Center for Excellence in Education Congressional Luncheon
Brings Together STEM Supporters from 11 Countries and Across U.S.
More than 150 science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) supporters gathered April 4 on Capitol Hill to celebrate the Center for Excellence in Education (CEE), its STEM education programs and outstanding alumni. CEE’s annual Congressional Luncheon, sponsored by Google, attracted guests from 11 countries and across the United States.
Congressional representatives were united in their support of CEE’s STEM education mission. Senators Ted Cruz (TX) and Joseph Lieberman (CT) spoke of the importance of STEM to their families, as did Representatives Bob Goodlatte (VA), Scott Peters (CA), Jacky Rosen (NV) and Rob Wittman (VA).
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Congressman Scott Peters (CA
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The event’s keynote speaker was Dr. John Langford, CEO of Aurora Flight Sciences of Manassas (VA), who shared his perspective on the rapid growth in popularity of mechanical flying drones, and an overview of Aurora’s innovative work with unmanned space vehicles. The Defense Research Projects Agency (DARPA) awarded Aurora the prime contract for Phase 2 of the agency’s Vertical Takeoff and Landing Experimental Plane (VTOL X-Plane) program, which recently completed a successful subscale flight. Click here for Langford video.
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Dr. John Langford, Aurora Flight Sciences
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Longtime CEE honorary board member Sen. Lieberman presented CEE’s Award for Excellence in Science and Technology—named in his honor—to Dr. Lauren Ancel Meyers, Professor of Integrative Biology at the University of Texas at Austin. While in high school, Dr. Meyers attended CEE’s Research Science Institute (RSI) summer program at MIT, before continuing her education at Harvard and Stanford Universities. Click here for Meyers video.
| Senator Joseph Lieberman presents the Lieberman Award tO Dr. Lauren Ancel Meyers |
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| Dr. Lauren Ancel Meyers Professor of Integrative Biology University of Texas, at Austin |
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| Joann DiGennaro, CEE President, congratulates Dr. Lauren Ancel Meyers |
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In her acceptance remarks, Dr. Meyers credited CEE’s RSI as “incredibly formative, inspiring me to become a scientist, tackling real world challenges using advanced mathematics.” CEE President Joann DiGennaro presented Dr. Meyers with a $10,000 research stipend in conjunction with the Lieberman award.
Luncheon guests included 11 alumni representing CEE’s 34 impactful years of STEM education programs, including RSI, the USA Biology Olympiad (USABO), and the Teacher Enrichment Program (TEP). CEE alumni are now spread globally, and some traveled from as far away as California to attend this year’s Congressional Luncheon. International guests from 11 countries represented just some of the 53 countries of origin for CEE alumni.
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CEE Alumni Gather at the 2017 Congressional Luncheon
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Go to the CEE YouTube channel for videos of the 2017 Congressional LuncheonAlso at the April 4 Luncheon, CEE announced that the USA Biology Olympiad will be hosted by the University of California of San Diego (UCSD) beginning in 2018.
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