The SMA Engineering Program prepares young women for successful college careers in the fields of science, technology, engineering, or mathematics (STEM). By engaging in a cross-disciplinary classroom experience as well as design projects and team competitions with other schools, girls graduate from the program fully qualified and motivated to meet the demands of STEM courses in college. The program is certified by Project Lead the Way, a nationwide coordinated engineering education curriculum. For these reasons, and because of the focus on mathematics and science, the SMA Engineering Program is unique among all-female high schools in the Los Angeles area.
The program offers three project-based engineering classes: Introduction to Engineering Design, Introduction to Computer Engineering, and Principles of Engineering.
This year, we are offering Introduction to Engineering Design and Introduction to Computer Engineering. The major focus of Introduction to Engineering Design (IED) is the design process and its application. Through hands-on projects, students apply engineering standards and document their work. Students learn to brainstorm, sketch designs, and use an industry standard 2D modeling software to help them design and create solutions to solve proposed problems and communicate their work to their peers.
Students in action in IED:
Recently, the Intro to Engineering class participated in an exciting in-class challenge. In this activity the teams designed and built a device that sent a cotton ball as far as possible. There are many ways to solve a problem. Sometimes it is as simple as applying a piece of duct tape. Other times it takes months or years for a product to progress from an idea into full-scale production. In this design challenge, students incorporated their skills of utilizing the design process method. The winning team was able to send their cotton ball the entire distance of the room! Outstanding! At the conclusion of this activity, a statistical analysis of their findings.
Introduction to Computer Engineering places emphasis on computational thinking and collaboration. Computer Science Essentials will expose students to a diverse set of computational thinking concepts, fundamentals, and tools, allowing them to gain understanding and build confidence.
In this class, students will use visual, block- based programming and seamlessly transition to text-based programming with languages such as Python to create apps and develop websites, and learn how to make computers work together to put their design into practice. They’ll apply computational thinking practices, build their vocabulary, and collaborate just as computing professionals do to create products that address topics and problems important to them.
Students in action in Computer Science:
On November 15, 2017 SMA students visited the Banc of California Stadium hosted by PCL Construction. Our Belles participated in their first Trades Day with PCL Construction at the Banc of California Stadium site. This event is a highlight of the ACE Mentor program each year and professionals guided the students through hands-on activities that would prepare them for a variety of careers within construction–from drilling and sawing to cement work and wall building. A wide range of different subcontractors were present with hands-on stations. Thank you so much to ACE for making this possible for our future Architects and Engineers!
ACE students at All Schools Day got to create and present incredible structures in a friendly competition. Teams tried to design and build the strongest pasta tower!
Sponsored by the Engineering Ambassador program, SMA was given the pleasure of a tour of the Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Sciences(HSSEAS). This tour is offered for prospective UCLA engineering students and visitors. SMA Engineering Pathway students toured the Engineering and Physical Science buildings and interacted directly with current HSSEAS undergraduate students to learn more about the school and its program.
During lunch, SMA students had the pleasure of meeting current UCLA students Alexandrea Chima and Drew Palmer, Red Tie class of 2015. They provided great insight on life as student.
At the conclusion of the tour, SMA students met with Mr. Erkki Corpuz. Mr. Corpuz is an academic counselor at HSSEAS. During his discussion the students were informed of the typical incoming freshman class academic profile at UCLA. He helped the students learn how to fulfill requirements, create degree objectives, or decide on a major.
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