Hi, my name is Tom Mittan and I’m an engineer at Lockheed Martin in Owego, NY. I began my career working as a structural engineer on the Presidential Helicopter Program, and from there have moved onto the K-MAX Unmanned Helicopter program as a systems engineer and aircraft performance data analyst.
My first inspiration to learn more about engineering began when I entered high school and joined a Lockheed Martin-sponsored engineering Explorer Scout Post (a division of the Boy Scouts of America), here in Owego, in New York’s southern tier. The Explorer Scout Post focused on hands-on activities that engaged students in the design and construction of various projects such as radio transceivers, robots, and remote controlled airplanes. The projects were not only fun and engaging, but also offered valuable insight into the engineering process and a great opportunity to interact with real engineers and learn more about what they do.
In addition to the Lockheed Martin-sponsored Explorer activity, I was also exposed to science, technology and mathematics through secondary school programs such as Science Olympiad and MATHCOUNTS, as well as Technology Education classes (a branch of traditional Shop classes). These experiences, like those in Explorer scouting, greatly helped to augment the principles I learned in my science and math classes by offering lots of hands-on experience and a chance to work in a team environment on some very interesting projects.
Without fun and educational experiences like those offered in the programs above, it’s often difficult for students to picture anything beyond all the formulas and equations taught in their calculus or chemistry classes. With them, however, students are able to experience firsthand all the exciting possibilities these fields have to offer.