Energy Department Hosts Annual Science and Engineering High School Day

10/9/2003

From: Jacqueline Johnson of the Department of Energy, 202-586-5806

WASHINGTON, Oct. 9 -- The Department of Energy's (DOE) Office of Economic Impact and Diversity today hosted a program for the Science and Engineering Alliance (SEA), a nonprofit consortium that supports talented high school and college students in science and technology to pursue their educational goals.

Deputy Secretary of Energy Kyle McSlarrow delivered the keynote address to approximately 300 high school students attending the Student Technical Conference: Continuing to Create Opportunity and Access for Science and Engineering Careers in Partnership with DOE, NIST and LLNL.

"DOE has a unique network of world-class national laboratories whose wide range of cutting-edge technologies demonstrate the breadth of expertise at these facilities," Deputy Secretary McSlarrow told the audience. "The Energy Department is a place where the technical skills of serious young students can be sharpened in the early stages of their educational training."

During the DOE/SEA Student Technical Conference, students are given the opportunity to stand and present the results of research they have been engaged in over the past year. The conference provides networking opportunity and exposes them to many professionals in the scientific community.

The Energy Department's relationship with SEA began about 10 years ago through the efforts of its Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and the former Office of Science Education.

SEA was formed in 1991 by four Historically Black Colleges and Universities -- Alabama A&M University, Jackson State University, Prairie View A&M University and Southern University A&M College - and the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory to develop programs for enhancing knowledge in the physical sciences and engineering, and to improve and promote those educational institutions' combined capabilities.