Collection

2025 Rocky Mountain Section Conference

Authors

Abdirahman Abdi; Phil Courey; Malinda S Zarske

opportunities for community engagement.This work-in-progress research aims to fill existing gaps in the literature by exploring theprogram’s effectiveness and identifying strategies for improving student outcomes. By examiningstudent experiences and program outcomes, this research will continue to contribute to the broaderunderstanding of how integrated scholarship programs can foster academic and professionalsuccess for first-generation engineering students.ReferencesHashemikamangar, S., Alami, M., & Ghafouri, R. (2024). The impact of scholarships with academic andcommunity support on engineering student success. Journal of Engineering Education Research, 12(1), 45-61.Smith, W., & Lucena, J. (2015). Making visible the experiences of low-income

Collection

2025 Rocky Mountain Section Conference

Authors

Maila Hallare; Tanjore Jayaraman

obtain a second-order, constant-coefficient, non-homogeneous ODE: d2 C sC(x, s) − C(x, 0) = D 2 . dx 2Step 2: Solve the ordinary differential equation. Rearrange into a standard form: ddxC2 − D s C = − C(x,0

Collection

2025 Rocky Mountain Section Conference

Authors

Rachel Cloud; Spencer MacLaughlin; Adam Lynch; Ridge Towner

̅ = 𝑆 ̅ −1𝑆̅ is the transformed compliance matrix relative to the x-y axis, A the transformation matrix, R isReuter’s matrix, and S is the compliance matrix of the material. For partial differential calculations there are different equations for different things.There is the equation for Linear Elasticity (a), Plane Stress (b), convection-diffusion (c), and thechain rule equations (d) [14]: 𝑎) ∫ 𝛿𝑢 ∗ 𝐹𝑣 𝑑𝑉 + ∫ 𝑓 ∗ 𝛿𝑢𝑑𝑆 , 𝑏) 𝑝 (𝑛𝑥𝛿𝑢 + 𝑛𝑦 𝛿𝑣 + 𝑛𝑧 𝛿𝑤), Ω S 𝑐) 0 = ∫ (−∇𝑣 ∙ (𝑐∇𝑢) − 𝑣 𝛽 ∙ ∇𝑢)𝑑𝑉 + ∫ 𝑔𝑣𝑑𝑆 + ∫ 𝑓𝑣𝑑𝑉 , Ω S Ω

Collection

2025 Rocky Mountain Section Conference

Authors

Sivaganeshwar Subramaniam; Adam Lynch

improveoperations, reduce waste, and enhance innovation. This study highlights the power of decisionscience in manufacturing, helping firms make informed, strategic choices in a complex,competitive industry.References1. KEEN. (n.d.). Curiosity. Engineering Unleashed. https://engineeringunleashed.com/curiosity2. Kidd, C., & Hayden, B. Y. (2015). The psychology and neuroscience of Curiosity. Neuron, 88(3), 449–460. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuron.2015.09.0103. Walden, D. D., Shortell, T. M., Roedler, G. J., Delicado, B. A., Mornas, O., Yip, Y. S., & Endler, D. (Eds.). (2023). INCOSE systems engineering handbook (5th ed.). John Wiley & Sons Ltd4. McElroy, T., & Seta, J. J. (2023). Framing the frame: How task goals determine the

Collection

2025 Rocky Mountain Section Conference

Authors

Mridusmita Saikia; Stephanie Fuchs

] C. L. Dym, A. M. Agogino, O. Eris, D. D. Frey, and L. J. Leifer, “Engineering DesignThinking, Teaching, and Learning,” J. Eng. Educ., vol. 94, no. 1, pp. 103–120, Jan. 2005, doi:10.1002/j.2168-9830.2005.tb00832.x.[3] A. R. Carberry, H. Lee, and M. W. Ohland, “Measuring Engineering Design Self‐Efficacy,” J. Eng. Educ., vol. 99, no. 1, pp. 71–79, Jan. 2010, doi: 10.1002/j.2168-9830.2010.tb01043.x.[4] A. J. Dutson, R. H. Todd, S. P. Magleby, and C. D. Sorensen, “A Review of Literature onTeaching Engineering Design Through Project‐Oriented Capstone Courses,” J. Eng. Educ., vol.86, no. 1, pp. 17–28, Jan. 1997, doi: 10.1002/j.2168-9830.1997.tb00260.x.[5] D. A. Kolb, Experiential learning: Experience as the source of learning

Collection

2025 Rocky Mountain Section Conference

Authors

Chika Winnifred Agha; Rebecca Atadero; Amir Hedayati Mehdiabad

/10217/239771ATLAS.ti Scientific Software Development GmbH. (2024). ATLAS.ti Mac (version 24.0.0.29576) [Qualitative data analysis software]. https://atlasti.comBraun, V., & Clarke, V. (2021). One size fits all? What counts as quality practice in (reflexive) thematic analysis? Qualitative research in psychology, 18(3), 328-352. https://doi.org/10.1080/14780887.2020.1769238Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2022). Thematic analysis: A practical guide. Sage Publishing.Brunhaver, S. R., Jesiek, B. K., Korte, R. F., & Coso Strong, A. (2021). The Early Career Years of Engineering: Crossing the Threshold Between Education and Practice. Engineering Studies, 13(2), 79-85. https://doi.org/10.1080/19378629.2021.1961570Cech, E

Collection

2025 Rocky Mountain Section Conference

Authors

Alexander Aronov; Daniel Knight, University of Colorado, Boulder; Angela Bielefeldt; Joseph Polman; Fabiola Palomar

engineering student performance and retention. II. Rural/urban student differences,” Journal of Engineering Education, vol. 83, no. 3, pp. 209-217, 1994.[7] DeUrquidi, K. A. “Exploring the pathway of rural students into the engineering field,” Dissertation, Purdue University, School of Engineering Education, 2019.[8] Hynes, M. M., Mathis, C., Purzer, S., Rynearson, A., & Silverling, E. “Systematic review of research in P-12 engineering education from 2000–2015,” International Journal of Engineering Education, vol. 33, no. 1, pp. 453-462, 2017.[9] Knight, D., Bielefeldt, A., Polman, J., & Hannigan, M. “Design & Development: Colorado Science and Engineering Inquiry Collaborative,” Grant Proposal, National Science

Collection

2025 Rocky Mountain Section Conference

Authors

Benjamin Bruxvoort; Nehemiah Emaikwu; Kim Trenbath; Jason Schmidt

warrant solutions that provide meaningful benefit at all scales. Anotherprofessor thought their research and the competition were a “good fit because the challenge[s] ofthe competition are always related to energy and buildings.” Participating provided insight intosubjects that were of interest to national laboratories and created an opportunity for professors tobrainstorm solutions to emerging topics. Both personal values and research interests werepowerful motivators that guided the decision to engage with the national competition.Opportunities to collaborate with other professorsThe nature of the real-world problem-solving project encouraged collaboration with otherprofessors. The topic areas focused on energy and building sciences, but their

Collection

2025 Rocky Mountain Section Conference

Authors

Abigail Neering; Mitchell Keck; Julia Reyna; Natcin Sorensen; Travis Price; Randy Hurd

. 8ReferencesBatson, R. G. (2015, June 15). An Approach to Teaching People Skills in Senior Design Project Courses. ASEE Peer. https://peer.asee.org/an-approach-to-teaching-people-skills-in-senior-design-project-cours esBechara, S. (2021, December 18). Engineering With Purpose: The Impact of Community Service-Based Senior Design Projects - IEEE Pulse. IEEE EMBS. Retrieved February 11, 2025, from https://www.embs.org/pulse/articles/engineering-with-purpose-the-impact-of-community- service-based-senior-design-projects/Cole, K., Wentzell, E., Lee, D., Jenson, C., Flynn, E., Hare, A., Kern, J., & Schwartz, J. (n.d.). Schwartz. Academy of Orthopedic Physical Therapy. https://www.orthopt.org/uploads

Collection

2025 Rocky Mountain Section Conference

Authors

Randy Hurd; Sulabh Khadka; Dustin Grote

collected in the post-program survey, and shared positive impactsof the program in focus groups. Among many recommendations we make for others interested instarting or improving a STEM summer bridge program, we point especially to our thoughtfulprogram design as well as the thoughtful selection of courses and faculty that engenderedconfidence in student’s ability to be successful in STEM courses. 17 REFERENCES1) Ackermann, S. P. (1991). The benefits of summer bridge programs for underrepresented and low-income transfer students. Community/Junior College Quarterly of Research and Practice, 15(2), 211–224

Collection

2025 Rocky Mountain Section Conference

Authors

Chloe Long; Bobby Hodkinson

, 2017. [9] Tony Wright and Susan Hamilton. Assessing student understanding in the molecular life sciences using a concept inventory. ATN Assessment, 2008.[10] Margherita Bernabei, Silvia Colabianchi, Andrea Falegnami, and Francesco Costantino. Students’ use of large language models in engineering education: A case study on technology acceptance, perceptions, efficacy, and detection chances. Computers and Education: Artificial Intelligence, 5:100172, 2023.[11] Vassilka D Kirova, Cyril S Ku, Joseph R Laracy, and Thomas J Marlowe. Software engineering education must adapt and evolve for an llm environment. In Proceedings of the 55th ACM Technical Symposium on Computer Science Education V. 1, pages 666–672, 2024.[12] Marian Daun

Collection

2025 Rocky Mountain Section Conference

Authors

Angela Bielefeldt; Malinda Zarske

students indicated that their experience on theirproject team during the semester was negative (3 or lower) an open-ended follow-up questioninvited students to “Please explain what was negative about the experience(s).”ParticipantsThe self-reported student demographics are summarized in Table 3. Among 390 students enrolledin the course during Fall 2024, 93% consented to participate in the research. Because pairedanalyses were planned, the majority of the demographic questions were only asked on the presurvey. The demographics of the students participating in the research are comparable to theoverall demographics of enrolled new first-year engineering students, shown as Institution FYEin Table 3. Differences may be due to which majors tend to

Collection

2025 Rocky Mountain Section Conference

Authors

Ruhan Yang; Ellen Do

, “Pupils’ understanding of simple electrical circuits. Some implications for instruction,” Phys. Educ., vol. 23, no. 2, p. 92, Mar. 1988, doi: 10.1088/0031-9120/23/2/004.[6] L. S. Vygotsky, Mind in Society: Development of Higher Psychological Processes. Harvard University Press, 1978.[7] J. Piaget, Science of education and the psychology of the child. New York, Orion Press, 1970.[8] “SNAP CIRCUITS - Shop By Brand.” [Online]. Available: https://shop.elenco.com/consumers/brands/snap-circuits.html[9] “Shop Sphero littleBits STEM Kits & More.” [Online]. Available: https://sphero.com/collections/littlebits[10] “Paper Circuits For Makerspaces - Makerspaces.com.” [Online]. Available: https://www.makerspaces.com/paper-circuits/[11

Collection

2025 Rocky Mountain Section Conference

Authors

John M. Santiago

tomorrow’s ethical innovators and storytellers.9. References1. R. Taleyarkhan, M. Behbehani, J. M. Santiago, M. Diaz, and S. Hummel, “Work in Progress: Impact onStudents’ Dropout Rates of Introducing a First-Year Hands-On Civil Engineering Course,” Proceedings ofthe ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, 2013.Available: https://peer.asee.org/work-in-progress-impact-on-students-dropout-rates-of-introducing-a-first-year-hands-on-civil-engineering-course.pdf2. B. M. Olds, R. L. Miller, and R. M. Felder, “Engineering Attrition: Student Characteristics andEducational Initiatives,” Proceedings of the ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, 2004.Available: https://peer.asee.org/engineering-attrition-student-characteristics-and-educational