CH2M HILL and STEM Education Global Responsibility Environmental Stewardship Educational Outreach Local Community Service.

CH2M HILL and STEM Education

Global Responsibility

Environmental Stewardship

Educational Outreach

Local Community Service

CH2M HILL

• Global, full-service engineering, construction, procurement, and operations firm

• Headquartered in Denver, Colorado with regional offices worldwide

• More than a dozen California offices

• Global company with 25,000 employees

• $6.4 billion in annual revenue (2008)

Research on student’s perceptions of engineering

• 85% of kids say that they are not interested in a future engineering career

• Reasons why kids may not be interested: – Kids don’t know much about engineering (44%) – Kids prefer a more exciting career than engineering (30%) – They don’t feel confident enough in their math or science skills

(21 percent) to be good at it – despite the fact that the largest number of kids ranked math (22%) and science (17%) as their favorite subjects

• Findings from the adult survey on this topic show: – Only 20% of parents have encouraged/will encourage their

child/children to consider an engineering career– The vast majority of parents (97%) said they believe that

knowledge of math and science will help their children have a successful career

Recent surveys of youth and adults conducted by Harris Interactive for American Society for Quality reveal:

Research

• More girls say their parents are likely to encourage them to become an actress (21%) than an engineer (10%) – Other careers that parents encouraged girls to

think about include doctor (33%), lawyer (25%), teacher (31%), veterinarian (23%), nurse (20%) and businessperson (17%)

• Boys (24%) are significantly more likely than girls (5%) to say they are interested in an engineering career

• Thirty-one percent of boys vs. 10% of girls say their parents have encouraged them to think about an engineering career.

Surveys also found the following gender differences in career interests and intent:

Career prospects

• The demand for engineers has never been higher.• Opportunities for engineers abound. • Engineering jobs are available in every community and in a

variety of industries. • Engineering is a stable career opportunity because we will

always have a need for infrastructure and new inventions. • The Department of Labor expects that employment of

engineers will grow 11% between 2006 and 2016. – Environmental engineers should experience the fastest growth

(nearly 25% over the next decade!), while civil engineers should see the largest employment increase.

• Starting salaries for engineering graduates are among the highest of all college graduates

Enjoyable work“How happy I will be—what’s the point of doing anything you don’t like?”

Good working environment“If I can’t interact with people…I will probably drop the job.”

To make a difference “That I would make a difference in some way, you know, make my mark on the world.”

From Extraordinary Women Engineers Project research study of academically prepared high school girls

What “teens” want

Income “As shallow as it sounds, money is the one thing I have to consider when I’m choosing a job. I’m not going to do something that I know can’t help me pay bills.”

From Extraordinary Women Engineers Project research study of academically prepared high school girls

What “teens” want

Flexibility“My career can’t consume all of my time…I need free time to do a lot of other things…before I die.”

Kids’ perceptions on engineering

• Research has shown that many students don’t consider a career in engineering because the information they receive about the profession makes it appear daunting.

• Students think they must excel at math and science and that a career in engineering will be difficult.

Kid’s perceptions on engineering

So in your conversations with students emphasize the positive, creative, humanitarian aspects of the engineering profession.

Rather than talking about the process of becoming an engineer, focus on what it’s like to be an engineer and share your experiences.

What to say about engineers

• Engineers are designers, problem solvers, team players, and innovative thinkers.

• Engineers make a difference and improve quality of life in your community and around the world.

• An engineering career allows you to see the fruits of your labor.

• Math and science are tools that engineers use to design a solution to a problem.

• Make it personal—share the story of how you decided to become an engineer; talk about the cool projects that you’ve worked on and discuss what you enjoy about your job.

Reasons to consider an engineering career

• Change the world & make a difference

• Be creative

• Work with great people

• Remain challenged

• Continually learn new things

• Apply science and math to solving “real world” problems

• Make a good living

• Solve problems

• Travel

• Love your work, AND live your life too!

CH2M HILL’s involvement

• As a large, global engineering firm, CH2M HILL has a vested interest in inspiring the future generation of engineering talent

• Support a variety of programs at enterprise and local levels– Engineers Week: firm’s flagship educational outreach program– Ongoing school partnerships– MATHCOUNTS– Junior Technical Engineering Society (JETS)

• While we do provide financial support, CH2M HILL also believes strongly in providing volunteer opportunities for employees to interact directly with students through classroom presentations, formal mentoring relationships, and offering constructive feedback as competition judges

Engineers Week (EWeek)

• Educational outreach program to:

– Increase understanding of engineering

– Encourage K-12 students to consider a STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) career

– Raise public understanding of the role of engineers in society

• Celebrated third week of February

• Formal coalition of more than 100 professional societies, major corporations and government agencies dedicated to ensuring a diverse and well-educated future engineering workforce

CH2M HILL’s Support

Firm’s flagship educational outreach program since 19971. Financial and in-kind support

– Cash sponsorship ($40,000 annually)

2. Corporate support for coordinators– Corporate Affairs provides templates and resources for offices to

implement EWeek programs

3. Employee volunteerism– Employees across North America volunteer during EWeek to serve

as mentors, teachers, and judges in a variety of activities, including engineering competitions, technology fairs, and classroom presentations and hands-on activities

CH2M HILL’s Goals and Objectives for Support

1. Increase awareness of and interest in engineering as a career choice to encourage more young students to enter the STEM field and fill our talent pipeline.

2. Educate the community on the

important role of engineers in society.

Benefits of Getting Involved Locally

• Fun way to connect with local students and brag about the cool projects we get to work on every day

• Opportunity to promote CH2M HILL projects and people by sharing with the community how engineers at CH2M HILL are making a difference and improving quality of life in our community

• Opportunity to strengthen relationships with clients in a fun, relaxed atmosphere by teaming on classroom presentations and outreach

• Address the talent shortage in the industry

Highlights

• In 2008, volunteers from 57 offices reached more than 8,000 students

• 2009 results are still being compiled

• Classroom presentations

• Hands-on activities (building bridges, developing water filtration systems, etc.)

• Judging MATHCOUNTS and science fair competitions

• Participating in EWeek fairs