Teaching the Teachers: Missouri’s Plan to Fix the Engineering Pipeline

What happens when an industry faces a talent shortage serious enough to threaten its future? You stop waiting and start building the pipeline yourself. In this episode of Engineering Influence, host Jeff Urbanchuk sits down with leaders from ACEC Missouri, Missouri University of Science and Technology, and SCI Engineering to tackle one of the profession's most pressing challenges: the growing engineering workforce shortage — and what the industry is actually doing about it. At the center of the conversation is an innovative new Missouri initiative designed to reach students long before they ever set foot on a college campus. The program takes a "teach the teacher" approach, equipping K–12 educators with hands-on, thematic learning modules they can bring directly into their classrooms — sparking curiosity about engineering careers at the earliest stages of a student's education. Guests break down how the initiative works in practice, from the summer teacher camp experience to the role private firms play through sponsorships that make the program possible. The discussion digs into the power of industry-academia collaboration — and why partnerships between engineering firms and universities are essential to moving the needle on workforce development. The episode also looks ahead: what does scaling this program look like, and how can it serve as a model for attracting and retaining the next generation of engineers across Missouri and beyond? Whether you're a firm principal thinking about talent strategy, an educator looking to bring real-world relevance to your classroom, or simply someone who cares about the future of the profession.