Ian Scheffler
Every summer, Penn Engineering turns into an engine of opportunity for hundreds of Philadelphia students. With programs ranging from coding camps to research internships, the Cora Ingrum Center for Community and Outreach gives students the chance to connect with cutting-edge science, going far beyond what they might experience in a typical K-12 classroom.
Last summer, Tamara Brockington, a student at Abington Friends School, joined the Electronic Photonic Microsystems Lab as part of Penn Engineering’s Army Education Outreach Program (AEOP) High School Internship Program. The program pairs high school and graduate students for a summer of paid, mentored research.
Mentored by Claire Kendell, a doctoral student in Electrical and Systems Engineering (ESE), Brockington worked on developing a robotic arm that changed position in response to light.
“What I loved most,” says Brockington of her summer research experience, “is that yes, you have a mentor, but you’re allowed to express your own ideas.”
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As Chanda Jefferson, Penn Engineering’s Director of Community and Outreach, sees it, summer programs are ideal for cultivating young people’s interest in science, technology, engineering and mathematics — and connecting them to resources at Penn Engineering.
Those summer programs not only bring fresh ideas to campus, but help train the next generation of engineers. Case in point: Brockington, still in high school, is now interning in the Rehabilitation Robotics Lab, which leverages robotics to improve human health.
“As an engineering school in the heart of Philadelphia, we have a responsibility to open doors, share resources and inspire the next generation,” says Jefferson. “Our summer programs do exactly that.”
To learn more about Penn Engineering’s summer programs, contact Chanda Jefferson at outreach@seas.upenn.edu.