Future City: Intelligent questions; Important decisions

Dennis Irwin is Dean of Ohio University’s Russ College of Engineering and Technology. Ohio University has partnered with Future City for 10 years. The University’s involvement began with a sponsorship but, after attending the Finals six years ago, they decided to increase their commitment and sponsor the 4th Place prize. “We were blown away by the enthusiasm of the kids. The models that the children created were fantastic and we were also very impressed with the quality of the event overall,” Irwin recounts of his time at the Finals.

Dean Irwin has also served as a judge for the Finals and based on his experience, he hopes that the university can recruit some of the students he’s seen at the competitions to the engineering profession in the future. “I loved seeing the communication skills of these kids while I was a judge for Future City,” Irwin says.

He adds, “The students at Future City are the future for both the engineering profession and our country. We need more engineers, and we need inspired and intelligent people to ask important questions and make important decisions going forward.”