PLTW Welcomes STEM Education's Best and Brightest to Washington, DC

USA Science & Engineering Festival partner, Project Lead The Way (PLTW) is preparing for an action-packed week this fall with one focus: igniting STEM Education in America through imagination and innovation. In the days leading up to the USA Science and Engineering Festival on the National Mall, PLTW is bringing together some of the best and brightest minds in the STEM community for its 2010 PLTW Innovation Summit.

Attending PLTW's summit will be STEM-related industry representatives, public and private educational agencies, philanthropic organizations and a wide cross-section of the greater STEM community. Participants will investigate, ideate and ultimately ignite STEM education through imagination and innovation. The event is structured as a collaborative three-day forum, featuring visionary keynote speakers, in-depth panel discussions, hands-on breakout sessions and award-winning student project displays. As you make your plans for the USA Science and Engineering Festival, consider arriving a few days early for PLTW's National Innovation Summit October 20-22! For more information on how to register for the summit, visit http://beta.pltw.org/innovationsummit

When PLTW's Innovation Summit concludes on October 22, the organization will launch its interactive student showcases at the USA Science Festival on the National Mall on October 23-24. PLTW's STEM education program has been extremely successful in engaging students in innovation and preparing them for college and career success in STEM-related fields. The hands-on, project based program helps students connect what they are learning in the classroom to real-life problems. Studies have shown that PLTW students are more engaged in learning than their peers and more likely to attend college and major in STEM-related fields than non-PLTW students. You can catch a glimpse of why this program is so successful by visiting their Engineering and Biomedical tents on the mall.

At the exhibition, PLTW students will showcase the hands-on, project based activities they work on in classrooms every day. The engineering tent will feature students exploring and investigating interactive projects, such as controlling and operating an automated material sorter, using 3D modeling and animation software to solve a puzzle, applying alternative energy methods to create an interactive LED display, and operating a ROV (Remote Operated Vehicle). At the biomedical sciences tent, students will build models of different molecules, including DNA and proteins, test their reaction time for various computer visual tasks, and measure their blood pressure and heart rate using sensors and a computer.

USA Science Festival is extremely proud to partner with PLTW, a true pioneer in STEM education. The program is in more than 4,000 schools, reaching approximately 350,000 students in all 50 states. Come out and visit with PLTW students, teachers and representatives to learn more about how your community can further inspire the next generation of innovators. And don't forget that PLTW's National Innovation Summit is just days before the exhibit in Washington , DC ! For more information, visit www.pltw.org