Conference Session

Instrument Development

Collection

2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Eugene Judson, Arizona State University; Lydia Ross, Arizona State University; Stephen J. Krause, Arizona State University; James A. Middleton, Arizona State University; Casey Jane Ankeny, Arizona State University; Robert J. Culbertson, Arizona State University, Department of Physics; Keith D. Hjelmstad, Arizona State University

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

. Purpose and Research QuestionsThe intent of this study was to pinpoint expectations and attitudes about specific teachingstrategies and, in turn determine the relationship of those dispositions with the actual use of thestrategies. VECTERS was constructed to enable achieving this goal and to address these researchquestions in the context of undergraduate engineering courses: 1. What is the relationship between the value placed on a student-centered teaching strategy and use of the strategy? 2. What is the relationship between the expectation of success with a student-centered teaching strategy and use of the strategy? 3. What is the relationship between the cost associated with implementing a student- centered teaching

Conference Session

Energy Efficiency and Capstone Projects

Collection

2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jonathan Michael Newton, John Brown University; Harrison Lee Hosteter, John Brown University; Ted Song, John Brown University

Tagged Divisions

Energy Conversion and Conservation

made acontribution to lowering the peak demand. In addition, the study was conducted by designing anddeveloping a monitoring system to collect PV-generated and used power in the building in real-time.Through this study, students were expected to achieve the following goals. 1. Understand how demand charge could impact the return-on-investment for commercial users. 2. Gain the ability to design and develop a monitoring system for collecting power generation/consumption data. 3. Understand the importance of the aligning renewable energy (RE) sources’ power generation and peak power consumption.BackgroundIt is important to understand how the electricity bill is calculated monthly to determine

Conference Session

Women in Engineering Division Technical Session 3

Collection

2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Juebei Chen, Shanghai Jiaotong University; Jiabin Zhu, Shanghai Jiao Tong University; Tianyi Zheng, Shanghai Jiao Tong University

Tagged Topics

Diversity

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

designand improve female students’ learning experience in project-based learning.Keywords: Female engineering students; Functional roles; Project-based learningIntroductionEngineering profession has been regarded as a male-dominant field due to the lowrepresentation of females, whose percentage was reported as 19.2% in U.S. in 2013 [1].In China, although female students accounted for 51.74% amongst all undergraduatesin 2013 [2], the average percentage of female students in the field of engineering wasless than 20% [3]. For example, in the case of Tsinghua University - one of the topuniversities in China, the average acceptance rate of female students was only 19.4%in the field of engineering, with the highest percentage 30.77% in chemical

Conference Session

Minorities in Engineering Division Technical Session 5

Collection

2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Shabnam Etemadi Brady, Tennessee State University; Walter C. Lee, Virginia Tech; Lesia L. Crumpton-Young, Tennessee State University; Germysha Emily Little, Tennessee State University; Lydia Davis, Tennessee State University

Tagged Topics

Diversity

Tagged Divisions

Minorities in Engineering

that heavily serve studentsfrom underrepresented groups, such as Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs).Because HBCUs were originally created to provide African Americans with access to highereducation, there is an expectation for such institutions to provide a diversity-driven, low-stresscampus climate for STEM students—and perhaps more educational opportunities (e.g., minorityscholarships, fellowships, diverse student organizations, and diverse mentorships).1 Thus,HBCUs have greater potential to support students in higher education pursuing STEM degrees.To assist the nation in broadening participation and improve student success in STEM, a groupof research scholars are collaboratively conducting a research study focused on

Conference Session

Student Feedback and Assessment in Design

Collection

2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Mitch Cieminski, Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering; Alexandra Coso Strong, Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering

Tagged Divisions

Design in Engineering Education

a “power in discourse” lens. Investigating power inlanguage is a way to understand the interpersonal meaning of a text by connecting the text to itscontext (Bartlett, 2014). Bartlett’s (2014) motivation in developing this approach was a desire tochange how minority groups are perceived and understood. In this approach, one’s power in agiven context is conceived as their “ability to get things done” (p. 180): not a static property ofactors, but an emergent and dynamic interpersonal quality of the actors’ relationship to theirsituation (Bartlett, 2009). One model that can be used to understand how power and situationmutually develop through discourse is Bartlett’s Positioning Star of David (see Figure 1).Figure 1. Bartlett’s Positioning Star

Conference Session

Experiential Learning Initiatives

Collection

2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Lei Miao, Middle Tennessee State University; Jamshid E Farzidayeri, Middle Tennessee State University; Walter Boles; Ahad S. Nasab P.E., Middle Tennessee State University

Tagged Divisions

Multidisciplinary Engineering

. For example, robots withsimilar capabilities may be able to rescue people who carry wireless device, to navigate infactories or warehouses to retrieve items, and to lead customers to certain items in supermarkets.In this paper, we will present the electrical, mechanical, and software design of the winning teamof the Bocce game. The bill of materials and details of the Bocce game will also be included.On the educational front, we discuss a couple of efforts we made to help the students build,program, and test the robots: (i) we design an introductory LAB to introduce Raspberry Pi to ourstudents and (ii) we utilize project-based learning techniques to encourage the students to learnnew things along the way.1. IntroductionWe recently established

Conference Session

Community Engagement Division Technical Session 2

Collection

2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Monica Palomo P.E., California State Polytechnic University, Pomona; Gerri Cole, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona

Tagged Topics

Diversity

Tagged Divisions

Community Engagement Division

students. Bothprogram components are shown in Figure 1 and are described in detail below.   (a) (b.2) (b.1)Figure 1. “Hispanics in Engineering” Program, (a) EGR 299 S Engineering Outreach studentspreparing hands-on activities, (b) EGR 299 S students building a relationship with K-12 partnerschools, (b.1) Engineering students visiting K-12 schools, and (b.2) K-12 students’ experiencesculminating with the E-Girl event.Service learning courseCollege teaching practices have been evolving to increase the quality of the learning experienceand success of college

Conference Session

Changing the Engineering Classroom

Collection

2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Rania Al-Hammoud P.Eng., University of Waterloo; Arshia Khan, University of Minnesota, Duluth; Ona Egbue, University of Minnesota, Duluth; Stephen Phillips, University of Waterloo

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

EngineeringAbstractThis Evidence-based practice paper describes a learning process developed and used in severalSTEM courses. Learning is a process unique to each individual and can be accomplished bywatching, reading, doing, experiencing, repetition and even teaching. Learning according to [1]is a two-step process where the first step is to receive information and the second is to process.This study is an active learning method that combines these two steps in a repetitive process thatencourages engagement and collaboration in the classroom. Memory related research hasidentified and confirmed the power of repetition on the recall ability. Repetition has a profoundimpact on the event related brain potential eliciting a longer recall period and has been

Conference Session

They need more than technical skills!

Collection

2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Feifei Zhong, Southwest Jiaotong University; Gene Hou, Old Dominion University

Tagged Divisions

International

in Higher Education in China Feifei Zhong1 and Gene Hou2 1 Department of Engineering English, School of Foreign Languages Southwest Jiaotong University Chengdu, China, 611756 zhongfeifei@163.com 2 Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Old Dominion University Norfolk, VA 23529 ghou@odu.eduAbstract: This study aims to develop an effective curriculum plan to improve

Conference Session

First-Year Programs: Monday Potpourri

Collection

2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Gustavo B. Menezes, California State University, Los Angeles; Deborah Won, California State University, Los Angeles; Mark Tufenkjian, California State University, Los Angeles; Emily L. Allen, California State University, Los Angeles; Eva Schiorring, Research and Planning Group for California Community Colleges

Tagged Topics

Diversity

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

-Ph.D.-granting Title III, Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) ranked 12thnationally in the number of STEM B.S. degrees awarded to Hispanics. Historicallyunderrepresented minority (URM) groups comprise the majority of our ECST first-timefreshman population (56-62% between the years of 2004-2012); however, the demographicspread of those earning degrees is disproportionate to our enrollment (Figure 1), with 6-yeargraduation rate fluctuating between 30 and 40%.The challenges encountered by NURM URM TotalURM groups are usually rooted 80%in the fact that students in these 66.7% 65.9% 70%groups are often low

Conference Session

Electrical and Computer Division Technical Session 7

Collection

2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Joy Chang, University of Michigan; Spencer Maroukis, University of Michigan; Fanny Adriana Pinto Delgado, University of Michigan; Abdi Zeynu, University of Michigan ; Johanna L. Mathieu, University of Michigan; Siqian Shen, University of Michigan

Tagged Topics

Diversity

Tagged Divisions

Electrical and Computer

Conference Session

Interactive Approaches to Ethics

Collection

2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Craig E. Beal, Bucknell University; James G. Orbison Ph.D., P.E., Bucknell University

Tagged Topics

Diversity

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Ethics

the FAA. The case study includes a discussion of thenear-certainty that software of any significant complexity will contain bugs, and that they aretypically repaired through software patches in subsequent updates.The implementation requires students to read a narrative segment and sidebar information as seenin Figure 1. They then choose the best course of action from a list of possible decisions. Once thestudents select an answer and submit it, they are provided with feedback as to the immediateconsequences of their decision, both in the simulated story as well as for their score for theactivity, as seen in Figure 2. A subsequent narrative and sidebar, specific to their decision, is thendisplayed, along with another set of decisions.There are

Conference Session

ETD Projects

Collection

2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Faruk Yildiz, Sam Houston State University; Keith L. Coogler, Sam Houston State University

Tagged Topics

Diversity

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Technology

project presentation at the end of the courseperiod [1-4].In the 2015-2016 Criteria for Accrediting Engineering and Technology Programs published byAccreditation Board for Engineering and Technology, Inc. (ABET), Criterion 3(d) states thatstudents must have an ability to function within multi-disciplinary teams; Criterion 4 states thatstudents must be prepared for engineering and technology practice through the curriculum, toinclude a culminating major design experience based on the knowledge and skills acquired inearlier course work. This design project must incorporate appropriate engineering standards andmultiple realistic constraints. In response to Criteria 3(d) and 4, many institutions haveincorporated one or more team-oriented senior

Conference Session

Developing and Establishing Graduate Study Programs - Graduate Studies Division Technical Session 2

Collection

2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Theodore J. Heindel, Iowa State University; Carolyn J. Lawrence-Dill, Iowa State University; Julie A. Dickerson, Iowa State University; Patrick S. Schnable, Iowa State University

Tagged Divisions

Graduate Studies

agronomic challenges of the 21st century. A companion paper at this conference providesa summary of the P3 NRT program (Dickerson et al., 2017).One need of the P3 program was to develop and then offer a transdisciplinary “leveling” courseto first-year graduate students. The leveling course needed to meet two key objectives: (1) bringall students’ knowledge up to the same level for issues that pertain to plant phenomics, basictransport phenomena and sensor engineering, and data analysis, and (2) begin the process ofteaching students the needed terminology to speak across disciplines. The result was a newcourse entitled “Fundamentals of Predictive Plant Phenomics” that was first offered fall 2016.The remainder of this paper discusses what is included

Conference Session

Environmental Engineering Division Technical Session 2

Collection

2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Steven J. Burian, University of Utah; Manoj K. Jha, North Carolina A&T State University; Gigi A. Richard, Colorado Mesa University; Marshall Shepherd, University of Georgia; John Taber, Incorporated Research Institutions for Seismology

Tagged Divisions

Environmental Engineering

 modules and even entire courses.   This  paper  describes  the  creation  of  an  interdisciplinary  module  on  the  topic  of  Water Sustainability  in  Cities.  The  module  contributes  to  meeting  a  need  for  accessible  teaching materials to help advance the knowledge and skills of students addressing complex and dynamic problems with water infrastructure in cities. The module creation also provided insight into the development  of  interdisciplinary  education  modules  by  multiple  instructors  from  different disciplines and different institutions, a possible approach for the future. The paper therefore has two goals: (1) to present the Water Sustainability in Cities course module and make available for others  to  incorporate  into

Conference Session

Electrical and Computer Division Technical Session 13

Collection

2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Brian K. Dean, Oakland University; Osamah A. Rawashdeh, Oakland University

Tagged Topics

Diversity

Tagged Divisions

Electrical and Computer

research.Student activities:Once the candidate pool had been narrowed to 10 students and the students arrived at theuniversity, it was important to get them started on their projects quickly. Starting on the projectquickly capitalizes on the students excitement at having been selected and finally arriving at theuniversity. Students begin working on their selected project on Day 3 of the IREECE program.On Day 1 the students are welcomed with a reception in the morning followed by an orientationsession. The reception and orientation session allows students to get to know the faculty mentorsand the other participants in the program. Everyone is given an opportunity to introducethemselves, and the program overview is presented. The orientation provides

Conference Session

Student Division Innovative Research Methods Technical Session

Collection

2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Cassandra Groen, Virginia Tech; Denise Rutledge Simmons P.E., Virginia Tech; Lisa D. McNair, Virginia Tech

Tagged Divisions

Student

difficult for noviceresearchers to recognize and employ the multiple versions of this methodology in practice. Toprovide these individuals with a starting point for conducting grounded theory research, weorganize this paper into three overarching sections: 1) introduction to the methodology; 2) acomparison between two types of grounded theory traditions; and 3) strategies forimplementation. First, we establish an initial understanding of this methodology by providing abrief introduction of the GT methodology. Second, we compare and contrast two approaches ofGT: classic GT developed by Glaser and Strauss [1], and constructivist GT developed byCharmaz [2]. Lastly, we provide strategies for methodological implementation as situated withina current GT

Conference Session

Division Experimentation & Lab-oriented Studies Electrical Engineering and Circuits

Collection

2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Chiu Choi, University of North Florida

Tagged Divisions

Division Experimentation & Lab-Oriented Studies

anybreadboard and electronic workstation. Most of them had very little experience in operatingmeasurement instruments such as oscilloscopes, bench top multimeters, and LCR meters. Rarelyhad they exposed to the iterative cycle of designing, simulating, building and testing of electricalcircuits. A new set of laboratory experiments were developed for our electrical engineering majorsto provide them engineering education on these topics. These experiments also prepared studentsfor the subsequent laboratory courses such as microcontroller applications and electronics. Thespecific learning objectives of this laboratory course are as follows: 1. To identify basic electronic parts, to verify circuit theorems, and to acquire basic soldering skills. 2

Conference Session

Retention

Collection

2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Niranjan Hemant Desai, Purdue University Northwest; George Stefanek, Purdue University Northwest

Tagged Topics

Diversity

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

broadlyclassified as falling within some common themes. Some representative examples of retentionapproaches falling within these themes, or within an overlap of these themes are presented in thisoverview. The most commonly occurring themes underlying the implemented retentionstrategies that were encountered were:1) Strategies focused on improving math, specifically calculus, and physics skills of incoming freshman.2) Strategies focused on enhancing the sense of community and support, both academic and social, for incoming freshman students to create a strong identity among students as engineers, and to provide encouragement and support to underrepresented groups.3) Strategies focused on improving the teaching techniques employed in engineering

Conference Session

Investigating Instructional Strategies

Collection

2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Stephanie Luster-Teasley, North Carolina A&T State University; Sirena C. Hargrove-Leak, Elon University; Willietta Gibson, Bennett College

Tagged Topics

Diversity

Tagged Divisions

Multidisciplinary Engineering

studies to cover the same content. For this work, institutional survey datacollected over two years assessing student impressions of the case study method were evaluatedto determine if the responses vary by institution type. Early data reveals some interestingdemographic trends and possible reasons for the behavior are discussed.IntroductionMany millennial generation students indicate an interest in taking classes that increaseengagement, use technology, and demonstrate relevance for how their class content applies toreal, societal contexts.1 This education research study is a collaborative effort to investigate howto improve STEM laboratory instruction at three different institutions. These institutions areNorth Carolina Agricultural and

Conference Session

Materials Division Technical Session 3

Collection

2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Linda Vanasupa, California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo; Rishi Kripalani

Tagged Divisions

Materials

laboratory. This paper will discuss a novel design of a folded, paper microfluidicbattery based on the work of N. Thom et al. that can power a surface-mounted light-emittingdiode. This origami design, named for the Japanese art of folding paper called origami, allowsone to print and assemble postage-stamp sized paper batteries for an initial equipment investmentof under $1000 (a wax printer and micropipettes). Although the start-up cost of supplies is a fewhundred dollars, the approximate cost per postage-stamp sized battery is on the order of $0.10.The design presented here has a folded footprint of 1 cm2 and outputs an open circuit voltage of2.5 V for over 15 minutes. Once printed, the dosing of electrolytes and the salt bridge, assemblyand

Conference Session

Engaging Ethics in Teams and Communities

Collection

2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Robert J. Barsanti Jr., The Citadel; Ronald J. Hayne, The Citadel; Kevin C. Bower P.E., The Citadel; Johnston W. Peeples, The Citadel

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Ethics

measurement using hardware components. The project furtherrequires that the electrical signals are visualized in both the time and frequency domain toenhance concept understanding. The paper outlines an introduction to the modulation theoryalong with an overview of the necessary circuits and concepts. Additionally, suggested studentactivities, project assignment alternatives, along with detailed mathematical solutions areprovided.Keywords: Engineering communications, Circuit Projects, PSpice software.BACKGROUNDCourse projects are one of the seven high impact practices discussed by Koh in [1]. Additionally,hands on activities are noted to improve learning motivation and retention. For example, it isnoted by Zhan in [2] that the use of real world

Conference Session

CEED Technical Session: High-Impact Makerspaces, Transitioning from Co-op to School and Service Research

Collection

2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jennifer Leaf, Eastern Washington University; Arin Seth Preston, Eastern Washington University; Donald C. Richter P.E., Eastern Washington University; Robert E. Gerlick, Eastern Washington University

Tagged Topics

Diversity

Tagged Divisions

Cooperative & Experiential Education

years, for a child to master. Two important consequences of this are the financial costs andthe closing “window of opportunity,” as therapy is often most effective in the younger, formativeyears. As an aid in improving ASD therapy, robots have been developed over the past decade,with noted potential for their use as “co-therapists.” However, two major barriers to wideradoption of robots in therapy are the intensive programming requirements of the robots and thelimited “off-the-shelf” programs available to clinicians. This paper describes a pilot project withthe aim of enabling therapists to use the advanced technology of robots by eliminating thesebarriers through (1) the adoption of an intuitive and adaptable programming platform (NAOhumanoid

Conference Session

ETD Green Energy/Sustainability

Collection

2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Regina Ruane Ph.D., Drexel University (Eng. & Eng. Tech.); Richard Chiou, Drexel University (Eng. & Eng. Tech.); Tzu-Liang Bill Tseng, University of Texas, El Paso; Sophia Rose Mayne-DeLuca, Drexel University

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Technology

a student’s participation in a class’s social network and the quality oftheir classwork (Putnik et al., 2016). Centrality shows the relative importance of eachparticipant in a given network.Table 1 shows all the weekly posts that the student’s responded to over the term. The entirediscussion board focused on developing green energy manufacturing and these questionshighlight the major aspects of green energy manufacturing that the students were learningabout in class. Each question also encourages the student to share their personal opinion on thetopic in a way that they would not have time to do during their class lecture. The promptsprovided a way to start a discussion between students taking similar courses in different partsof the

Conference Session

Materials Division Technical Session

Collection

2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Nibert Saltibus, Sam Houston State University

Tagged Divisions

Materials

Conference Session

They need more than technical skills!

Collection

2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Pradeep Kashinath Waychal, Guruji Education Foundation; Anil Dattatraya Sahasrabudhe P.E., All India Council for Technical Education

Tagged Divisions

International

execution of the program, analysis of choices of the areas with respect to students’academic performance, gender, and learning styles, and ends with concluding remarks.Liberal LearningLiberal Learning1 was prevalent in ancient civilizations. Aristotle defined it as learning of a free man. In earlyuniversity systems, it was defined as education to make students responsible human beings and citizens [1]. Untilrecently, education systems considered the goals of liberal education separate from the goals of regular education.The Harvard Redbook comments that these two sides (general education and vocational education) of life are notentirely separable, and adds that it would be false to imagine education for the one as quite distinct from educationfor

Conference Session

Approaches to Virtual Learning

Collection

2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Adrian Hadipriono Tan, The Ohio State University; Fabian Hadipriono Tan P.E., The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA; Michael Parke, The Ohio State University; Tarunjit Singh Butalia, The Ohio State University

Tagged Divisions

Civil Engineering

event that would have been affected by the physical environment, theexperiences of the populace, and the spatial movement of the participants. An example of digital graphics in ancient Roman archaeology that encompasses a singlebuilding, rather than a group of buildings or a whole city, was conducted by Cipriani and Fantini[1] in their study on the octagonal halls of the baths at Hadrian’s Villa. This was a study on anarchitectural archetype rather than the recreation of a building in its entirety; nonetheless, itdemonstrates the capability of computer software in the study of specific building topics. Thestudy is intended to explore the ancient designing techniques used for designing new shapes as inthe case of Hadrian’s architecture, and

Conference Session

Assessment of Student Work

Collection

2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Leanne Petry, Central State University; Morris M. Girgis, Central State University

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

oral presentations and betterquality discussions of data as presented in final written reports.IntroductionFor more than 20 years, chemistry faculty have been proponents of Problem-Based Learning(PBL) as a means to bridge the gap between what students learn in the classroom and whatstudents’ experience in the laboratory.1 Traditional assessment measures such as formativefeedback on problem sets or draft laboratory reports enable students to improve learning prior tosummative assessments such as unit, midterm or final exams.2 However, students who performwell on exams may not possess the skills required to excel in the workforce environment such asa chemical production laboratory or manufacturing engineering plant.3 Senior undergraduateresearch

Conference Session

Balancing Act: Ideas in Pre- & Post- Surveys and Assessment of Professional Skills

Collection

2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

William J. Davis P.E., The Citadel; Simon Thomas Ghanat P.E., The Citadel; Kweku Tekyi Brown P.E., The Citadel; Dimitra Michalaka P.E., The Citadel

Tagged Divisions

Civil Engineering

year.Characteristics of teamwork assignments specific to each of these courses are summarized inTable 1. Additionally method of team formation and range of student team size is also indicated.With regard to team formation determined through CATME team creation and managementsoftware, Comprehensive Assessment of Team-Member Effectiveness, developed through NSFgrant funding9, uses student entered descriptive data to create teams through objective routinesand is generally viewed by students as an improvement to traditional team formation approaches.Student Perception SurveyA student perception survey was administered by faculty, within a classroom setting, to a total of159 undergraduate civil engineering students, including freshmen (n=47), sophomores (n=37

Conference Session

Engineering Design Graphics Division Technical Session 3: Spatial Visualization

Collection

2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Agata K. Dean, Colorado School of Mines

Tagged Topics

Diversity

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Design Graphics

EngineersIntroductionSpatial visualization is widely recognized as an important skill for engineering students, oftenbeing an indicator to a student’s success in engineering classes and retention in engineeringprograms.1-4, 6 At Colorado School of Mines, efforts have been made over the past several yearsto launch a course designed to improve spatial skills among students who test poorly in this area.The course has evolved significantly over the past four years with major efforts aimed atenrolling first and second year students, providing intense and efficient spatial skill developmentopportunities, and encouraging an understanding of the broader implications of strong spatialskills. This paper describes the evolution and results of these efforts.BackgroundWhile it is