Boeing, MIT LGO Alumni Inspire Future Engineers Through High School Visits

Collaboration between Engineering Tomorrow nonprofit and Boeing aims to turn curiosity about aerospace engineering into possible careers for young students.

Published on Feb. 28, 2026

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A collaboration between the nonprofit Engineering Tomorrow, aerospace firm Boeing, and alumni of the MIT Leaders for Global Operations (LGO) program is working to turn curiosity about aerospace engineering into possible careers for young students. The program provides hands-on experiences for high school students, including a recent visit to Boeing's Renton, Washington facility where students learned about different engineering pathways and got a behind-the-scenes look at plane manufacturing.

Why it matters

The program aims to address the growing shortage of engineers in the U.S. by inspiring the next generation and showing them the diverse career paths available in engineering and manufacturing. By partnering with influential mentors like MIT LGO alumni working at companies like Boeing, the program is able to make engineering more tangible and accessible for students who may have previously been intimidated by the field.

The details

The collaboration between Engineering Tomorrow, Boeing, and MIT LGO alumni resulted in a structured, multi-touch experience for a group of 30 ninth graders from Mercer Island High School. First, the students learned about key aerospace concepts and completed a hands-on airplane design lab. They then visited Boeing's Renton facility, where they spoke with engineers from various disciplines and toured the production floor to see planes being assembled. The students were able to ask informed questions and left with a better understanding of the many routes into engineering and manufacturing careers.

  • In November 2025, 30 ninth graders from Mercer Island High School visited Boeing's Renton, Washington facility.
  • Prior to the visit, an Engineering Tomorrow liaison introduced aerospace concepts and a hands-on lab challenge to the class via Zoom.

The players

Engineering Tomorrow

A nonprofit organization dedicated to inspiring the next generation of engineers by delivering no-cost engineering labs to middle and high school students and collaborating with influential mentors.

Boeing

An aerospace firm that is the longest-standing industry collaborator with the MIT Leaders for Global Operations (LGO) program, hosting internships, recruiting alumni, and facilitating plant tours for future engineers.

MIT Leaders for Global Operations (LGO) program

A graduate program at MIT that combines engineering and business leadership, with a robust alumni network that includes employees at companies like Boeing.

Cameron Hoffman

A Boeing manufacturing strategy manager and MIT LGO alumnus who helped translate the shared mission between Engineering Tomorrow and the Boeing LGO community into a real-world opportunity for high school students.

Michael Ketchum

An engineering design teacher at Mercer Island High School whose students participated in the Boeing plant tour and hands-on activities.

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What they’re saying

“We want to inspire students by exposing them to professional engineers to illustrate the pathways for them to be problem-solvers in society.”

— Alex Dickson, Program Coordinator, Engineering Tomorrow

“Cameron set up an incredible on-site experience for the students that really made real-world engineering a more tangible experience for them.”

— Alex Dickson, Program Coordinator, Engineering Tomorrow

“For freshmen and sophomores, field trips are key. They stick in their head a bit longer than just school learning. If they get to see people getting excited talking about engineering, and it embeds it a little bit better in their brain.”

— Michael Ketchum, Engineering Design Teacher, Mercer Island High School

What’s next

Next year, the MIT LGO network hopes to expand the program to partner with additional companies across industries, from healthcare to biotech, to continue creating exposure and inspiring the next generation of engineers.

The takeaway

By bringing together a nonprofit, an aerospace leader, and graduate-level engineering alumni, this program is demonstrating how strategic collaborations can make real-world engineering more accessible and inspiring for high school students, helping to address the growing shortage of engineers in the U.S.