Iowa State engineers presented with Engineers’ Week festivities with plenty of events and activities for students interested in careers in engineering.

Engineers’ Week was founded by the National Society of Professional Engineers in 1951 to boost interest and understanding of careers in engineering. Iowa State has participated in the festivities almost every year since 1965. The Engineers’ Week student organization packed the week from Feb. 20 to 25 full of engineering-related events this year.

The Engineers’ Week student organization hosted the “E-lympics” on Sunday, in which teams of students competed in multiple competitions. There was a box stacking competition, ladder golf, bucket pong, bags, suck it up minute to win it game and a basketball shot competition.

Rachel Junck, the co-president of the Engineers’ Week student organization, commented on what she hopes aspiring engineers would take away from the week of events.

“Engineering as a career is all about problem-solving and finding new solutions to problems,” Junck wrote. “So we hope the next generation of engineers can be inspired by National Engineers’ Week and have the chance to learn more about what a career in engineering could look like.”

On Monday, engineers gathered in Howe Hall to participate in the first Button Lunch of the week, serving Chik-fil-a to students who purchased a $5 Button. Later in the day, there was a professional development event; the Engineering Research Fair gave students a chance to share the projects or research they were working on and learn from some of the ISU Engineering clubs.

Tuesday offered students another Button Lunch, this time featuring Big Acai and their health-focused bowls. Later in the day was the engineering trivia night in Howe Hall Atrium, featuring five rounds with the following topics: Iowa State, space, technology, engineering feats and engineering fails.

“So far at our first four events this week, we have had participation from every single major in the College of Engineering,” Junck wrote. “I always enjoy seeing people throughout the college take advantage of the opportunities Engineers’ Week offers to bring people in the Iowa State community together.”

Wednesday featured another Button Lunch, serving Jimmy John’s sandwiches and a watch party for the Cyclone men’s and women’s basketball games at Kansas. The viewing of the basketball games took place in Howe Hall Atrium and included free refreshments.

The other Co-President for the Engineers’ Week student organization, Anna Hackbarth, a junior in electrical engineering, explained some of the thoughts behind the week in an email.

“Our theme this year, Next Generation Innovation, was chosen because we believe it represents engineers: an inquisitive, curious and forward-thinking individual,” Hackbarth wrote. “Throughout the week, we’ve been excited to host plenty of events that encourage and challenge the next generation of engineers.”

Thursday, the Engineers’ Week student organization served a Button Breakfast instead of a Button Lunch, this time with food provided by Panera. Thursday night, the week’s keynote speaker, Col. Eileen Collins, the first female to pilot a U.S. spacecraft and first female commander on the 1999 Columbia Shuttle Flight, gave her lecture at 7 p.m. in the Memorial Union South Ballroom.