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03.10
IEEE-USA Energy Policy
Committee Member Teaches Kids the Fun of Engineering
By Bill Williams
IEEE member Pete Pollak, P.E.,
has taught electrical engineering at several
universities and colleges around the country
including Northern Virginia Community College,
where he is currently an adjunct professor. But
for two consecutive weeks after the Independence
Day holiday last July, there was a much younger
audience for Pollak and five other faculty
members from the Annandale Northern Virginia
Community College Math, Science and Engineering
Department.
During those two weeks, children
ranging in age from 11- to 15-years-old
participated in a Clean Energy Camp, hosted by
the campus. The children attended two three-hour
sessions both weeks, where they learned about
topics such as: Engineering and Sustainable
Manufacturing, Renewable Energy, Climate Change,
Nanophysics, Carbon Footprint and
Electrochemistry, among others.
The Clean Energy Camp is one of
many programs the community college holds to
provide a way for children to learn over their
summer breaks, and to have an opportunity to
visit a college campus and start thinking about
future career paths. Pollak saw teaching kids
at the camp as a way to pass on some of the
knowledge that he has gained from more than 40
years of professional experience as an
electrical engineer, and to hopefully inspire
some of them to pursue a career in electrical
engineering.
“The electrical industry has
been very good to me,” said Pollak. “Teaching
about clean energy is a good way to give back to
society. There is no doubt in my mind that these
students will be driving electric vehicles
someday, and that they have been treated to a
peek at their future.”
Each of the topics discussed
involved both classroom instruction and hands-on
activities. The children experienced first-hand
programming a CNC (Computer Numerically
Controlled) milling machine, studied several
examples of aerodynamic design and stability,
and even assembled a model solar car. The
hands-down favorite
activity for both weeks, however, was a
competition where the students used a miniature
solar panel to convert light from the sun into
electricity, which was then used by a small
motor to propel an electric vehicle. According
to Pollak, “the kids were so engaged that they
forgot that they were in school learning."
Pollak saw the camp as an
excellent opportunity to reach kids at an
influential age. “Every public school in America
should have students do hands-on energy
conversion experiments to develop an
appreciation for how electricity is produced and
used,” he said. “Broad education is needed to
support electrical infrastructure modernization,
and public schools are a good place to start.”
Organizers
of the Clean Energy Camp reported that the
children enjoyed their week immensely. As one
camper put it, “Can we do this next year, too?”
Pete Pollak, P.E., has worked
for the Aluminum Association General Cable
Corp., Inc. NYU. He is an IEEE senior member and
a past chair of the Power Engineering Society
chapter and a member of the IEEE-USA Energy
Policy Committee. He also taught electrical
engineering at RCA Institutes and George
Washington University. He also teaches new
graduate course on
energy,
environment and smart grids at the
Volgenau School of Engineering at George Mason
University in Fairax, Va., and helping it
with their new Center for Smart Power Grids.
Bill Williams
is IEEE-USA's legislative representative for
technology policy activities.
Comments may be submitted to
todaysengineer@ieee.org.
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