Pictured are participants in the camp.

WINONA LAKE —  Grace College completed its first annual Engineering Camp for middle school students. The week-long camp held July 15-19 welcomed 20 local students to explore the world of engineering from 8 – 5 p.m. in an interactive and engaging setting. The week was sponsored by several community partners including Zimmer Biomet.

Campers worked alongside Grace engineering students to build CO2 race cars, heard from industry professionals, learned about 3D printing, and experimented with air cannons during their week at camp. The camp included daily lunches, exercise time, and water tubing on Winona Lake with the Grace boat. The Grace College Department of Engineering administered the camp.

The first Engineering Summer Camp is one example of the many strides Grace is taking in STEM. Department of Engineering Chair Dr. Fred Wentorf, who led the camp, stated, “My mission for Grace Engineering is to educate the next generation of engineers and to connect to the community.” 

The camp was designed with these priorities in mind. “We want to expose kids to careers in STEM who otherwise would not consider it an option, and to communicate this message: engineering is fun and attainable for you,” said Wentorf. Need-based scholarships for the camp were made available in this spirit. 

For more information about the Grace College Engineering Department, go to https://www.grace.edu/major/mechanical-engineering/.