Conference Session

Knowing Our Students, Part 2

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Russell Korte, University Of Minnesota; Karl Smith, University of Minnesota

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

AC 2007-2303: PORTRAYING THE ACADEMIC EXPERIENCES OF STUDENTSIN ENGINEERING: STUDENTS' PERCEPTIONS OF THEIR EDUCATIONALEXPERIENCES AND CAREER ASPIRATIONS IN ENGINEERING.Russell Korte, University Of Minnesota Russell F. Korte is a doctoral candidate in Human Resource Development and Strategic Management and Organization at the University of Minnesota. He is also a research assistant for the university’s Institute of Technology in collaboration with the Center for the Advancement of Engineering Education. His research interests include learning, socialization, and performance in adult education and the workplace.Karl Smith, University of Minnesota Karl A. Smith is Cooperative Learning Professor

Conference Session

The Critical First Year in Engineering Education

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jamie Medoff, University of Maryland-Baltimore County; Anne Spence, University of Maryland-Baltimore County

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

Universities and their localschools is looked at as a possible positive contributor to enhance STEM education withinthe classroom. Several outreach programs have been established including a well knownNational Science Foundation (NSF) funded program that involves students in collegeestablishing a relationship with a teacher through a school year by helping them in theclassroom encourage students to excel in STEM education.The NSF Graduate Teaching fellows in K-12 Education (GK-12) “provides funding tograduate students in NSF- supported science, technology, engineering, and mathematics(STEM) disciplines to acquire additional skills that will broadly prepare them forprofessional and scientific careers in the 21st century.”3In 2002-2006, The National

Conference Session

Student Diversity: attracting and retaining a diverse population of students

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Kelly Crittenden, Louisiana Tech University; Galen Turner, Louisiana Tech University; Alicia Boudreaux, Louisiana Tech University; James Nelson, Louisiana Tech University

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

will be sending my application to Tech within the next couple of days. I am very interested in becoming a Civil Engineer. -Seth Bond, Airline High School Senior (TechSTEP pilot participant 2005-06)LaTechSTEP targets students who have shown an aptitude for math and science but needadditional encouragement to consider a STEM discipline as a career choice. Participatingteachers select these students based on their personal experiences with them. “Allowing the high school teachers to select a few students from their classes gives us the ability to identify the students best suited for this program, the ones

Conference Session

Assessment and Evaluation in Engineering Education II

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jenefer Husman, Arizona State University; Christa Lynch, Arizona State University; Jonathan Hilpert, Arizona State University; mary ann Duggan, Arizona State University

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

sciencesreport doing so due to poor instruction [4]. Accordingly, this line of research has sparked aninterest in improving the quality of education engineering students receive by improvinginstruction through increased understanding of student learning and motivation [3]. From a motivation perspective, some of the most important steps students taketoward a career in science and engineering (S & E) are in choosing the right coursework,experiences, and mentors to get them there. Over the past few years, researchers haveamassed a substantial body of knowledge regarding how students think about their personalfutures. They argue if we want to understand why students choose one career path overanother, and why they choose to persevere or abandon

Conference Session

ERM Potpourri II

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Kevin O'Connor, University of Rochester; Daniel Amos, University of Washington; Tori Bailey, Stanford University; Gary Lichtenstein, Stanford University; Lari Garrison, University of Washington; Heidi Loshbaugh, Colorado School of Mines; Marcus Jones, Howard University; Derek Seward, University of Rochester; Lisa Perhamus, University of Rochester; Reed Stevens, University of Washington

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

separated consequences,” 11 and those that areextrinsically motivated. Researchers have claimed that intrinsic interest is associated withretention, while extrinsic interest is associated with decisions to change majors. For example,Seymour & Hewitt, in one of the most important and comprehensive works on retention inSMET disciplines, take intrinsic interest to be among the most important factors in understandingstudents’ decision to persist in or to change their major. They claim that “the best foundation forsurvival and success is to have chosen one’s major because of an intrinsic interest in thediscipline and/or the career fields to which it is leading.” 13 It is important to note for ourpurposes that intrinsic interest or motivation is

Conference Session

Student Diversity: attracting and retaining a diverse population of students

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Ismail Orabi, University of New Haven

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

in the coursewas affected by several factors such as student ability, motivation, the quality of secondaryeducation obtained. The female students had a slightly higher overall course grade average thanmen and outperformed the male students on all class assignments except the final design project.The attitude survey showed that men reported higher gains than women on the technical skills,including confidence on engineering knowledge as a career and problem-solving skills whilewomen indicated higher gains in teamwork and design skills. Female students were able to learnthe material as effectively as the male students.IntroductionGender differences may exist in many different areas of education; from performance toattitudes, from classroom

Conference Session

Cognitive and Motivational Issues in Student Performance II

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

P.K. Imbrie, Purdue University; Joe Jien-Jou Lin; Tayo Oladunni, Purdue University, West Lafayette; Kenneth Reid

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

., academic self-efficacy,academic motivation, leadership, metacognition, career, type of learner (e.g., deep vs. surface),teamwork, and expectancy-value) serve as independent parameters to an artificial neuralnetwork (NN) that is used to predict student persistence within engineering school at the endof first year. A feed-forward neural network model with back-propagation training was developed topredict third semester retention of a cohort of first-year engineering students (N=1,523) at alarge Midwestern university. The model constituted of 159 primary nodes corresponding to 8noncognitive factors described by a 159 item instrument. The resulting model was shown tohave a predicative accuracy of 82% for retained students after their first year and

Conference Session

Assessment and Evaluation in Engineering Education I

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Rose Marra, University of Missouri; Barbara Bogue, Pennsylvania State University; Demei Shen, University of Missouri; Kelly Rodgers, University of Missouri

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

engineering. Her research interests include STEM programming, career development and assessment.Demei Shen, University of Missouri DEMEI SHEN is a doctoral candidate in Information Science and Learning Technologies at the University of Missouri - Columbia. Her research interests include social computing and motivation in web-based learning.Kelly Rodgers, University of Missouri KELLY A. RODGERS, M. A. is a doctoral candidate in educational psychology at the University of Missouri - Columbia. Her research interests include motivational issues in minority student retention and the socio-emotional aspects of gifted minority adolescents

Conference Session

Student Diversity: attracting and retaining a diverse population of students

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Deborah Kilgore, University of Washington; Debbie Chachra, Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering; Heidi Loshbaugh, Colorado School of Mines; Janice McCain, Howard University; Marcus Jones, Howard University; Ken Yasuhara, University of Washington

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

Page 12.420.10described intending to focus more on engineering-oriented extracurriculars in the future—including NSBE. “This semester I didn’t do much in engineering itself, mostly like, like clubs, 9the extracurricular things outside, just generally nothing very specific to engineering….Theyhave career fairs and stuff like that, but I really didn’t do much in engineering, so I’m trying todo that more next semester."Mark, a male Civil Engineering student, found his first year extremely difficult, because, “I playfootball out here, too. I joined in September and like it wasn’t a scholarship, I just walked on.”Mark said his academic advisor was

Conference Session

Knowing Our Students, Part 2

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Mica Hutchison, Purdue University; Deborah Follman, Purdue University; George Bodner, Purdue University

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

: National Academies Press, 2007.4. Bandura, A., Self-Efficacy: The Exercise of Control, New York: W. H. Freeman and Company, 1997.5. Pajares, F., "Self-Efficacy Beliefs in Academic Settings," Review of Educational Research, Vol. 66, No. 4,1996, pp. 543-578.6. Lent, R. W., Brown, S. D., Schmidt, J., Brenner, B., Lyons, H. and Treistman, D., "Relation of ContextualSupports and Barriers to Choice Behavior in Engineering Majors: Test of Alternative Social Cognitive Models,"Journal of Counseling Psychology, Vol. 50, No. 4, 2003, pp. 458-465.7. Schaefers, K. G., Epperson, D. L. and Nauta, M. M., "Women's Career Development: Can TheoreticallyDerived Variables Predict Persistence in Engineering Majors?," Journal of Counseling Psychology, Vol. 44, 1997,pp

Conference Session

Assessment and Evaluation in Engineering Education II

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Stephanie Rivale, University of Texas-Austin; Taylor Martin, University of Texas-Austin; K. Diller, University of Texas-Austin

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

faculty of the College of Engineering at the University of Texas as an assistant professor and has progressively been promoted to his present position. He has served on the editorial boards Cryobiology, Intl. J. Transport Phenom., Cell Preservation Technology, Cryo-Letters and editor of the ASME J. Biomechanical Engineering, and currently is associate editor of Ann. Rev. Biomedical Engineering. He is a Fellow of ASME, AAAS, AIMBE, and BMES, has been president of The Society for Cryobiology, vice-president of the International Institute of Refrigeration and Chair of the Bioengineering Division of the ASME. He is also recipient of the ASME Heat Transfer Memorial Award for career

Conference Session

Knowing Our Students, Part 2

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Ozgur Eris, Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering; Debbie Chachra, Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering; Helen Chen, Stanford University; Camelia Rosca, Boston College; Larry Ludlow, Boston College; Sheri Sheppard, Stanford University; Krista Donaldson, Stanford University

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

, 2007 A Preliminary Analysis of Correlates of Engineering Persistence: Results from a Longitudinal StudyAbstractThis paper outlines the preliminary findings of a longitudinal survey-based study, the Persistencein Engineering (PIE) survey. This survey was designed to identify and characterize thefundamental factors that influence students’ intentions to pursue an engineering degree over thecourse of their undergraduate career, and upon graduation, to pursue a career in an engineering-related field, including practicing engineering as a profession, teaching, or conducting research.In addition, it is also designed to broaden our understanding of how students navigate theireducation and begin to form identities as

Conference Session

Knowing our Students, Part 1

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Gary Lichtenstein, Stanford University; Heidi Loshbaugh, Colorado School of Mines; Brittany Claar, Colorado School of Mines; Tori Bailey, Stanford University; Sheri Sheppard, Stanford University

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

name a few. Presentvariables include college GPA, factors related to school environment, and student effort andbeliefs. Future variables include students’ beliefs about salary and work demands, careerattainment, and expectations related to marriage and family.3While student demographics and social history influence college choice, current research isincreasingly examining the effects of the college experience itself on students’ decisions relatingto their major and career. In particular, research into engineering persistence is examining theacademic environment—classroom instruction, social pressures, departmental culture, andinstitutional structure—to determine the extent to which these factors impact students generally,and in particular

Conference Session

Student Diversity: attracting and retaining a diverse population of students

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Elliot Douglas, University of Florida

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

. He received the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers, the Ralph Teetor Education Award from the Society of Automotive Engineers, and was named University of Florida Teacher of the Year for 2003-04. Page 12.587.1© American Society for Engineering Education, 2007 Effects of Sex and Ethnicity on Performance on the Materials Concept InventoryAbstractThis paper describes results on using the Materials Concept Inventory in an introductorymaterials course. The validity of the MCI is confirmed by correlation with student course gradesand student self-assessment

Conference Session

Curricular Innovations

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Janice McCain, Howard University; Lorraine Fleming, Howard University; Dawn Williams, Howard University; Kimarie Engerman, University of the Virgin Islands

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

’ ability to complete undergraduate engineering degrees, and may play a role ininfluencing students’ decisions to work in the engineering industry or continue in graduateengineering degree programs in the future. Since the most dogged students persevere without ahigh level of satisfaction they are perhaps the most likely to make non-engineering post-baccalaureate career choices even if they are able to complete the undergraduate degree.II. Background LiteratureThere is a paucity of literature that focuses specifically on doggedness. In as much as doggednesscan be viewed in the context of personal motivation, it is largely an extension of persistence. Theliterature mentioned below provides the framework that is used to contextually describe

Conference Session

Innovations in Teaching and Learning

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Benson Tongue, University of California-Berkeley

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

well defined body of knowledgeto the enrolled students. Our concern here is rather different. Our aim is to address a broaderand more diffuse set of needs. We address the question of ‘why’ and to a large degree leavethe engineering classes to provide the ‘how.’ “What is the point of taking a particular classand how does it fit into a larger picture?” “Why will I need to know what a coefficient offriction is?” “I really enjoyed my first course in dynamics - so what does that mean in termsof further courses and career paths?” These are the class of inquiries we address. Page 12.515.2These questions are typical of students who already, for one reason

Conference Session

Knowing our Students, Part 1

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jill Auerbach, Georgia Institute of Technology; Jonathan Gordon, Georgia Institute of Technology; Gary May, Georgia Institute of Technology; Cleon Davis, Georgia Institute of Technology

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

attendance. According to arecent study by SRI International,4 undergraduate research programs can assist students who areuncertain about going to graduate school to clarify their intent to pursue those goals and toreinforce the commitment among students who have already decided to pursue those goals. Thedecision to attend graduate school can be highly influenced by the amount of facultyinvolvement in the undergraduate career of minority students.5 Quality interactions with facultycan have a significant impact on a student’s decision to pursue graduate education, since suchinteraction provides the student with effective role models. Thus, faculty members in scienceand engineering fields are a critical link in the challenge to increase the likelihood

Conference Session

ERM Potpourri II

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Mieke Schuurman, Pennsylvania State University; Dennis Gouran, Pennsylvania State University; Laura L. Pauley, Pennsylvania State University

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

1 2 1 2 3 1) listens carefully to communication from others .7 .8 2) shows appreciation of importance of oral communication in ones .7 .7 professional career 3) understands questions from others well .8 .7 4) appears to lack confidence when presenting orally ** .8 .8 5) delivers a well-organized oral presentation .7 .7 6) uses appropriate presentation techniques (correct eye contact, use of .7 .8 voice, etc.) 7) fails to keep audience engaged when

Conference Session

Assessment and Evaluation in Engineering Education II

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Alice Squires, Stevens Institute of Technology; Mike Pennotti, Stevens Institute of Technology

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

research at Stevens in systems engineering and intelligent / adaptive online learning systems. As the primary author of this paper, please address all related communications to her at: asquires@stevens.edu. Early in her career Alice focused on engineering hardware design and related software development, followed by technical management and operations management, with a more recent focus on systems engineering and online education and training. She has over twenty years of experience in engineering project management and technical management primarily in the defense sector. She has worked directly for several large defense companies including General Dynamics

Conference Session

Curricular Innovations

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Hillary Hart, University of Texas-Austin; Christy Moore, University of Texas-Austin

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

by accreditation requirements5 and other factors, faculty have better definedthe need, developed materials, and introduced these topics to undergraduate engineering studentsacross the United States. Much less material, however, is available to assist in developing anengineering graduate student’s understanding of “academic” ethics involved in teaching andresearch.Researchers, such as Steneck,6 stress the importance of including topics of engineering ethics incourses across the curriculum, but few researchers have outlined specific suggestions forincluding ethics at the graduate level (there are exceptions – see Vollmer and Hall’s work7). Yet,graduate students, who stand at the doorway to future careers as high-level engineers andresearchers

Conference Session

Curricular Innovations

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Maura Borrego, Virginia Tech

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

AC 2007-220: EXPERIENCES AND EXPECTATIONS OF DOCTORALINSTITUTION FACULTY COLLABORATING ACROSS DISCIPLINESMaura Borrego, Virginia Tech MAURA BORREGO is an assistant professor of Engineering Education at Virginia Tech and 2005 Rigorous Research in Engineering Education evaluator. Dr. Borrego holds an M.S. and Ph.D. in Materials Science and Engineering from Stanford University. Her current research interests center around interdisciplinary collaboration in engineering and engineering education, including studies of the collaborative relationships between engineers and education researchers. She was recently awarded a CAREER grant from NSF to study interdisciplinarity in engineering graduate

Conference Session

Service Learning Courses

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Cher Cornett, East Tennessee State University

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

. Page 12.109.1© American Society for Engineering Education, 2007 A Service-Learning Project in Digital Media Designed to Develop Professional SkillsAbstractIn well-developed instructional programs, professional skills such as business writing, teamorganization, project management, and oral presentation skills are built into courseworkthroughout the curriculum. Because of limitations of the classroom environment, theseexperiences only simulate those encountered in the field, making it difficult for students toappreciate the importance of these skills in their career preparation. In the Digital Media (DIGM)program at East Tennessee State University (ETSU), students often see professional skillsaspects of

Conference Session

Innovations in Teaching and Learning

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Elizabeth Godfrey, University of Auckland; Gerard Rowe, University of Auckland

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

AC 2007-1468: TEACHING 101: INITIAL CONVERSATIONSElizabeth Godfrey, University of Auckland Elizabeth Godfrey is currently the Associate Dean Undergraduate at the School of Engineering at the University of Auckland after a career that has included university lecturing, teaching and 10 years as an advocate for Women in Science and Engineering. She has been a contributor to Engineering Education conferences, and an advocate for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning since the early 1990s, and is currently a member of the Australasian Association of Engineering Education executive.Gerard Rowe, University of Auckland Gerard Rowe completed the degrees of BE, ME and PhD at the University of

Conference Session

Cognitive and Motivational Issues in Student Performance I

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Kelli Higley, Pennsylvania State University; Thomas Litzinger, Pennsylvania State University; Peggy Van Meter, Pennsylvania State University; Christine B. Masters, Pennsylvania State University; Jonna Kulikowich, Pennsylvania State University

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

© American Society for Engineering Education, 2007 Effects of Conceptual Understanding, Math and Visualization Skills on Problem-solving in StaticsIntroductionAlthough non-technical skills are increasingly important to successful engineering careers in theglobal marketplace of today, problem-solving remains a critical skill for most young engineers.In many cases successfully solving problems requires engineers to use their analytical skills.The central importance of problem-solving and analytical skills in engineering motivates thework presented in this paper, which is the first phase of a program aimed at answering two mainquestions: What are the major difficulties that students encounter when they perform

Conference Session

Student Teams and Project-Based Learning

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Adam Carberry, Tufts University; Merredith Portsmore, Tufts University; Chris Rogers, Tufts University

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

approach of this research is to employ an outreach program as a non-classroom basedpedagogy of engagement. A number of non-outreach opportunities outside the classroom forengineering students have been studied to determine if they do indeed encourage intentionallearning goals and active reflection by the student on what he or she learns throughout theexperience.[22-25] These opportunities range from volunteer community service to field education,such as internships and co-ops.[26] Research has shown that these experiences not only allowstudents to gain a sense of civic responsibility, but that they also help students to developprofessional teamwork and communication skills, assist in identifying career paths, preparestudents for the demands of

Conference Session

Cognitive and Motivational Issues in Student Performance I

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Dawn Williams, Howard University; Lorraine Fleming, Howard University; Marcus Jones, Howard University; Ashley Griffin, Howard University

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

… automatically are gonna go on all the good trips and travel and learn aboutscholarship information ahead of time. So that was my first real thrust into how I wantedto do… engineering….” Page 12.387.7In both of the African American students’ cases, there was also exposure and interest inthe engineering field early in their academic careers. However, disciplined study habitshad to evolve through a maturation process that may have temporarily impeded academicsuccess. The stories of the African Caribbean students illustrate that the discipline waspresent during their secondary education and their success is attributed to coming tocollege with that work ethic in

Conference Session

The Critical First Year in Engineering Education

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Dan Budny, University of Pittsburgh; Alaine Allen, University of Pittsburgh; Jessica Quarcoo, University of Pittsburgh

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

the two groups [22]. The assumption is a satisfiedstudent equals a happy family, which translates directly into the efficacy of the family’stransitional success.Personal TransitionsBeing at a university means being a newcomer in a strange, and possible lonely community.Some days students may want to fly, run, walk, or drive home. There will be days where thestudent feels they cannot stand one more day in the residence halls, in the large lecture, with theirroommate, with their professors and teaching assistants, or their load of courses. These personaltransitions can consume a first year student’s thoughts if they are unable to seriously focus onwhy the university experience is important to their career goals. Insights from mentors can bevery

Conference Session

Curricular Innovations

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Maura Borrego, Virginia Tech; Lynette Osborne, National Academy of Engineering; Ruth Streveler, Purdue University; Karl Smith, University of Minnesota; Ronald Miller, Colorado School of Mines

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

AC 2007-241: QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE MEASURES OFCOMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT THROUGH A STRUCTURED WORKSHOPCURRICULUMMaura Borrego, Virginia Tech MAURA BORREGO is an assistant professor of Engineering Education at Virginia Tech and 2005 Rigorous Research in Engineering Education evaluator. Dr. Borrego holds an M.S. and Ph.D. in Materials Science and Engineering from Stanford University. Her current research interests center around interdisciplinary collaboration in engineering and engineering education, including studies of the collaborative relationships between engineers and education researchers. She was recently awarded a CAREER grant from NSF to study interdisciplinarity in engineering

Conference Session

Curricular Innovations

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Manuel Jimenez, University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez; Ana Nieves, University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez; Cristina Pomales-Garcia, University of Puerto Rico-Mayagüez; Nayda Santiago Santiago, University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez; José Vega, University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez; Vilma Lopez, University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

DigitalMicroelectronics (INEL-4207), Microprocessor Interfacing (ICOM-5217), and/or CapstoneDesign in CE (ICOM-5047). From these courses, ICOM-5217 is a technical elective, while theother two are program requirements. All three courses provide a balanced blend of choices interms of career concentrations in the three program areas. The materials discussed in the threecourses have varied perspectives. INEL-4207 is a traditionally conducted course teachingtransistor-level circuit design and VLSI, with exams and periodic homework. ICOM-5217teaches the basis of embedded systems design and firmware development through a studentproposed, semester-long project20. In the capstone course students are expected to conduct asemester-long project which involves advanced

Conference Session

Innovations in Teaching and Learning

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Michael Collura, University of New Haven; Samuel Daniels, University of New Haven; Jean Nocito-Gobel, University of New Haven; W. David Harding, University of New Haven

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

of the National Academy of Engineering through The Engineer of 20201 andEducating The Engineer of 20202. To summarize very briefly, engineering educators are beingasked not only to preserve the level of analytical skill that has served society so well over thepast several decades, but also to help students develop a host of professional skills and a broaderperspective than has traditionally been associated with the engineering profession. At the sametime, we are faced with a looming crises as the current engineering workforce ages and thenumber of young people interested in an engineering career declines.In a traditional engineering program, the primary focus is on the content of a set of relativelynarrow disciplinary courses, generally