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Bishop-Wisecarver Leaders to Judge and Award Prize Money at Local Science Fair

Company News Friday, March 2, 2012: Bishop-Wisecarver Corp

Pittsburg, CA - March 1, 2012 - Bay Area inventor Bud Wisecarver will join hundreds of other science and engineering experts this month to judge an Intel-affiliated science fair that awards thousands of dollars to local middle and high school students.

The Contra Costa County Science and Engineering Fair sponsored by the Contra Costa Economic Partnership awards students who demonstrate some mastery of a science, technology, engineering or math-related concept.

Wisecarver founded Bishop-Wisecarver Corporation, manufacturer of the original DualVee® guide wheel and industry leader in guided motion technology, decades ago with the aim to solve tough application challenges. As an engineer, manufacturer and inventor, he said he has made a personal commitment to volunteer in local schools ever since a friend first asked him to speak in a vocational high school class in 1957.

Wisecarver and the company's newly appointed Vice President of Manufacturing Aldo DeAmicis will volunteer as judges at the upcoming March 15-through-17 fair, which takes place at Los Medanos College in Pittsburg. The company will also award an $800 prize for the senior mechanical engineering division and a $200 prize for the junior category of the same division.

"I've been involved in this fair since its inception because it's local, and I've supported local schools in any way I can for almost as long as I've been working," Wisecarver said. "Fairs like this are important because they give kids something to look forward to, especially since there's scholarship money involved."

Judges examine student entries in six categories: Physical science, math/computer sciences, biological science, behavioral/social sciences, environmental science and engineering. The fair awards first-through-fourth place monetary prizes in six categories in both junior (middle school) and senior (high school) divisions.

The seventh-annual Intel ISEF-affiliated fair is one of hundreds that take place every year in each U.S. state and 40 other countries. The fairs take place on local, regional and national levels.

The Contra Costa contest will name up to three "Best in Fair" projects in the junior division to vie for a spot in the Broadcom Masters, a four-day science competition that takes place every October in Washington D.C. Judges will also choose certain projects at the local fair to compete in the California State Science Fair on April 30 through May 1 in Southern California.

The fair Bishop-Wisecarver is sponsoring made history by being the first fair in Intel International Science and Engineer Fair's 60 years to win the Gordon E. Moore Award with $83,000 for its best-in-fair student projects. This accomplishment would be impossible without help from sponsors, said April Treece, event co-director and head of the Contra Costa Economic Partnership STEM Workforce Initiative.

"We are pleased that Bishop-Wisecarver will once again be part of this outstanding science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) experience for Contra Costa middle and high school students," Treece said. "Bud Wisecarver has been a part of [this fair] since its inception in 2006 and has served as a judge every year since."

Treece said the support will go a long way in encouraging students to pursue science and related fields in school and beyond.

"Bishop-Wisecarver has always supported the schools in our area when it comes to STEM events," said Bishop-Wisecarver President Pamela Kan. "I feel it is important that we engage kids at a young age to be interested in STEM studies whether they are male or female. I especially like events that allow the kids to become hands-on with their learning. I tend to see greater engagement and desire to stay on course after the events with other STEM opportunities and ultimately careers. Our country needs to make sure we support these critical skill sets for our future workforce needs."

DeAmicis, who volunteered as judge just weeks after joining Bishop-Wisecarver's executive team, agreed that events like this are an investment in the future of innovation.

"We believe in the importance of participating in the Contra Costa Science Fair to help promote technology among youth in hopes of inspiring them to pursue higher education in the field of science," he said.

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