College Outreach Community

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.

Community Chair

Chris Poulos
Director Of Business Development, Akima, LLC

Past Chair
Marilyn Zenko

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.

Upcoming National Webinars

• 
  March 5, 2026

  Webinar

  Sensor-Enabled Security & Readiness Monitoring

  Today, installations and critical facilities face growing operational and security demands. The ability to monitor assets remotely and generate actionable intelligence has never been greater to sustaining mission readiness.
• 
  March 18, 2026

  Webinar

  Successful Microgrid Projects for Dept. of War

  This webinar shares practices which are proven to provide successful outcomes on Garrison (fixed) microgrid projects for the Department of Defense (Department of War). Based on real-world expertise, the presenter will discuss various perspectives including that of supplier, integrator, microgrid owner, and specifier.

Related TME Articles – College Outreach

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  Assessing a Threatened Fish Species Using Remotely Operated Vehicle Technology

  January 18, 2023

  To survey the population of the pygmy sculpin, a small, federally protected fish that is highly vulnerable to environmental stressors due to its limited distribution, an innovative method was developed using remotely operated vehicle technology.
• 

  Leveraging Small Business

  November 17, 2022

  Expanding opportunities for small businesses to serve in lead roles could help bolster the capabilities of the defense industrial base and provide capacity for federal agencies.
• 

  Missile Defense Activities in Alaska

  November 16, 2022

  For more than 70 years, Alaska’s geographically strategic location has served the United States as an ideal base for housing missile defense and radar sensing installations to protect the nation from missile threats.
• 

  Designing a Submarine Testing Facility at China Lake

  November 16, 2022

  When planning a first of its kind land-based submarine launch test facility at Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake, considerations needed to assure that it would not only be able to withstand the repeated force of heavy test launches but meet environmental sustainability standards as well.