Conference Session

Focus on High School Girls in Engineering

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Michelle Porche, Wellesley Center for Women; Jennifer Grossman, Wellesley Center for Women; Anne Noonan, Salem State College; Peter Wong, Tufts University

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

environment wouldhave a considerable influence on types of general academic and STEM-specific opportunitiesand supports available for students, and thus on STEM outcomes. Based on summary dataderived from state Department of Education (DOE) records, students in the exam schoolsoutperform students in the theme schools on state proficiency tests, have a higher percentage ofstudents with plans to attend a 4-year college, and have much lower dropout rates, as would beexpected given the schools’ rigorous entrance requirements. In addition, the non-STEM focusexam school is distinct from the other schools and the district in general in its studentracial/ethnic composition and percent of low-income students. These state-reported differencesin school sites

Conference Session

The Impact of Engineering Disciplines

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Venetia Dover, Howard University; Dawn Williams, Howard University; Lorraine Fleming, Howard University; Viara Quinones, Howard University

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

women5. Although it is evident that women are pursuingmaster’s and doctoral degrees in the sciences and mathematics, there is limited data thatexamines how women cope with the barriers of pursuing a post baccalaureate degree. UsingSocial Cognitive Career Theory as a theoretical lens, this study examines the coping efficacy ofwomen STEM students particularly as it relates to their post baccalaureate decisions. STEMdisciplines were divided into two groups: Science and Mathematics (SM) and Engineering andComputer Science (ECS). The following research questions were examined: 1. Is there a statistically significant association between gender and post baccalaureate plans? 2. Is there a statistically significant association between

Conference Session

Money and People; Resource Management for Recruitment and Retention

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Mary Anderson-Rowland, Arizona State University

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

the school’s research program opportunities for which thescholars are encouraged to apply.The students are given assignments throughout the semester as a part of the CIRC program. Atthe beginning of each semester the students send a copy of their course schedule and mustdevelop a detailed time management schedule of all 168 hours of the week which include themain building blocks of the 4.0 Plan: bullet point reading, bullet point notes, homework, bulletpoint concepts, and professor office hours for each class, as well as the their class and worktimes. There are a few more assignments designed to help the student stay on task with theirtime management plan. The students are given a checklist to help them with their timemanagement plan.5 An

Conference Session

The Academic Environment

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Kristen Constant, Iowa State University; Sharon Bird, Iowa State University; Florence Hamrick, Iowa State University

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

behind the national average inthe representation of women in engineering and science, the current environment is conducive topositive change with strong administrative commitment clearly demonstrated. A campus climatesurvey was conducted in 2004 that included recommendations for improvement. Animplementation committee was named (a full professor in the Materials Science and Engineeringdepartment chaired the effort) and strategies were developed. Additionally, ISU’s current 2005-2010 Strategic Plan demonstrates institutional support, as it has as central themes increasingdiversity and enhancing the prominence of science, technology and engineering.6The history of the NSF ADVANCE program at ISU:In 2006, a team of faculty and administrators from

Conference Session

Women in Engineering Division Poster Session

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jenna Carpenter, Louisiana Tech University; C. Diane Matt, WEPAN Inc.

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

Advancement of Women and Minorities in Science,Engineering, and Technology in 2000, providing quality input to a complex discussion andreport (CAWMSET, 2002). A minimum of eight white papers are planned. These workingpapers will address and illuminate key issues relating to women in engineering, by synthesizingresearch results, putting data and statistics into context, drawing connections among research andbest and promising practices, and acting as the foundation for engaging a community of practicefor the purpose of bringing more usable data, information, knowledge and wisdom to the task ofpolicy making, practice improvement. Working papers will include: overviews of existingpractices and research stressing applicability to problem solving; briefs

Conference Session

Focus on High School Girls in Engineering

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Eugene Rutz, University of Cincinnati; Michelle Shafer, Mt Notre Dame High School; Brian Lien, Princeton High School; Carolyn Rost, Mother of Mercy High School

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

expectation was that the schools would cover the topics on thesyllabus so as to provide a breadth of understanding of various engineering disciplines andconcepts but the depth to which each was addressed was guided by the needs and resources ofeach school.Affordable – the schools needed to be able to offer the course with existing resources and staff.No new teachers would be hired and there were limited resources for training or purchasingsupplies or materials. With our goal of providing many project-based experiences, carefulattention in selecting projects was required. Fortunately there are a number of very goodresources that provide freely available project plans, many of which are now linked to state andnational educational standards. Table 2

Conference Session

Potpourri

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Mary Anderson-Rowland, Arizona State University

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

transfers, and plans to attend graduate school.Before we look at the results of the study, we look at literature to understand what types ofresearch have been done on community college transfer students.II. Literature Review on Engineering and Computer Science Community College TransferStudentsIn this section we look at the literature on the case for community colleges, curriculum,articulation, resource sharing, special programming for new transfer students, challenges, andmany-faceted programs with community colleges. We then look at studies on gender issues andthe community college.The Case for Community Colleges: There are many reasons that 45% of all first-time freshmenchoose to begin their college education at a community college.1 Students

Conference Session

Mentoring

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Terri Camesano, Worcester Polytechnic Institute; David DiBiasio, Worcester Polytechnic Institute; Kristen Billiar, Worcester Polytechnic Institute; Marsha Rolle, Worcester Polytechnic Institute; Susan Zhou, Worcester Polytechnic Institute

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

was their first researchexperience of any kind. We had a positive impact on influencing the career path of the REUparticipants, according to their self-reported plans. The mentoring program has been verysuccessful, as indicated by the number of return attendees and alumni of the Bio-Discoveryprogram, who recommend their younger sisters or friends to the program. According to ourassessment data, the Bio-Discovery Program has been the most rewarding part of the programfor several of the REU participants, even though it also presented a challenge, as it limits theamount of time REU students can dedicate exclusively to their research projects. With ourrecommendations for improvement, this program can be adopted by other faculty who wish

Conference Session

Money and People; Resource Management for Recruitment and Retention

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Margaret Bailey, Rochester Institute of Technology; Elizabeth DeBartolo, Rochester Institute of Technology; Jacqueline Mozrall, Rochester Institute of Technology; Julie Olney, Rochester Institute of Technology

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

building program for current women engineering students. During the2006/07 academic year, WE@RIT hosted over 1500 participants in their various programofferings with the support of 175 people, most of whom were volunteers.The organization and its programming flourish using a managed resource strategy in a climatewhere funding is limited. Student and faculty volunteers and/or student employees performmuch of the effort involved in designing and administering various programs. A uniqueleadership structure allows a faculty member through work plan adjustment to serve as theprogram’s executive director while a full-time coordinator handles daily program activities. Inorder to run the organization using resources effectively, the group created overall

Conference Session

Potpourri II

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Betsy Homsher, Kettering University; Janet Brelin-Fornari, Kettering University; Terri Lynch-Caris, Kettering University

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

be an essential component of the Kettering University LITEProgram planning and implementation. Each year, we conduct a number of surveys that providequantitative and qualitative data. We survey participants, faculty, and the undergraduates whoserve as mentors. Participants complete pre- and post-program surveys to measure LITE’simpact on their interest in engineering, as well as program expectations and satisfaction levels.We track participants into their college years, determining where they go to college, why theychose their particular institution, their majors and minors, and whenever possible, their post-baccalaureate plans. We track LITE matriculants closely once they enter Kettering, followingtheir academic performance, as well as

Conference Session

Women in Engineering Division Poster Session

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Bevlee Watford, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University; Catherine Didion, Association for Women in Science; Patricia Paddock, NYC Department of Education; Suzanne Jenniches, Northrop Grumman; Annette Gildea, Gildea Media Group; Katie Gramling, Diamax; Greta Zornes, Tulane University

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

EngineerThis section is arguable one of the most popular areas of the website. It provides information onthe specific steps necessary to become an engineer, including the classes that a student shouldtake in high school to prepare for entry to engineering studies. It also discusses the benefits ofbecoming an engineer including the opportunity to work with teams of people to solve problems,the chance to work with new technologies, the ability to work just about anywhere and the powerto make a difference in the lives of individuals.CareersThis section provides information on career planning, descriptions of various engineering careersas well as information on salaries and employment. The Girls Guide to Career Planning presentsinformation on several

Conference Session

Potpourri

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Nina Dahlmann, Technische Universitaet Berlin; Maria Elsner, Technische Universitaet Berlin; Sabina Jeschke, University of Stuttgart; Nicole Natho, Technische Universitaet Berlin; Olivier Pfeiffer, Technische Universitaet Berlin; Christian Schroeder, Technische Universitaet Berlin

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

, Nina Dahlmann focused on the organization and coordination of the involved teams and contributed developing the concept for Genesis and several other projects related to eLTR. She is also involved in the planning and application of future eLTR projects at the Berlin University of Technology. Since 2005 she also works at the IBI (Institut für Bildung in der Informationsgesellschaft), a renowned institute, situated at the Berlin University of Technology, where significant parts of the Genesis concepts are realised. Nina Dahlmann started as an energy and process engineering major at the Berlin University of Technology. In her second year she changed to physics major where she graduated in 2007

Conference Session

The Impact of Engineering Disciplines

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Moshe Hartman, Retired; Harriet Hartman, Rowan University; Jennifer Kadlowec, Rowan University

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

bioengineeringconcentration at a mid-Atlantic public university provides us the opportunity to begin to fill thisvacuum. At this university, on-going survey research enables us to compare the students enrolledin this new concentration to students in the more traditional engineering disciplines, perceptionof fit in engineering, engineering self-confidence, satisfaction with the program, expectationsfrom completion of the degree (what kind of job they expect to attain), plans for future educationand employment.Compared to the rest of the students, the bioengineering students tend to be quite confident inmany engineering-related competencies, but they are less confident in others, suggesting that thefield may be attracting some students not traditionally in the field

Conference Session

K-12 Programs for Girls and Young Women

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Joan Kowalski, Penn State University - New Kensington; Tracie L. Brockhoff, Penn State University - New Kensington

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

(use 146)* Missing participant due to last minute cancellation.** Participant unable to be reached for comment*** Deceased, Spring 1998# Number of Participants% Percentage of ParticipantsThis study is undertaken every year in an effort to revise the statistical data regarding the formerparticipants who have reached college age. Page 13.1229.6The 2007 FIRSTE Program Marks Its Fifteenth Consecutive YearAs described in a preceding section, former participants are personally contacted each year upongraduation from high school so as to identify their career plans (i.e. academic major andcollege/university). But this milestone in 2007 warranted more

Conference Session

Focus on Under-Represented Women

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Lupita Montoya, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute; Cleopatria Martinez, Phoenix College

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

AC 2008-2165: PATHS TO DISCOVERY: CHICANAS IN MATHEMATICS,SCIENCE, AND ENGINEERING.Lupita Montoya, Rensselaer Polytechnic InstituteCleopatria Martinez, Phoenix College Page 13.965.1© American Society for Engineering Education, 2008 Paths to Discovery: Chicanas in Mathematics, Science, and Engineering.AbstractLack of participation in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) fields fromunderrepresented minority students is a recognized problem in higher education. Institutionsaround the country have developed a plethora of plans and strategies to promote these fields andattract this population. Participation from minority

Conference Session

The Pipeline

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Paul Plotkowski, Grand Valley State University; Mary Ann Sheline, Grand Valley State University; Margo Dill, Grand Valley State University; Jessica Noble, Grand Valley State University

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

. Sheline has a BS in Biology from Chatham College, Pittsburgh, Pa., MA in Natural Science from Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh Pa., and Ed.S. in Education Administration from the University of Nebraska at Kearney.Margo Dill, Grand Valley State University Margo Dill is a Program Coordinator for the Regional Math and Science Center at the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Grand Valley State University. Her work with K-12 education is focused on planning, directing, and facilitating student programming and teacher professional development in science, technology and mathematics. She has eight years of experience with collaborative student programs such as; the Science, Technology and

Conference Session

Potpourri II

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Elizabeth Waterfall, Milwaukee School of Engineering; Elizabeth Albrecht, Milwaukee School of Engineering; Stephen Williams, Milwaukee School of Engineering; Owe Petersen, Milwaukee School of Engineering

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

grows and he/she eventuallyemerges as a mature functional professional capable of standing on his/her own. In that vein,King states that “Developmental academic advising is both a process and an orientation. Itreflects the idea of movement and progression. It goes beyond simply giving information orsigning a form.”3 Raushi also suggests, “to advise from a developmental perspective is toview students at work on life tasks in the context of their whole life settings, including thecollege experience.”4 “Crookston believed that higher education provided opportunities forstudents to develop a plan to achieve self-fulfilling lives and that teaching included any

Conference Session

Focus on Under-Represented Women

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Susan Donohue, University of Virginia; Larry Richards, University of Virginia; Carolyn Vallas, University of Virginia

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

curriculum, faculty, administration, degreerequirements, course schedules, plans of study, instructional techniques, access to researchopportunities and mentoring/advising relationships in order to neutralize barriers toretention/persistence most effectively. In other words, the Victorian, industrial model oftechnical education in which students are processed like so many widgets is no longer viable andmust be reassessed. The persistence of this out-of-date model is a testament to, among otherconsiderations, institutional inertia; no other industry would tolerate overall “wastage” (notretained to graduation) of roughly half the “product.”53Calls for institutional reform are not new in the engineering education community; see, forexample, the

Conference Session

The Impact of Engineering Disciplines

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Amy Malady, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University; Whitney Bopp, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University; Alexa Jones, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University; Brittany McNair, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University; Kim Norris, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University; Amy Bell, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

course had severe retention problems: only 38% of the women and 63% of the men who enrolled in the course completed it. We designed and implemented better pedagogy in the class (introducing teamwork and a more effective assessment plan were central to the new approach) and the results were amazing: now 86% of the women and 91% of the men completed the course. 3. Create supportive communities for students. It is important that these communities originate within a technical discipline (like ECE communities)—a broad, all-engineering- disciplines community has limited effectiveness. At our university, a WIE committee of the student IEEE group has created supportive communities for women and men. By not

Conference Session

At The Institutional Level

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Catherine Didion, Association for Women in Science; Karen Peterman, Goodman Research Group, Inc.

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

managing a range of projects, including an evaluation for the National Academy of Engineers; a project for the Girls Get Connected Collaborative, entitled Technology at the Crossroads; an evaluation for WGBH-TV of their new television series NOVA scienceNOW; and a project for the Wildlife Conservation Society. She has expertise in embedded assessment and evaluation design, and assists in the development of proposals and evaluation plans for upcoming projects. Prior to joining GRG, Dr. Peterman consulted with Insight Research Group and assisted with a summative evaluation project at the Exploris Museum. Dr. Peterman received her Ph.D. from Duke University and was an NIH Pre-Doctoral Fellow at the

Conference Session

The Pipeline

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Tania Monterastelli, University of Maryland-Baltimore County; Taryn Bayles, University of Maryland-Baltimore County; Julia Ross, University of Maryland-Baltimore County

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

working in groups while executing a task relative to engineering. The students were instructed to design and construct a free- standing structure to the maximum height possible while minimizing total cost. At the beginning of the activity each team was given a bag of assorted Tinker Toys which they were not allowed to open. The teams were then given 20 minutes to design and plan their structures (without using the materials), and only 3 minutes for construction.Week 2: The Engineering MethodOn October 18, a Chief Scientist of Space Systems at Northrop Grumman delivered apresentation on the engineering method. The speaker emphasized the importance of planningthroughout the entire engineering process and included

Conference Session

Mentoring

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Suzanne Zurn-Birkhimer, Purdue University, West Lafayette; Beth Holloway, Purdue University

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

. Morerigorous evaluations are completed mid-year and year-end to gather qualitative data and solicitsuggestions for future programs. To further foster the networking mentoring among theparticipants, the GMP leadership team (LT) also plans social activities outside the academicsetting, sends monthly newsletters, and continually updates the GMP website. To provide moreopportunities for the participants to engage in networking mentoring, two new components wereadded to the GMP in Fall 2007; Monday Munchies and Mentoring Groups. “Monday Munchies”is a weekly event held to encourage students to take a break from their busy schedules andsocialize with other GMP members. The Mentoring Groups are department-based and encourageparticipants to meet with the other

Conference Session

Money and People; Resource Management for Recruitment and Retention

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Debra Lasich, Colorado School of Mines; Candace Sulzbach, Colorado School of Mines

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

AC 2008-1689: THE ROLE OF INSTITUTIONAL COMMITMENT IN THEUTILIZATION OF COLLEGIATE SWE SECTIONS AS A RECRUITMENT ANDRETENTION STRATEGYDebra Lasich, Colorado School of Mines Debra K. Lasich, Colorado School of Mines Debra Lasich has a B.S. degree in sociology from Kearney State College and a Masters of Community and Regional Planning from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She is the Executive Director of the Women in Science, Engineering and Mathematics (WISEM) Program at Colorado School of Mines, and also teaches in the Applied Communication Department at the University of Denver. Debra has worked in the academic arena for over 25 years as a college administrator, adjunct faculty member, and

Conference Session

K-12 Programs for Girls and Young Women

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Susan Burkett, University of Arkansas; Claire Small, Springdale High School; Charles Rossetti, University of Arkansas; Bryan Hill, University of Arkansas; Carol Gattis, University of Arkansas

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

in the single gender camp and some girls indicated they felt sorry for themale coordinators because there were so few! Page 13.29.9In the long-term, our goal is to track these students and retain at least 50-60% of these studentsthrough a degree program at UA. This plan is very likely to create a steady flowing pipeline ofunderrepresented students from the surrounding region.SummaryIn summary, the project objective was to raise awareness and create enthusiasm for the scienceand engineering disciplines in middle school female students as a way to address the lack ofdiversity in these fields. This project consisted of a 5-day summer non

Conference Session

Potpourri

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Douglas Cleary, Rowan University; William Riddell, Rowan University; Harriet Hartman, Rowan University

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

) Percent of adults with some college education 3) Occupational status 4) Unemployment rate 5) Percent of individuals in poverty 6) Median family income.The DFG’s are designated from A to J (with some letters grouped together) ranging from thelowest economic conditions (A) to the most affluent districts (J). The DFG for each high schoolin New Jersey was noted, and appropriate DFG labels were appended to the applicant data set.FindingsThe purpose of this work is to determine where to target special recruitment efforts to addressdiversity issues in the college of engineering. To develop these plans a better understanding ofwhere the current student body comes from is important. The data presented here begins withthe basic

Conference Session

The Academic Environment

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Monica Young, Syracuse University; John Tillotson, SYRACUSE UNIVERSITY

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

Conference Session

At The Institutional Level

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Judy Loveless-Morris, University of Washington; Priti Mody-Pan; Robert Embrey, Highline Community College; Kali Kuwada, Seattle Central Community College; Marisela Mendoza, Columbia Basin College; Robert Olsen, Washington State University; Eve Riskin, University of Washington

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

initialdevelopment phase of NW-ETEP in order to determine the most appropriate evaluation strategiesand to explore the most productive ways to embed these activities into the work plan from thebeginning. This long term involvement has helped build relationships between the sitecoordinators and evaluation team which makes the assessment process operate smoothly withless suspicion and distrust. Additionally, keeping the evaluator informed of changes in programdirection helps to make the assessment more effective since the recommendations can be moretargeted to current programming elements. A challenge to this process, however, is that theevaluator should still remain objective in order not to interpret data too creatively in favor ofpositive outcomes. The

Conference Session

Focus on High School Girls in Engineering

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Mary Brake, Eastern Michigan University; Kaninka Bhatnagar, Eastern Michigan University

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

girls. Both boys and girls indicated that their schoolswere giving somewhat gender biased messages in providing more support for boys toconsider technology majors but to a lesser extent than has been reported in the lastdecade.IntroductionA gender imbalance, favoring males has consistently been reported in the choice of engineeringand engineering technology majors in college.1,2 In recent years there has been a sharp decline inthe percentage of high school seniors and college freshmen who plan on majoring in engineering.From 8.6% in 1992, the numbers have plunged to 5.3% in 2003.3 In the academic year 2005 –2006 19.3% of the undergraduate engineering majors were women4 and only 10.4% of theengineering technology (ET) were women.5 But more than

Conference Session

Trends in Engineering Education

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Lynette Osborne, The George Washington University

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

culture was an unexpected, yet integral,finding of Holland and Eisenhart’s study (1990). They sought to understand why so few womenentered science, mathematics and engineering majors (SME) in college. The researchersconducted a longitudinal ethnographic study at two southern colleges, a predominantly blackuniversity, Bradford, and a predominantly white university, Southern University (bothpseudonyms) to examine why women tended to shy away from majors and occupations that areseen as traditionally male. Holland and Eisenhart studied 23 college women as they traversedthe complexities of undergraduate life. All the women in the sample were identified as highachievers at the inception of the study. About half the women planned to major in fields such

Conference Session

Mentoring

Collection

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Canan Bilen-Green, North Dakota State University; Anakaorn Khan, North Dakota State University; David Wells, North Dakota State University

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

programming a vehicle they buildwith Legos to follow a path. They also use software on the internet to design a bridge. In one ofthe hands-on activities, girls use a computer to design their own pendants and watch them Page 13.888.5actually being made by a Computer Numerical Control machine in NDSU’s manufacturingprocesses lab. The pendants serve as a reminder to the participants as to what they learned withthe hope that it will have an influence on them in the future as they start making plans for theirown careers. In one of the field trips, the participants tour a local manufacturing company to seehow engineering translates into manufacturing. They