Campbell University will launch a new three-week summer engineering camp for high-achieving high school students thanks to a $100,000 gift from alumnus and longtime benefactor Bob Barker (’65).
The Bob Barker Engineering Camp for Future Innovators, slated to begin this July, will welcome 24 of the brightest high school students to campus for an immersive, hands-on experience designed to introduce engineering, professional skills and college preparation.
“Campbell’s engineering program is celebrating its 10-year anniversary, and there could be no better way to cap off this historic moment than by creating a signature summer opportunity for high-ability students,” praised Campbell President Dr. William M. Downs. “We are profoundly grateful to Bob Barker for first imagining and then funding this important new initiative, and we are yet again reminded of the Barker family’s continuing and substantial support of our university.”
The camp will highlight Campbell’s project-based engineering curriculum through engineering design projects; just-in-time content mastery of engineering, communication, and teaming skills; as well as a robust professional development curriculum and industry engagement. Student teams will complete a culminating community-based design challenge and present their work on the final day at a Design Expo open to families, alumni and industry mentors.
Teams placing first, second and third in the final design competition will receive one-time scholarships applicable to their freshman year at Campbell University if they enroll and declare engineering as their major.
“I hope that The Bob Barker Engineering Camp for Future Innovators will be the start of many innovative ideas that will attract outstanding and smart students to Campbell,” said Barker.
Camp participants will also receive official Campbell Engineering apparel and a backpack.
“We are excited to be able to offer Campbell’s innovative hands-on, project-based approach to engineering to outstanding high school students in our region, with the generous support of Bob Barker,” said Engineering Dean Dr. Jenna Carpenter. “Our well-rounded approach will also include mentoring opportunities by our alumni and industry partners in the Research Triangle, as well as professional development aimed at preparing students for success at the university-level.”
The program builds on recent momentum within the School of Engineering, which earned national recognition last spring by winning first place at NASA’s Human Exploration Rover Challenge in Huntsville, Alabama. Competing for just the seventh time since 2019, Campbell topped a field of more than 500 students representing 35 colleges and universities and 40 high schools from 20 states and 17 other countries.