This program gives the high school students the chance to explore the field, to find out what electrical and computer engineering are about, so they can make a better decision about their college and professional goals. Temple's other summer electrical engineering program, offered for the first time this year, is geared to K-12 teachers. Professor Helferty guides the participants from computer basics and jargon all the way through diagnosing problems, reconfiguring systems and installing memory. Schools often cannot afford to use consultants every time they have a computer problem. The teachers go back to their schools, share the information with fellow teachers, and are able to answer their students' questions.
Local businesses donate the computers on which the teachers are working.
Donors have included Merck and Co., SmithKline Beecham, Lockheed Martin, and the Naval Air Weapons Center. At the end of the course, participants take the computers, as well as the expertise they have gained, back to their schools.