Searching for more engineers? Look around you. The city of San Jose has hundreds of engineers just waiting to be discovered. Albeit, they're still young - in middle school - and they need mentoring and instruction. But some of the talent Silicon Valley needs to sustain its supply of engineers is in its own backyard.

Science Extravaganza (SE) 2009 took place at the SJSU Davidson College of Engineering on Saturday, February 7. An outreach event, SE attracted over 500 middle school students from San Jose. The event was co-hosted by the Society of Latino Engineers and Scientists (SOLES) and the Society of Mexican American Engineers and Scientists (MAES). SOLES and MAES welcomed all students and especially Latino students and those from underperforming schools. The middle school students spent the day with professional engineers, faculty, and SJSU and UC Davis engineering and science students working on projects that require team effort, creativity and critical thinking.

Emily Allen, Associate Dean of Undergraduate Studies at the College of Engineering, said, "It was wonderful to see middle schoolers jumping out of their seats with excitement at the Science and Engineering Jeopardy Game! Our students did a fanstastic job planning and implementing this event. Who knows how many future engineers they built?"

Students from Clyde L. Fischer Middle School worked on designing and constructing an Iron Man armor - made of popsicle sticks, rubber bands, pipe cleaners and cotton balls - to protect a small city of water bottles. The armor was tested by shooting a small wooden peg at the armor. Other workshops included making lava lamps and building cars powered by fuel cells.

In one workshop promoting alternative energy solutions, six professional engineers taught J. W. Fair Middle School students the power of the potato. Student teams learned how a potato can serve as a battery to power small electronic devices. The volunteers are friends, who believe that the projects should not only teach the students about engineering but also about social responsibility. Maria Pizarro from TriReme Medical in Pleasanton and the coordinator of the workshop hopes that the students become interested in engineering or science, but, more importantly, that they stay in school.

As the event posters made clear, "Scientists aren't born, they are built." Who builds them? Their families, schools and community.

Fourteen schools attended SE, including partner schools in Gear Up (Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs). Event sponsors include Applied Materials, Apple, MESA Engineering Program (MEP), and the SJSU Davidson College of Engineering.