For 50 years, National Engineers’ Week has celebrated what it means to be an engineer — and for Iowa State, it hits close to home.

From agricultural engineering to software engineering, Iowa State has many top-rated programs to offer its talented students.

The Executive Committee for this year’s Engineers’ Week, also known as “E-Week,” wants to help engineers all over campus celebrate what it means to be an engineer. This year’s Engineers’ Week started Saturday and will end with a party on Friday.

Since 1965, this hard-working committee has shaped and molded the celebration of Engineers’ Week in its own way. This event falls on students’ radars as soon as they arrive on campus in the fall.

However, because of other events like career fairs, the committee made the decision to move the event to the spring semester to line up with the National Engineers’ Week.

This year’s Engineers’ Week kicked off Saturday with ISU alumnus and astronaut Clayton Anderson.

The executive committee hoped that with speakers such Anderson and companies such as 3M, NetApp and Pella giving “Tech-Talks” during Technology Night, students would see how exciting things can be after they complete all of their hard work in their classes.

“[The companies] talk about the exciting research, technology and engineering that’s going on in their fields right now,” said Sheila Evans, co-president of the Engineers’ Week Executive Committee and senior in aerospace engineering. “[Tech-Talks] shine a light on [being an engineer]. If you go through all [the work] and you become an actual engineer, this is the exciting stuff you can do.”

While some of Engineers’ Week may be serious, it will also be full of fun social events and games.

“We wanted to find cool and interesting ways to engage the engineering student body more socially than, say, academically as some of the other events do,” said Cody Hancock, vice president of the Engineers’ Week Executive Committee and senior in chemical engineering. “We kept the basis of some sort of athletic competition but also added a little bit more engineering problem solving. That’s what became E-lympics.”

E-lympics, a play on the words “engineer” and “olympics,” was an event that made students work not only their bodies but also their minds.

The event took place Sunday at Lied Recreation Athletic Center and the Forker pool. Games included Mario Kart, Minute to Win It tug of war and a cardboard boat building contest that held money prizes, which were given to the winners. 

But there was also an ultimate prize, a prize that can’t be replaced: pride for the students’ school, their major and a week full off good friends along with some yummy food.

Along with the events that Engineers’ week has to offer, button lunches will surely be the crowd favorite. Students who purchase a $5 lunch button can get food served in Howe Hall Atrium from noon to 2 p.m. Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. 

Several information booths from different companies and clubs will be set up during the lunches so students can learn more about what they have to offer.

Professors and research students who have research they want to present and share with aspiring engineers will have an opportunity to do so during the Research Symposium from 6 to 9 p.m. Wednesday. 

During the new event, people will give short presentations on their research. After their presentations, faculty and the attending audience can network and talk to the presenters about their research. The Engineers’ Week Committee wants to expand who presents at the Research Symposium in the future.

“The goal is to have undergraduate posters around the atrium … there is a ton of interest in research,” Hancock said. “I think this is just the baseline of what it can be.”

While the Engineers’ Week atmosphere grows on campus, it is also growing in the community. Jacob Frazier-Flores, Community Outreach chair and senior in software engineering sees Engineers’ Week being not only a celebration for current students but also a way to open new doors for potential future engineers.

Middle School Day is a new event that will take place during Engineers’ Week. With its partnership with the Engineering Student Council, Middle School Day seeks to bring in more than 200 middle schoolers from five different schools in the Ames area.

“[We] want to get younger kids more interested in ISU engineering and push more kids who may not be more exposed to it toward the path of engineering when they’re at a young age,” Frazier-Flores said. “So that going into high school they know what they want to focus on.”

Students will hear presentations from faculty and a demonstration from Critical Tinkers, a student organization on campus.

To wrap up the week and to reward the engineering students at Iowa State, the committee set up an Engineer’s Night Out event for Friday night in the Sukup Atrium, where students and their friends will be able to get dressed up in crazy costumes and have a little fun dancing the night away, starting at 7 p.m. A DJ, refreshments and prize for the best costume will be provided. The theme for the event is students’ favorite high school crew.

Kaushik Arukonda, junior in mechanical engineering, said he’s excited for this year’s Engineers’ Week.

“Since this is my third E-Week, I’m most looking forward to upholding the tradition and enjoy the events that are planned,” he said.

Other students agree. Miriam Wilson, junior in aerospace engineering, said she’s most excited to meet an astronaut. She also said it was great to see all of the tents set up and all of the companies.

Students can show off their engineering spirit and pride by purchasing T-shirts, sweatshirts and water bottles on the Iowa State Engineers’ Week website. 

“I hope that [students] will take away a better appreciation of their major,” said Zach Brown, publicity chairman for the Engineer’s Week Executive committee and senior in mechanical engineering. “[We want to] show [the students and the community] that engineers have a lot of different abilities and interests to offer. It’s not purely academic. Engineers are kind, giving and willing to give to those who are in need. They are involved in the community and like to give back.”

Engineers’ Week won’t stop growing from here, however. Even though the executive committee is made up of mostly gradating seniors, current members are excited to work with new cabinet members after interviews in March.

“We want [the new members] to feel it out and have their take on the organization and what Engineers’ Week is and decide [based on] past data … and mold their own events for next year,” Evans said.

The Engineers’ Week executive committee encourages anyone who wants more experience in a leadership position to apply to be on the committee for next year.

For updates on everything that takes place during Engineers’ Week, follow ISU Engineers’ Week on Facebook and @ISUEWeek on Twitter.