

Community Mission
The College Outreach Community leads collaborative efforts between SAME and academia to identify and resolve national security infrastructure-related challenges and supports Post’s efforts to mentor and develop future STEM professionals at the collegiate-level. The community serves as a bridge between academia, Posts, government (military and civilian), and the private sector. The community provides guidance to the network of student chapters across the Society, promotes internship opportunities from SAME sustaining members, and will establish a new engineering competition for students designed to address the nation’s grand challenges.
Overview
The SAME College Outreach Community strives to organize programs and present opportunities to future military and civilian members of the A/E/C profession that will foster networking within their professional community, build leadership skills, and provide job opportunities to recent graduates. Additionally, students with an active membership within SAME have at their disposal a wealth of knowledge and experiences from professionals throughout the A/E/C community of practice.

Executive Community Structure
Vice Chairs
Danielle Hughes, Communications
Jeffrey Allen, Academia Engagement
Staff Liaison
Sarah Feighery, Program Manager
2026 SAME Undergraduate Innovation Design Challenge
Submissions for the 2025-26 SAME Undergraduate Innovation Design Challenge are due by February 6, 2026. This competition, led by the College Outreach COI, evaluates design projects that are being developed by student members as part of their degree curriculums and highlights the innovative thinking of the next generation of STEM professionals.
Learn more about the Innovation Design ChallengeUpcoming National Webinars
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- Webinar
The Hidden Cost: Why Schedule is the Biggest MILCON Premium
Military construction (MILCON) cost discussions often focus on dollars per square foot, but one of the most significant portion of the overall cost is time. Every month added to a project can increase costs through -
- Webinar
AI as Load Shock: Rethinking Energy Security and Mission Assurance
The rapid expansion of AI computing, electrification, and mission-critical digital infrastructure is fundamentally altering the energy security landscape. While AI is often discussed as a software capability or data challenge, its most immediate national security impact is physical: unprecedented, concentrated, and inflexible electrical demand that stresses grid infrastructure and traditional resilience assumptions.
Related TME Articles – College Outreach
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Balancing Efficiency and Fiscal Responsibility
The continuing contracts clause offers the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers a way to improve project delivery and enhance fiscal responsibility by aligning funding with project execution. -
Next Steps for Digital Twin Development
U.S. Forces Japan is laying the groundwork for future integration of digital twin technology in order to validate and collect data that will offer comprehensive insights into utility conditions at installations and enhance overall decision-making, efficiency, and resilience. -
Generating Agile Technology
Through a collaborative program with the Naval Facilities Engineering and Expeditionary Warfare Center, a team of engineering students designed and prototyped a generator powered by ocean movement, with the aim to support the energy needs of warfighters in contested logistics environments. -
Transforming Tasks Through Technology
The Information Technology Laboratory at the U.S. Army Engineer Research & Development Center is helping federal partners incorporate machine learning and artificial intelligence, with recent application, in both contingency response operations and construction management support, showing valuable savings of time and resources. of critical services during the large-scale modernization of the installation’s permanent steam plant.