Principles of Engineering: EVC Students Attend Texas Instrument Worksite Visit
NOVEMBER 2024
This week, twenty students, primarily from the engineering department at Evergreen Valley Community College, explored Texas Instruments (TI) in Sunnyvale, California. Organized in partnership with TI’s Education Outreach Program led by Archana Venugopal and as part of the Bay Area K-16 Collaborative’s worksite visit series, the opportunity aimed to support early STEM students as they navigated coursework and careers, guided by a core message: STEM careers are rooted in problem-solving and adaptability. This approach encourages students to find solutions to complex challenges, applying problem-solving principles to their coursework and lives beyond academia.
Panelists Encourage Students to Embrace Their Curiosities
The day started with an inspiring panel featuring senior technical leaders Yogesh Ramadass, Kevin Scoones, Ann Concannon, and product engineer Vincent Mello. The message from the panel was clear: seek out problems to solve. Concannon shared her passion for “finding elegant solutions to everyday challenges” and urged students to look for opportunities to practice problem-solving across all areas of life—from classrooms to careers to hobbies. She highlighted that engineering is a mindset extending far beyond traditional STEM fields, finding relevance in all industries.
Vincent Mello, a TI product engineer who joined the company in 2020, shared his journey from San Joaquin Delta College to San Francisco State University and finally to Texas Instruments. Vincent’s story resonated with students as he recounted his early experiences tinkering with electronics and his discovery of TI, where his love of math and electronics intersected. He encouraged students to embrace seemingly unrelated experiences as valuable learning opportunities; in his case, wiring work during a sailboating program proved helpful in his current role and even in TI’s interview process. The panelists emphasized that every experience matters on the journey to a STEM career, urging students to avoid pre-judging any opportunity—they never know what skills or connections might come in handy.
During the student Q&A, one student asked how new graduates should navigate a job market that has changed so much in recent years due to COVID and changing technology hiring patterns. The panelists advised students to focus on mastering the fundamentals and maintaining a curiosity-driven mindset. In a world with endless information at their fingertips, students who prioritize foundational skills and a desire for learning will always be in demand. Additionally, building relationships with mentors and champions along the way is essential for uncovering obvious and unexpected opportunities.
TI Is More Than Just a Calculator Company
After the panel, students moved through an interactive exhibit of ten stations covering technologies like HSSC, Sales, VRS, Clocking, Kilby, Ethernet, and Comparators, getting hands-on demonstrations from TI’s young professional employees. The rotations gave them a taste of the work done at TI and introduced them to new faces within the TI community. Vincent Mello also hosted a table further to discuss his career path from community college to TI, sharing one-on-one advice with students.
Reflecting on the experience, one engineering student remarked how transformative the trip had been. As the only person from his class who attended, he felt a renewed motivation to pursue electrical engineering, inspired by TI’s welcoming community and the many pathways to succeed in the field. Another student remarked that they learned that Texas Instruments is more than just a calculator company; there are a variety of disciplines and projects that students can be a part of and grow within.
The Bay Area K-16 Collaborative and SVLG Foundation extend heartfelt thanks to Archana Venugopal and Zachary Lau at Texas Instruments for their diligent planning and leadership in making this worksite visit a success. We also deeply appreciate the essential partnership and support from EVC’s STEM Dean, Dr. Antoinette Herrera, and Dr. Melissa Hornstein, EVC’s dedicated engineering faculty, in co-leading this initiative. A special thanks goes to Drew Thoms, Nick Peabody and Shams Fardeen at TI for their on-site support, as well as to EVC faculty Celso Batalha and Jack Ho for attending and engaging with the students.