The Tech Challenge 2016, presented by EMC, on Track to have Biggest Year Yet
San Jose, CA., February, 23, 2016 – The Tech Museum of Innovation announced today that registration is at a record high for the 29th annual The Tech Challenge, with more than 622 teams already registered – over 100 more than were registered at this time last year. Each team is typically comprised of four students. Registration closes on March 31, 2016.
The Tech Challenge is the signature program of The Tech, designed to inspire the next generation of Silicon Valley innovators by introducing and reinforcing the engineering design process with a hands-on project geared to solving a real-world problem. The 2016 theme is Taking Flight, in which teams will explore the concept of flight by building gliders that can deliver a payload.
This year, The Tech is proud to announce EMC Corporation (http://www.emc.com/en-us/index.htm), a global leader in delivering IT-as-a-Service, as the presenting sponsor of The Tech Challenge. EMC has long championed STEM education around the world, and has supported The Tech Challenge since 2010. As the new presenting sponsor, a five-year commitment, EMC will have a significant role in helping The Tech provide underserved students with science, technology, engineering and math learning.
“EMC is thrilled to significantly expand our support of The Tech,” said John Giubileo, Senior Vice President, Engineering Operations, Services & Solutions at EMC. Giubileo, who recently joined The Tech’s Board of Directors added, “Exposing children from all backgrounds to technology through an immersive, hands-on program like The Tech Challenge is important, especially as new technologies democratize information and rewire our expectations as everyday users of technology. There has never been a more important time to teach our young people the value of engineering design, learning from failure, and the type of skills needed to succeed in today’s and tomorrow’s economy.”
The Tech Challenge enables student teams in grades 4-12 to learn important lessons in the engineering design process: teamwork, persevering through failure, leadership and problem-solving. More than 2,000 students participate each year, and many of the 600 participating teams get into character with costumes or share their Tech Challenge experience in a video contest.
The Tech Challenge is also one of the most diverse science competitions in the country; 45 percent of participants are girls, and almost 40 percent come from low-income communities.
“The roads to leveling economic inequality lie in technology and acquiring the math and science skills of today. The mission of The Tech and The Tech Challenge is to provide young people with access to these crucial facilities to help bridge the economic divide in society,” said Tim Ritchie, President and CEO of The Tech.
During the 2016 Take Flight competition, teams will spend months working on their solutions leading up to the final event (Saturday, April 23 and Sunday, April 24), when they will showcase their designs. An awards ceremony celebrates the best achievements of the day, including Outstanding Engineering Design, Best Team Safety and Judges Inspiration awards.
For more information about The Tech Challenge, visit thetech.org/thetechchallenge.
Key sponsors supporting The Tech Challenge include Cisco Systems Inc., SAP, Intel, Adobe, ARM, Bank of America, eBay, Genentech, Motorola Solutions Foundation, TE Connectivity Foundation and Thermo Fisher Scientific.
Media Contact: Janette Ciborowski, Communications Manager Signature Programs (408) 795-6229 jciborowski@thetech.org
About The Tech Museum of Innovation
The Tech is a hands-on technology and science museum for people of all ages and backgrounds. The museum — located in the Capital of Silicon Valley — is a non-profit experiential learning resource established to engage people in exploring and experiencing applied technologies affecting their lives. The Tech’s mission is to inspire the innovator in everyone.
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