
Published: Jun 30, 2022 12:00 AM
By Virginia Speirs
First launched over four decades ago, Auburn’s Minority Introduction to Engineering program, or MITE, will be reinstituted the first week of July 2022.
This is the first time in more than two decades that this program will be offered on Auburn’s campus. MITE is an adjunct program of the university’s Center for Inclusive Engineering Excellence program. It is open to any eighth-grade through 12th-grade students and will be in person from Tuesday, July 5 to Saturday, July 9.
Students in the program will have the opportunity to stay on campus in one of the residence halls and will engage with students in various activities, as well as meet current undergraduate students, faculty and administration. Participants will learn about engineering majors and the vast array of potential engineering careers available to them.
The goal of the MITE program is to provide participants with exposure and exploration of engineering projects through hands-on experiences. Participants will learn aspects of engineering and their impact by exploring these skills such as engineering design, real-world problems, academic success strategies, college preparation workshops, essay writing and test-taking strategies.
“We are thrilled to relaunch the MITE program,” said Cordelia Brown, senior lecturer and director of the Center for Inclusive Engineering Excellence. “We know many stories of students who were able to attend the MITE program years ago that went on to be exceptional engineers. Now that the program has expanded to include eighth through 12th-grade students, we are looking forward to welcoming even more pre-college students to campus."
The MITE program was first instituted on Auburn University’s campus in the summer of 1978 and ran until 2000. Previously it was open to just high school students whereas now, pre-college students in 8th-12th grade are eligible to attend.
Currently, the program has registered more than 30 students from Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia and Maryland. Each year the program has a theme, in order to make every year’s activities different than the last and to continuously expand the engineering knowledge of revisiting students. This year, the theme is “Robotics and Transportation.”
"This program is a momentous step for our center and recruiting underrepresented populations to Auburn Engineering's exceptional program offerings,” Brown said. “With this program, many more pre-college students will be exposed to the many facets of engineering that Auburn offers and we hope they will attain the confidence to pursue engineering at one of the top engineering colleges in the nation.”
Participants will be exposed to the engineering design process used to solve some of the world's pressing challenges. While working on their collaborative engineering project, students will learn presentation and social skills.
MITE program to launch on July 5
