Conference Session

Community Engagement in Engineering Education: Program Models

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Shoba Krishnan, Santa Clara University; Tonya Lynn Nilsson P.E., Santa Clara University

Tagged Divisions

Community Engagement Division

reflections, this paper attempts to identify theeffect of community projects on student learning and student perception of their chosen careerpath. As one student reflected, “The engineer must be able to understand much more than the‘engineering’; there is a huge ethical and communal side to engineering.” Another noted, “Thisexperience has a large impact on the team members’ concept of what it means to be anengineer”.IntroductionIn 1997 a major change in engineering education in the United States began with the introductionof ABET’s EC 2000. This new criteria not only focused on what is learned as opposed to what istaught, but it emphasized “soft” skills along with traditional technical abilities.1 These soft skillsintroduced teamwork, communication

Conference Session

Global Community Engagement in Engineering Education

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Joseph East, Michigan Technological University; Genevieve Gierke, Michigan Technological University; Mary Raber, Michigan Technological University

Tagged Divisions

Community Engagement Division

perspectives on theprogram, and successes and challenges associated with the program will also be reviewed with agoal of sharing beneficial lessons learned.Program OverviewIn 2005, Michigan Technological University formed a leadership institute with the mission ofdeveloping globally aware and technologically minded students with the drive to improve theirenvironment during undergraduate studies and beyond. Providing an endowment for theprogram, Mr. Pavlis, a Michigan Tech alumnus, saw the need for undergraduate education totrain proficient leaders in technological fields. Mr. Pavlis believes that higher education needs toprepare students to be successful in the global society through programs that develop “soft skills”as well as technical

Conference Session

Relevance of and Models for Community Engagement in Engineering Education

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Susan McCahan, University of Toronto; Holly K. Ault, Worcester Polytechnic Institute; Edmund Tsang, Western Michigan University; Mark R. Henderson, Arizona State University, Polytechnic; Spencer P. Magleby, Brigham Young University; Annie Soisson, Tufts University

Tagged Divisions

Community Engagement Division

. IntroductionLearning through Service (LTS) is a rapidly growing pedagogy in engineering education. Theimplementation of LTS programs has been, in part, a reaction to a paradigm shift that has takenplace in undergraduate engineering education; the rebalancing of the development ofprofessional skills (sometimes called “soft” skills) in addition to technical skills. This shift waslargely a response to the 1994 report of the Engineering Deans’ Council and the CorporateRoundtable of the American Society for Engineering Education1, and also to the NationalAcademy of Engineering’s The Engineer of 2020.2 The 1994 Green Report1 asks engineeringeducators to “reexamine their curriculum and programs to ensure they prepare students for thebroadened world of engineering

Conference Session

Relevance of and Models for Community Engagement in Engineering Education

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Karinna M. Vernaza, Gannon University; Theresa M. Vitolo, Gannon University; Barry J. Brinkman, Gannon University; Scott Steinbrink, Gannon University

Tagged Divisions

Community Engagement Division

for those suffering from cerebral palsy. A recent exerciseallowed clients to participate in a geocaching activity which integrated retention of presentedmaterials with recall of known facts about their home area.9One of the ways adults with disabilities are supported through the Barber Institute is byproviding vocational training and work-site opportunities. Clients proceed through an initialassessment, hard and soft skills training, individualized and specific site-training, and exposureto labor incentives. Once clients are prepared and qualified, they may move into supportedemployment services.While in supported employment, a client is guided and supported by an employment specialist, ajob coach. Clients (1) may become direct hires, (2) may