Cal Poly summer program exposes teens to engineering

About 500 teens came to Cal Poly> this month to build and launch rockets, conduct car-crash tests, program robots and explore cybersecurity — an expanding program at the university.

The annual summer program, called Engineering Possibilities in College, serves seventh- through 12th-graders, exposing them to a range of labs and activities.

The program is in its ninth year and targets underserved students and those who may not have considered a career in engineering.

NASA astronaut and Cal Poly graduation Victor Glover met with students in a camp program for high school seniors.

Thirty-one percent of the 2015 EPIC campers are underserved minorities, including Hispanic, black and Native American, according to Cal Poly, and nearly 40 percent are female.

EPIC partners with organizations to inspire students to participate, including KIPP Schools, Migrant Education, the ACE Mentor Program, and the Ernst & Young College MAP Program.

This story was originally published July 24, 2015 at 6:47 PM with the headline "Cal Poly summer program exposes teens to engineering."