These numbers are not enough to replace the engineers who will be leaving the workforce. In Michigan alone, we'll need more than 11,000 automotive engineers and technical people just to replace the older workers who will retire over the next few years, according to the University of Michigan. Young people today often dream of being star athletes, famous actors or rock stars. When they turn on TV, they see lawyers, detectives, doctors, architects, radio talk show hosts and fashion designers. As parents, we understand the competition for our children's time.
Students are more likely to see a show about an alien, than about an engineer.
The reality is that our culture glorifies the celebrity, but seldom celebrates the technical skill it takes to create something lasting. Perhaps this is why our students start out strongly in math and science, but quickly lose interest. Our fourth graders score quite high in these subjects - but by high school, perform poorly in math and science, well below students from many other countries. Our development efforts need to begin young, before students lose a sense of wonder and excitement about their world. We want them to see they can enjoy exciting careers by applying math and science to technological endeavors.