The fifth annual ALE Day and Young Latina Forum kick off at 8 a.m. in the student union ballroom with registration and a welcome by UA College of Engineering Dean Jeff Goldberg, followed by a dual keynote speech by Raytheon engineers James Valenzuela and Rosa Chaidez.

High school students at the 2010 ALE Day, in a hands-on workshop on the UA Mall, build a rocket out of a soda bottle, tape and cardboard. The workshop emphasizes team work and engineering design principles.

The objective of ALE Day and the Young Latina Forum is to encourage young Hispanic men and women to pursue careers in engineering. The UA student chapter of the SHPE and the Young Latina Forum work with high school counselors and the event sponsors, IBM and Raytheon Missile Systems, to organize the event. Organizers have been visiting local high schools to preview the event and drum up support.

"Our goal is to bring 360 students from local high schools to the University of Arizona to teach them about engineering through workshops, and student and professional panels," said SHPE member and ALE Day vice president Mario Valdez. The Young Latina Forum is coordinated by Karen Rivas.

Valdez explained that the event will emphasize the idea of a learning continuum that starts in high school and extends through college and into professional life as a working engineer. Essentially, the goal is to motivate high school kids to stay in school, focus on math and science, and learn more about the important work engineers do to improve society.

After the registration and welcome, attendees will split into small groups and work on different engineering projects, including air-powered rocket design, assisted by engineers from Raytheon, and ground-based rover design, with materials and professional guidance provided by IBM.