MITES 2014 Reunion

People who know me have heard me constantly credit a high-school STEM program for my "Aha!' moment with electrical engineering and, yesterday, the program held its final presentations ceremony (and alum reunion) for its 39th year in a row. As a rising senior during MIT's Minority Introduction to Engineering and Science (MITES) ten-week summer program, I came in with my mind set on becoming a chemist but was placed in the Electronics design course (my second to last choice). I started the first day of class trying to calm my nerves: "Oh well. I'll make the best out of it." Before I knew it, I had run to call my parents, telling them "I know what I want to do with my life! I want to be an electrical engineer." And my course hasn't changed since.

I really have to credit MIT Professor Joe Steinmeyer for developing my love for electronics and encouraging it (e.g. he photocopied his entire Getting Started in Electronics by Forrest Mims for me) as well as allowing me to be the first to fully utilize code within my final project. So, when I saw that his course presentations were set for 10am, I set four alarms to make sure I did not miss them. To say the very least, I was not disappointed and, if you know a rising junior interested in STEM fields, send them the link. (If not a US citizen, look into MIT's Research Science Institute.) After seeing a few of the Genomics posters in partnership with the Broad Institute, I headed over to see all the EE presentations. From projects focusing on the Google car's abilities to a DanceDance Revolution game to a glass that lets waiters know when it's is almost empty, the students outdid themselves and it was very nice to catch up with Dr. Steinmeyer.

The day continued with presentations from the Underwater Robotics, Digital Design, Engineering Design, and Architecture courses, with alums coming in and out of the schedule. Even though I was in those same shoes, I didn't realize how advanced these projects were and how much the administration expected from us. Reminiscing over my own class year (2012) made me realize how much I've grown over the years. Fortunately, I've kept in contact with the members of my class and most of them are very close friends. I hope the same goes for this MITES class and those to come. Congrats MITES '14!

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