Conference Session

MIND Education Trends

Collection

2006 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Fred Hudson, University of Texas-San Antonio; Dawnlee Roberson, University of Texas-San Antonio

Tagged Divisions

Minorities in Engineering

2006-2482: BIOMECHANICS AS A TOOL FOR TEACHING MINORITYSTUDENTSDawnlee Roberson, University of Texas-San Antonio Dr Roberson is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering at the University of Texas at Austin. She received a Bachelors in Biology and a Masters in Electrical Engineering from the University of Texas at San Antonio, and her PhD in Biomedical Engineering from the University of Texas at Austin.Fred Hudson, University of Texas-San Antonio Page 11.276.1© American Society for Engineering Education, 2006 Biomechanics as a tool for teaching minority students

Conference Session

NASA Fellowship Program

Collection

2006 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Melissa Green, United Negro College Fund Special Programs Corp; Maria Jackson Hittle, UNCF SP; Gholam Ali Shaykhian, NASA; Robert Singleterry, NASA; Victor Obot, Texas Southern University; Premkumar Saganti, Prairie View A&M University; Marc Mendez, Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi; Jianping Yue, Essex County College; Jack Esparza, Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi; Rafic Bachnak, Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi; Kenneth Fernandez; Pamela Denkins

Tagged Divisions

Minorities in Engineering

example, at Essex County College, a faculty member is required to have at least 15contact hours of classroom and laboratory teaching, 1/3 of the contact hours as office hours foradvising students, 1/5 of the contact hours as additional office hours by appointment foradvisement and other duties. Two-year community colleges provide only fundamental curricula.The laboratory equipments are usually not suitable for research. Even though continuousprofessional development is also important for community college faculty, there is little time andresource for them to do research.The NAFP faculty research award provides a unique research opportunity for community collegefaculty. This award has enabled the author to acquire necessary cutting tools and

Conference Session

Attracting Young MINDs

Collection

2006 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Cindy Waters, North Carolina A&T State University; Vernal Alford, North Carolina A&T State University; Elaine Vinson, North Carolina A&T State University; Venetia Fisher, North Carolina A&T State University; Devdas Pai, North Carolina A&T State University

Tagged Divisions

Minorities in Engineering

: engineeringprofessors who serve as directors that oversee the programs agenda; otherengineering faculty who teach some engineering courses; Guilford Countyteachers, who served as instructors for the mathematics and science; one (1) highschool counselor who facilitates the career explorations and invites otherprofessionals as guest speakers; technicians who conduct the laboratory sessions;six (6) engineering undergraduate students who served as student teachers andmentors; and one (1) engineering undergraduate who serves as the photographerand mentor. The funds for the director come from the College of Engineeringoutreach and specific sessions such as the CAMSS nanotechnology programis funded by the specific research center. Once the Guilford

Conference Session

Retention Issues

Collection

2006 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Maria M. Larrondo Petrie

Tagged Divisions

Minorities in Engineering

activities for K-12 level motivating engineering andtechnology careers2. A report, Engineering in the K-12 Classroom: An Analysis of CurrentPractices & Guidelines for the Future, based on the proceedings from the 2004 LeadershipWorkshop on K-12 Engineering Outreach is available3. The ASEE Engineering K-12 Centeroffers portals for students and educators. The MAA has many resource materials for motivatingMathematics at the K-12 level4. Cornell University sponsors an award winning website5 with Page 11.931.7links to educators and students in grades 9-12. ITEA is a professional association for technologyeducation teachers who teach a problem-based

Conference Session

Outreach and Recruitment

Collection

2006 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Rafic Bachnak, Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi; Korinne Caruso, Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi; Jack Esparza, Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi; Marc Mendez, Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi

Tagged Divisions

Minorities in Engineering

science and engineering.The program includes presentations at high schools, invited speakers, field trips, hands-on laboratory activities, and science and technology exhibits1 [7]. Specifically, theprogram involves attracting 11th grade students to attend a two-week Science andTechnology workshop. At this level, students are ready to make decisions that affectthem for the rest of their lives; selecting the college they wish to attend and choosing thefield of study they wish to pursue.The workshop is designed to introduce students to job opportunities in the food industryand agriculture, expose them to college life, involve them in hands-on activities, andencourage them to pursue science and engineering careers. One of our goals is to makethe

Conference Session

Outreach and Recruitment

Collection

2006 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Marsha Lee, Texas A&M University; Jan Rinehart, Texas A&M University; Scott Starks, University of Texas-El Paso; Karen Villatoro, Texas A&M University

Tagged Divisions

Minorities in Engineering

is an example of what waslooked for when partnering.Though successful precollege programs differ in their organization, length, and programelements, they do possess similar attributes and features.6 In general these include mathematicsand science preparation, hands-on laboratory experimentation, guest speakers, journal writing,exposure to the engineering workplace through field trips, and others. The TexPREP program isdiscussed from the standpoint of its serving as a model for a successful precollege program.The goals for El Paso TexPREP program are the following: • To acquaint student participants with professional opportunities in engineering; • To reinforce the mathematics preparation of these students at high school and college

Conference Session

Retention Issues

Collection

2006 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Phyllis Tedford, Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi; John Fernandez, Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi

Tagged Divisions

Minorities in Engineering

worked as a Clinical Laboratory Scientist for over 20 years before earning her Master's Degree in Computer Science. She is interested in developing successful methods of recruitment, retention, and placement of students majoring in computer science. Page 11.344.1© American Society for Engineering Education, 2006Computer Science Recruiting and Retention of Undergraduates to Meet the Needs of the Business CommunityINTRODUCTIONAvailable information from a variety of governmental and private sources indicate anincrease in the demand for computer science (CS) and information technology (IT)professionals in the

Conference Session

MIND Education Trends

Collection

2006 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Eric Asa, North Dakota State University

Tagged Divisions

Minorities in Engineering

. This is especially true for AfricanAmericans and Hispanics who constitute a significant proportion of the US population. Whitesconstituted about 76% of undergraduate engineering students in 1990 and 68% in 2002. Theenrollment of blacks in undergraduate engineering programs actually decreased from 7.0% in1995 to 6.3% in 2002. Various innovative approaches have been employed by colleges, schools,government establishments, National Science Foundation and minority interest groups to attractminorities to engineering programs. However the retention rate of minorities in engineeringprograms is about on-third, compared to two-thirds for non-minority groups. Some educatorshave argued that teaching methods used by engineering programs should even be

Conference Session

MIND Education Trends

Collection

2006 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Mary Anderson-Rowland, Arizona State University; Dana Newell, Arizona State University

Tagged Divisions

Minorities in Engineering

were supported by a$2,500 scholarship, or less depending on need, for the academic year.As a part of the NACME Program, the entering freshmen were required to attend a two-creditAcademic Success Workshop, whose credits did not count toward graduation. Additionalminority freshmen also attended the class. The primary purposes of the Academic SuccessWorkshop was to help with the adjustment to being a university freshmen, to ensure that thestudents had someone to talk to should any problems arise by becoming acquainted with Schoolstaff, to assist in forming a support network for the student, to help teach teamwork, to sharpenpresentation skills, and to have an enjoyable experience.1 The students were shown a video tapeseries on making good grades