Support for the USA Science & Engineering Festival by Congresswoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers

Thank you Congresswoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers for supporting HR 1660 and your support for STEM education in Eastern Washington! Read below:

13 October 2010

Dear Friends,

I write to you with tremendous excitement about the recent passage of H.R. 1660, which promotes the objectives of the first USA Science & Engineering Festival. This national festival, which will take place in Washington, DC from October 10-24, 2010, will feature over 550 organizations from across the United States.

As a strong proponent of innovation, education and entrepreneurship, I support this festival and all the organizations that will take part in it. It's a fantastic way to engage Americans - especially young Americans - through presentations, discussions, exhibitions and demonstrations about relevant topics involving science and engineering.

This inaugural festival makes me excited for the future - and especially for the possibility that Eastern Washington's businesses, organizations, and science teachers will play a leading role in next year's Science & Engineering Festival. This would be a fantastic opportunity to showcase and celebrate Eastern Washington's focus on science, technology and innovation.

As your Representative, I will continue to support educational opportunities for America's future scientists and engineers. This year's USA Science & Engineering Festival reaffirms our focus on innovation, competition and the advancement of education across the country.

Please see the full press release below for more information.

Warmest regards,

Cathy

P.S. For daily updates, subscribe to my Facebook and Twitter news feeds.

--

USA Science & Engineering Festival Receives Bi-Partisan Legislators Seal of Approval

WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--On September 28, 2010, the U.S. House of Representatives approved H. Res 1660 honoring and supporting the goals of the inaugural USA Science & Engineering Festival. The Festival, which will take place in the greater Washington DC area from October 10-24, 2010, will be the country's first national celebration of science and engineering. Over 550 organizations across the country including professional associations, science, technology and engineering companies, government agencies, colleges and universities, and over 200 K-12 schools, are coming together to invigorate the interest of America's youth in science.

"A bi-partisan group of legislators worked together in recent weeks to spotlight our efforts on developing a new generation of American talent so our nation does not outsource innovation."

"Congressional recognition of the importance of science and engineering to future American competitiveness can help us affect real change," Larry Bock, festival creator and executive director said. "A bi-partisan group of legislators worked together in recent weeks to spotlight our efforts on developing a new generation of American talent so our nation does not outsource innovation."

Congressman Brian Bilbray (R-CA), who last year witnessed the success of the San Diego Science Festival which inspired this national effort, graciously led the effort to pass H. Res 1660. House Science Committee Chairman Bart Gordon (D-TN), Representative Pete Olson (R-TX) and Congresswoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA) were also critical to this effort. "This is a unique opportunity for thousands of Americans to learn more about science and engineering from exhibits, participation, demonstrations, performances and discussions," said Brian Bilbray (R-CA).

The Senate unanimously agreed to its version of the resolution, S. Res 656. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) and Senator Jay Rockefeller (D-WV) were co-sponsors of the resolution. Senator Ted Kaufman (D-DE) and Senator Daniel Akaka (D-HI) were also strong supporters.

To hear more of the discussion about H. Res 1660. Here is a link to the conversation on C-Span: http://www.c-spanarchives.org/program/295685-2&start=16174.028&end=1675…

Throughout the month of October, hundreds of volunteers will help create America's largest celebration of science - an effort which is expected to reach more than one million participants nationwide. The USA Science & Engineering Festival includes brown bag lunches for students with Nobel Laureates, scientists visiting K-12 schools to share their excitement about what they do, and a grand finale Expo on the National Mall with 1500 hands-on, interactive exhibits, 75 stage shows and even a night of stargazing. www.usasciencefestival.org.

The Festival is hosted by Lockheed Martin and sponsors include Life Technologies Foundation, K&L Gates, Clean Technology and Sustainability Industries Organization (CTSI), Larry and Diane Bock, Office of Naval Research (ONR), ResMed Foundation, Farrell Family Foundation, Alexandria Real Estate Equities, Northrop Grumman Corporation, Motorola Foundation, Aerospace Industry Association, Johnson & Johnson Pharmaceutical Research & Development, LLC., AT&T, Agilent Technologies, Amgen, Celgene Corporation, The Dow Chemical Company, National Institutes of Health, Illumina, The Kavli Foundation, Intel Corporation, You Can Do the Rubik's Cube, Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc., Genentech Inc., Purdue University, MedImmune, Sandia National Laboratories, Project Lead The Way (PLTW), Baxter International, Celestron, Cisco, University of Maryland, THE SCRIPPS FOUNDATION for Science and the Environment, Raytheon Company, Human Genome Sciences, Rockwell Collins, Google, NuVasive Inc., FEI Company, Case Western Reserve University, Biogen Idec Foundation, LifeStraw®, Microsoft Corporation, Draper Laboratory, Colella Photography, Dassault Syst?mes SolidWorks Corp., Silicon Valley Bank, Bechtel Corporation, SpaceX, Rochester Institute of Technology, the National Radio Astronomy Observatory, Research In Motion, the Thirty Meter Telescope Project, Astronomy Outreach Foundation, Virginia Commonwealth University School of Engineering, National Math and Science Initiative, SpringBoard, a Program of the Juneau Economic Development Council, The Richard Dawkins Foundation for Research and Science, University of Denver, Air Force Research Laboratory, DC Office of the Chief Technology Officer, The Aerospace Corporation, ExxonMobil, Data.gov, Periodic Quest, the USDA Food Safety Discovery Zone and DeVry University-DC Metro.
Current media partners include The Science Channel, Popular Science and Science Illustrated, New Scientist, EE Times Group, SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN, POPULAR MECHANICS, ScienceBlogs, Technology Review published by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, The Epoch Times, EarthSky , ABC TV/TBD, Communications, "WAMU 88, - American University Radio," C&EN, the newsmagazine of the chemical & related sciences, Forbes Wolfe Emerging Tech Report, Career Communications Group, Engineering.com, PBS, ABC TV/TBD, Physics Today, The Northern Virginia Technology Council, Destination DC, FAMILY Magazine, Sigma Xi, SciVee, Inc., SchoolTube, LLC, and CrazyEngineers.com.