The USA Science & Engineering Festival is proud to announce the return of Lockheed Martin [NYSE: LMT] as its 2016 Founding and Presenting Host and expanded outreach activities to engage our nation’s youth in science, technology,engineering, and math (STEM).

“The USA Science & Engineering Festival provides an essential introduction and gateway to the exciting world of STEM,” said Dr. Ray O. Johnson, Lockheed Martin senior vice president and chief technology officer. “It’s an exhilarating event not only for the students, but also for the parents, teachers, and professionals like me to get hands-on with STEM and share in the curiosity and wonder of what breakthrough may change the world next.”

The fourth biennial USA Science & Engineering Festival Expo will take place April 15 – 17, 2016 at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington, D.C. The Expo will feature more than 1,000 participating corporations and organizations and more than 3,000 hands-on exhibits and stage shows.

Future plans include year-round K-12 educational programming such as the X-STEM Symposium, the return of the popular ‘Nifty Fifty’ (times 4) Speakers, the Traveling Festival powered by Michigan Tech Mindtrekkers, plus hundreds of satellite events and affiliate festivals around the world.

“I continue to be overwhelmed by the amazing popularity of the Festival and the role we play in encouraging the next generation of scientists and engineers,” said Larry Bock, serial entrepreneur and Festival co-founder.

“Our partnership with Lockheed Martin and our other supporting organizations have been critical to the growth and success of offering this outreach free of charge to hundreds of thousands of students, educators, parents, and the general public.”

The USA Science & Engineering Festival is the country’s only national science festival. More than one million people have attended the previous Festivals making it one of the largest scheduled events in Washington, D.C.

The Festival is a grassroots collaboration of more than 1,000 of the leading U.S. science and engineering corporations in the United States. It was developed to increase public awarenessabout the importance of science and to encourage youth to pursue careers in science and engineering by celebrating science in much the same way as we celebrate Hollywood celebrities, professional athletes, and pop stars. The 2014 Festival attracted more than 325,000 attendees during the three day Expo, confirming the Festival as the largest STEM outreach event in North America.

http://www.usasciencefestival.org/2016-festival.html