Board 51: Examining the Impacts of Academic and Community Enrichment Resources on First-Year Civil Engineering Students
- Conference
- Location
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Salt Lake City, Utah
- Publication Date
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June 23, 2018
- Start Date
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June 23, 2018
- End Date
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July 27, 2018
- Conference Session
- Tagged Division
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Civil Engineering
- Page Count
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19
- DOI
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10.18260/1-2--30051
- Permanent URL
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https://peer.asee.org/30051
- Download Count
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452
Paper Authors
Mary Katherine Watson
The Citadel
orcid.org/0000-0003-1718-5825
Dr. Mary Katherine Watson is currently an Assistant Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering at The Citadel. Prior to joining the faculty at The Citadel, Dr. Watson earned her PhD in Civil and Environmental Engineering from The Georgia Institute of Technology. She also has BS and MS degrees in Biosystems Engineering from Clemson University. Dr. Watson’s research interests are in the areas of engineering education and biological waste treatment.
Ally Kindel Martin The Citadel
Ally Kindel Martin is the Director of Student Success in the School of Engineering. In her position, she has worked with the Supplemental Instruction program, launched STEM Freshmen Outreach initiatives, created an Engineering Mentor Connection program, and revitalized the Engineering Career & Networking Expo. She holds a M.Ed. in Higher Education and Student Affairs from the University of South Carolina. Previously she worked as a Student Success Adviser and focused on early intervention initiatives. She has taught courses including First Year Seminar, Keys to Student Success and University 101.
Ronald W. Welch The Citadel
Ron Welch (P.E.) received his B.S. degree in Engineering Mechanics from the United States Military Academy in 1982. He received his M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Civil Engineering from the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana in 1990 and 1999, respectively. He became the Dean of Engineering at The Citadel on 1 July 2011. Prior to his current position, he was the Department Head of Civil Engineering at The University of Texas at Tyler from Jan 2007 to June 2011 as well as served in the Corps of Engineers for over 24 years including eleven years on the faculty at the United States Military Academy.
Kevin C Bower P.E. The Citadel
Dr. Kevin Bower is a Professor and Assistant Provost for Academic Operations at The Citadel, Charleston, South Carolina. Dr. Bower’s teaching research interests are in improving active learning environments, authentic assessment, and the development of classroom pedagogy to improve professional skills in engineering students.
Abstract
The Citadel, a regional, teaching-focused institution, does not have a separate review and acceptance procedure for incoming engineering students. If accepted by the university, then the student is a member of the engineering program by simply declaring an engineering major. While open enrollment allows a diverse group of students to pursue engineering, it also leads to challenges related to student preparedness and retention. As documented in prior work, the Introduction to Civil Engineering course was successfully redesigned following a student success model. In addition to curricular reforms, a variety of co-curricular efforts have been implemented to encourage student retention, including Supplemental Instruction, Math Lab, First-Year Outreach Dinners, professional organization meetings, and subject-area tutoring. A survey was developed and administered to first-year students to capture the impact of several support and enrichment services on their perceived academic success, community integration, enjoyment, and related attitudes. Overall, First-Year Outreach Dinners were overall most impactful, as they overwhelmingly supported community engagement, encouraged notable improvements in perceived academic success, and led to improved attitudes towards community integration and academic atmosphere. Future introductory civil engineering classes will encourage students to attend these events more frequently
Watson, M. K., & Martin, A. K., & Welch, R. W., & Bower, K. C. (2018, June), Board 51: Examining the Impacts of Academic and Community Enrichment Resources on First-Year Civil Engineering Students Paper presented at 2018 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition , Salt Lake City, Utah. 10.18260/1-2--30051
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