SDG&E sponsored eight SDSU students who attended a statewide leadership conference.
San Diego-area college students, including eight from SDSU, appear with SDG&E representatives and others.
A select group of San Diego State students honed leadership skills for the future during a special conference for engineering and computer science majors.
The Mathematics, Engineering, Science Achievement Student Leadership Conference held in Oakland last month offered extensive professional and leadership development through direct interaction with industry mentors and speakers. The hand-picked students, all majoring in engineering or computer science, were from 25 universities and community colleges across the state.
SDG&E involvement
San Diego Gas and Electric Company sponsored 12 students from the San Diego area, including eight from SDSU. SDG&E’s $10,000 contribution also funded two students each from the affiliated programs at San Diego City and Southwestern colleges.
Brad Weinstein and Sherwin Yari, both with SDG&E, held workshops about the energy industry and encouraged students to continue their educational journeys. Yari, an associate engineer and Mathematics, Engineering, Science Achievement program alumnus, shared how the program helped him when he was a student.
Other conference sponsors included:
- Pacific Gas & Electric Company
- Sacramento Municipal Utilities District
- Southern California Gas Company
- Vanir Construction Management Inc.
Other contributors included East Bay Municipal Utilities District, the Oakland Athletics and Pixar.
Keeping California competitive
The Mathematics, Engineering, Science Achievement program is one of the largest in the state to support educationally disadvantaged students so they can graduate from college with degrees in science, technology, engineering, and math, also known as STEM disciplines.
“We know that California’s economy needs more STEM workers to stay competitive,” said Oscar F. Porter, the program’s executive director. “These students provide the solution to industry’s need for well-trained professionals.
“They were selected to attend the conference because these students have strong leadership skills. This event gives them a chance to interact extensively with STEM professionals currently working in the field.”
Student attendees represented campuses throughout California, including California State University, University of California and community colleges, as well as private universities.
About the program
Mathematics, Engineering, Science Achievement, an academic preparation program that each year serves about 20,000 California pre-college, community college and university students who are educationally disadvantaged, is an award-winning program with a model that works.
Seventy percent of the program’s high school graduates statewide went directly to college after graduation, compared to 48 percent of all California graduates. Sixty percent of MESA students go on to math, science or engineering majors.
For more information, visit the program's website.