Students at Thomas Jefferson get a chance to learn more about engineering and science.
by Martha Alvarez
photo by Manny Perez 
CABPES (Colorado Association of Black Professional Engineers and Scientist) recently hosted a kick-off and registration meeting on Tuesday September 9, 2008 at the Park Hill Methodist Church at 5209 Montview Boulevard, in Denver. CABPES offers the following programs: Junior Engineers, Tomorrow’s Scientists (JETS), The Math Enrichment Program and the SAT Preparation Program. The mission of CABPES is to help develop the interest of elementary, middle and high school, and college students in minority communities. This program was created to give minority students the opportunity to pursue a career in the sciences and to encourage others in their community to follow in their footsteps. The JETS programs is offered September through April and is taught by professional engineers. They volunteer their time so that other students can have the same opportunities they did. A lot of the volunteers used to be students who began their careers by learning with CABPES. They come back to teach the students in their specialty areas and to provide hands-on field trips and projects. The Math Enrichment program is offered three nights a week to help struggling math students intensively. There are separate Algebra I and Algebra II classes since there are a wide variety of age groups who come to this program. Like JETS, this is taught by professionals and can help students improve their grades in school. The SAT Preparation program is a “link” for older high school students. It helps those students get used to college prep material pass the SAT Entrance Exams. This program is sponsored by CollegeInColordo.org, a website that focuses on the success of high school students in college. The website helps with financial aid and career exploration, making the SAT Preparation worth the intense six weeks of work that students have to put in. The CABPES mission is, “To promote and protect the interest of Black and other minority engineers and scientists; and to direct minority interests toward united action for improved community and civic conditions.” Students are guaranteed help on all of their math work, and hands-on experiences that will help them pursue their careers. To register for CABPES programs, students are encouraged to visit their website, http://www.cabpes.org/, and follow the registration instructions.
