Engineers Week 2010: Who says learning can't be fun?

More than 1,300 children and adults enjoyed the fusion of fun, flying and education as Rockwell Collins kicked off its annual celebration of Engineers Week (EWeek) on Saturday, Feb. 13, by sponsoring a free admission day at the Iowa Children's Museum (www.theicm.org) in Coralville.

The free day featured hands-on, aviation-related activities and Rockwell Collins engineers were on hand to answer questions and share information. Participants experienced Rockwell Collins' virtual reality demonstration along with the museum's "Take Flight! The Science of Aviation" exhibit that features state-of-the-art flight simulators built into kid-sized planes, an air traffic control tower, hot air balloon, pedal planes, remote control flight simulators, Bernoulli's Wind Table, a Cessna 150, Paper Airplane Flight Cage, Pig Parachutes and more.

See the Iowa City Press-Citizen's story on the event.

EWeek is part of the Rockwell Collins Engineering Experiences program, which seeks to take learning out of the textbooks and into the hands of students. This Rockwell Collins education initiative is focused on hands-on activities that provide students with a real-world connection to classroom learning.

A new addition to EWeek is the Rockwell Collins Educator Event. Counselors and math and science teachers heard first-hand from students who have participated in job shadows, internships and other hands-on activities sponsored by Rockwell Collins. Educators also visited engineering labs and flight simulators.

In addition, Rockwell Collins is hosting "Introduce a Girl to Engineering" for an eighth year. This program pairs women engineers with eighth-grade girls from area middle schools. Volunteers provide tours, presentations and equipment demonstrations to show girls engineering career possibilities. For more information, go to http://www.eweek.org/EngineersWeek/Introduce.aspx

On March 10 and 11, Nan Mattai, senior vice president of engineering and technology, will take part in the sixth annual Global Marathon, in which women in engineering and technology from all over the world will gather to celebrate, promote, highlight and inspire one another. 

Mattai is serving as one of the two honorary chairs of the 24-hour global event. Mattai will host a kickoff event at the Adler Planetarium in Chicago, and is also presenting a segment on Rockwell Collins' approach to the challenges facing women in the engineering field.

For more information on the Global Marathon, visit:

http://www.eweek.org/EngineersWeek/GlobalMarathon.aspx