The engineering community celebrated Engineers Week Foundation beginning in 1951, when the National Society of Professional Engineers initiated it. For the next several decades Engineers Week programs were local, disconnected, and mostly focused within the profession.

In 1990, the Foundation and Bechtel Group launched "DiscoverE," the first formal national call to engineer volunteers for engagement in K-12 education, partly in response to government studies showing future shortages in engineering talent. DiscoverE became the Foundation's K-12 umbrella volunteer outreach movement.

An enthusiastic response to DiscoverE drove the Foundation to develop additional volunteer materials and programs while working to meet partners’ specific needs: National Engineers Week Future City Competition (1993); Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day (2001); Global Marathon for, by, and about Women in Engineering & Technology (2005); New Faces of Engineering (2003) and College Edition (2011); and DiscoverE Educator Recognition (2012).

By 2013, it became apparent that with such a robust and diverse portfolio, a broad and deep coalition, and year-round engagement, the organizational name—National Engineers Week Foundation - was inaccurate and misleading. The organization wanted a name reflective of who we are and who we serve. The one selected name was the catalyst for all accomplishments: DiscoverE.