Conference Session

WORKSHOP III: From Ideas to Action: Integrating Entrepreneurial Mindset in FYE Programs

Collection

FYEE 2025 Conference

Authors

Kaitlin Mallouk, Rowan University; J. Blake Hylton, Ohio Northern University; Jack Bringardner, Colorado School of Mines; Krista M Kecskemety, The Ohio State University; Cassie Wallwey, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University; Andrew Charles Bartolini, University of Notre Dame

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FYEE 2025

Paper ID #49769Workshop: From Ideas to Action: Integrating Entrepreneurial Mindset inFYE ProgramsDr. Kaitlin Mallouk, Rowan University Kaitlin Mallouk is an Associate Professor of Experiential Engineering Education at Rowan University. Prior to beginning that role, she spent five years an Instructor in the Mechanical Engineering and Experiential Engineering Education Departments at Rowan.Dr. J. Blake Hylton, Ohio Northern University Dr. Hylton is an Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Coordinator of the First-Year Engineering experience for the T.J. Smull College of Engineering at Ohio Northern University

Conference Session

Full Papers II

Collection

FYEE 2025 Conference

Authors

Haritha Malladi, University of Delaware; Marcia Gail Headley, University of Delaware; Pamela S. Lottero-Perdue, Towson University

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FYEE 2025

Paper ID #49775Full Paper: Characterizing Conflicts in Student Design Teams in an IntroductoryEngineering CourseDr. Haritha Malladi, University of Delaware Haritha Malladi is an Assistant Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering and the Director of First-Year Engineering at the University of Delaware. She received her Bachelor of Technology degree in Civil Engineering from National Institute of Technology, Warangal, India, and her MS and PhD in Civil Engineering from North Carolina State University. She is a teacher-scholar working in the intersection of undergraduate engineering education, sustainable

Conference Session

Full Papers I

Collection

FYEE 2025 Conference

Authors

Saloome Motavas, University of British Columbia, Vancouver; Fatimah Mahmood, University of British Columbia, Vancouver

Tagged Topics

Diversity, FYEE 2025

Paper ID #49765Full Paper: Improving Educational Equity and Outcomes in a First-YearEngineering Programming Course through a Content and Language IntegratedApproachDr. Saloome Motavas, University of British Columbia, Vancouver Dr. Motavas is a lecturer at the University of British Columbia, teaching in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering and Vantage College.Fatimah Mahmood, University of British Columbia, Vancouver Fatimah Mahmood is an Associate Director - Curriculum Development in the Department of Lifelong Learning at Simon Fraser University. Previously, she was an English for Academic Purposes (EAP

Conference Session

WORKSHOP I: Designing Active Learning Activities with Ethics in Mind, and Body (no matter if this is a fundamental principles class or an ethics-as-a-stand alone class, or any class in-between)

Collection

FYEE 2025 Conference

Authors

Nicole Farkas Mogul, University of Maryland, College Park; David Tomblin, University of Maryland, College Park; Timothy Duane Reedy, University of Maryland, College Park

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FYEE 2025

Ethics in Mind, and Body (no matter ifthis is a fundamental principles class or an ethics-as-a-stand-alone class, or any class in-between)AbstractParticipants will walk away from this workshop with insights and confidence to applysocio-technical systems thinking (STS) framework for integrating engineering ethics with otherengineering topics, where learning experiences revolve around three types of practices –analytical approaches, data collection, and body/mind engagement. This is a product of our workin the interdisciplinary field of the same acronym, Science and Technology Studies (STS).Workshop attendees will practice “STS thinking” during interactive demonstrations ofcurriculum, participate in debriefs for reflection and listening, and use

Conference Session

WORKSHOP I: Integrating Service Learning into First-Year Engineering Courses: A Hands-On Workshop

Collection

FYEE 2025 Conference

Authors

Kathryn Schulte Grahame, Northeastern University; Brian Patrick O'Connell, Northeastern University; Anne Shea, Northeastern University; Kennedy Gallagher, Northeastern University

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FYEE 2025

profession demands [6], [7].Why first-year students?First-year engineering students gain exceptional advantages from early exposure toservice-learning experiences. These structured community engagements provide an immediateopportunity to apply fundamental engineering concepts in authentic contexts, making abstractprinciples tangible before students encounter more complex coursework [8]. Additionally, earlyexposure allows students to confront their own implicit biases, better preparing them to developinclusive mindsets. This early application helps solidify their understanding of engineeringfundamentals while simultaneously combating the high attrition rates common in engineeringprograms by demonstrating the meaningful real-world impact of their

Conference Session

GIFTS I

Collection

FYEE 2025 Conference

Authors

Laura Ann Gelles, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville; Laura Knight, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville; Darren K Maczka, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville

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FYEE 2025

Paper ID #49792GIFTS: Time Management as a Tool in a Stress Toolkit for First-Year EngineeringStudentsDr. Laura Ann Gelles, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville Laura Gelles is a teaching assistant professor in the Engineering Fundamentals program at the University of Tennessee Knoxville (UTK). Her previous work has focused on persistence and retention of engineering students, integrating social and environmental context into technical engineering curriculum, and mentoring and career resources for engineering graduate students.Prof. Laura Knight, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville Laura Knight is a Lecturer in the

Conference Session

GIFTS II

Collection

FYEE 2025 Conference

Authors

Ashley Joyce Mont, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey; Philip Reid Brown, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey; Katie Barillas, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey

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FYEE 2025

Engineering from the University of Pittsburgh. Dr. Barillas’s focus is on first-year engineering education, student engagement, interdisciplinary learning, and inclusive pedagogy. As Program Director for ID3EA, she has led curriculum development initiatives that integrate hands-on design, teamwork, and real-world problem-solving into the foundational course sequence. Her teaching emphasizes active learning, student-centered instruction, and the development of professional skills such as technical communication, collaboration, and ethical decision-making. Her research interests include interdisciplinary education, curriculum innovation, and the retention and success of underrepresented students in engineering

Conference Session

Full Papers I

Collection

FYEE 2025 Conference

Authors

DeAnna Katey, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University; Terrance I Harris, Drexel University

Tagged Topics

Diversity, FYEE 2025

Galileo and Hypatia Living-Learning Communities and the CEED Peer Mentoring program. Previously, Dr. Katey served as the Assistant Director of Student Success and First-year Experience at Siena Heights University located in Adrian, Michigan, where she played a pivotal role in creating an environment of success for first-year students. Her professional interests and research focus on the retention of underrepresented and underserved students. Dr. Katey graduated from Clarion University of Pennsylvania (Clarion, PA) where she earned a Bachelor of Science in Education (2007) and a Master of Education in Curriculum and Instruction (2010). In 2019, she graduated from Morgan State University’s Higher Education Administration

Conference Session

GIFTS II

Collection

FYEE 2025 Conference

Authors

Patrick Thornton, New Jersey Institute of Technology; Jaskirat Sodhi, New Jersey Institute of Technology; Ashish D Borgaonkar, New Jersey Institute of Technology

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FYEE 2025

Paper ID #49771GIFTS: Using Robotic Arm Project to Introduce Students to EngineeringDesign Through Experiential LearningMr. Patrick Thornton, New Jersey Institute of Technology Patrick Thornton works at NJIT as the Director of Robotics. Currently teaching and developing lab modules for the Fundamentals of Engineering and Design course to set up students for continued success at NJIT.Dr. Jaskirat Sodhi, New Jersey Institute of Technology Dr. Jaskirat Sodhi is interested in first-year engineering curriculum design and recruitment, retention and success of engineering students. He is the coordinator of ENGR101, an application

Conference Session

GIFTS II

Collection

FYEE 2025 Conference

Authors

Philip Reid Brown, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey; Ashley Joyce Mont, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey; Katie Barillas, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey

Tagged Topics

FYEE 2025

University of Pittsburgh. Dr. Barillas’s focus is on first-year engineering education, student engagement, interdisciplinary learning, and inclusive pedagogy. As Program Director for ID3EA, she has led curriculum development initiatives that integrate hands-on design, teamwork, and real-world problem-solving into the foundational course sequence. Her teaching emphasizes active learning, student-centered instruction, and the development of professional skills such as technical communication, collaboration, and ethical decision-making. Her research interests include interdisciplinary education, curriculum innovation, and the retention and success of underrepresented students in engineering. FYEE 2025

Conference Session

WORKSHOP IV: Play as Prep Workshop: Time & Resource-Efficient Strategies for Developing Effective Undergraduate TAs of First Year Students

Collection

FYEE 2025 Conference

Authors

Christine Alexander, University of Maryland, College Park

Tagged Topics

FYEE 2025

development curriculum for TAs [3] is taxing for faculty already devoted tofull teaching loads [4]. The Play as Prep Workshop shares strategies for faculty toteach-as-you-go, integrating pedagogical development into the necessary business of weekly TAmeetings. There is an abundance of research on graduate level TAs (GTAs) [5] [6] [7], a growinglevel of research on undergraduate TAs [8], and even the parity of working with either [9]. Manyof the lessons learned from studying GTAs can be applied to work with UTAs and it stands toreason that UTAs would benefit similarly, if not more so than GTAs from pedagogicaldevelopment as they are uniquely positioned as close peers of their assigned students, may havefewer work experiences in leadership or

Conference Session

WIP II

Collection

FYEE 2025 Conference

Authors

Lesly Samantha Murillo, University of Maryland College Park; Tabatha Cuadra Rodriguez, University of Maryland College Park; Paige E Smith, University of Maryland, College Park

Tagged Topics

Diversity, FYEE 2025

residential communities grounded in inclusivecurriculum, peer support, and professional development can foster a strong sense of belongingand academic engagement, factors that contribute to student success and apply to all participantsin similarly designed programs (Amelink et al., 2017; Samuelson et al., 2014).​Program DesignThe LLPs offer an integrated curricular and co-curricular approach to achieve the programmaticprimary goals shown in Figure 1. Figure 1. The primary goals of the LLPsCurriculum: LLP students are required to complete four one-credit seminars during their twoyears in the program - one per semester. The focus of the first semester seminar is engineeringidentity development and support, with an emphasis

Conference Session

Full Papers III

Collection

FYEE 2025 Conference

Authors

Cassie Wallwey, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

Tagged Topics

FYEE 2025

” engineering curriculum skills sets.There is literature that has documented the integration of EM and EML implementation withinvarious programs and universities using a variety of assessment tools and metrics. Scholarship inthese spaces have noted improvements to student learning / performance outcomes related toprofessional skills, customer-focused design, global awareness, and increases in studentsdemonstrating curiosity, connection-making, and value recognition and creation – to name a fewexamples [7]-[10]. The majority of EML curricular integration has happened in problem-solvingand design-focused spaces and courses, but this works seeks to better understand if introducingEML before problem-solving or engineering design focused lessons, activities

Conference Session

GIFTS I

Collection

FYEE 2025 Conference

Authors

Lena Johnson, University of Maryland - Office of Undergraduate Research

Tagged Topics

FYEE 2025

transitions, tolerances, internal forces, component spacing andgeometry as important factors in the mechanism’s proper functioning. Then they created newmethods for integrating this design into their robotic platforms, by rotating the axis of oscillation,developing methods of flexible casting, and experimenting with new fin geometries. Lookingback at the end of the semester, students documented important lessons learned in the adaptationof the original mechanism and reflected on their improved understanding of mechanical systems.Introducing students to fundamental aspects of mechanical design and analysis as an earlysemester, structured lecture became an obvious means of improving project success later on. Theinnovative results of this semester’s

Conference Session

GIFTS II

Collection

FYEE 2025 Conference

Authors

Ryan McAfee Grudell, Ohio Northern University; Mark Mintzlaff, Ohio Northern University; Ethan Berei, Ohio Northern University; Grace Lawson, Ohio Northern University

Tagged Topics

Diversity, FYEE 2025

mobile devices. Underfunded schoolslack the resources to provide these sorts of devices to all students or even to entire classrooms. This leavestheir students at a disadvantage for learning when compared to students from well-funded schools.Math Quest aims to solve this issue. We have created an inexpensive, effective learning tool to assiststudents and teachers at underfunded schools. When looking at other products in this market, our teamwas surprised to see how clunky and unengaging they were. This led us to design Math Quest to resemblea handheld game controller. We chose this shape since game controllers are a tried and true handheldproduct design that prioritizes comfort, modularity, and ease of use. This design also lets us

Conference Session

Full Papers IV

Collection

FYEE 2025 Conference

Authors

Rumeysa Tekin Baturalp, Texas Tech University; Nurcan Bac, Texas Tech University

Tagged Topics

FYEE 2025

suggested outlinecovering an overview of the major, curriculum highlights, career pathways, and examples ofresearch or applications, but retained flexibility in delivery. A typical session included a lecture-style slide presentation, discussion of curriculum and degree requirements, descriptions ofprojects or specializations, and a brief Q&A if time permitted. This format prioritized consistentexposure to departmental information while allowing presenters to showcase their programs’unique features. However, no structured in-class interactive elements were consistently usedacross sessions, and engagement activities such as job fairs or department visits wererecommended but optional.3. Results and DiscussionThis section presents a detailed

Conference Session

Full Papers III

Collection

FYEE 2025 Conference

Authors

Qudsia Tahmina, The Ohio State University at Marion; John Francis Simonis, The Ohio State University at Marion

Tagged Topics

Diversity, FYEE 2025

survey at the end of the visit. Therefore, the data includes feedback on all aspects of the campus visit, not just the hands-on activity. However, the authors are confident that the students enjoyed this activity and would be interested in future opportunities. School teachers who assisted in the hands-on activity mentioned that the use of Arduino to teach circuit concepts was the best approach. The use of schematics and demonstrations using TinkerCad was something they would be interested in adopting in their curriculum. An English teacher was assisting the hands-on activity and said he didn’t find it difficult to follow along and assist students in building and testing the code. In the future, after completing the workshop

Conference Session

Full Papers III

Collection

FYEE 2025 Conference

Authors

Rachel Anne Smith, Iowa State University of Science and Technology; Aileen Hentz PhD, University of Maryland, College Park; Thaddeus Hill, Iowa State University of Science and Technology

Tagged Topics

Diversity, FYEE 2025

3.09 3.77 1.00We also visualized all the students’ networks. (See Figure 1 for three examples.) The networksdepicted who the alters were, the content of the relational ties, and the overall structure of thenetwork. Visualizations allowed for an examination of network structure and components,particularly whether students’ networks on campus overlapped structurally and to what degreethey were integrated. Individual student networks are also useful to institutional personnel inworking with specific students on their support networks and strategies. Findings indicated thatfirst-year students exhibited a range of network structures, generally spanning those from“home” and newly created networks in the college environment, which

Conference Session

Full Papers III

Collection

FYEE 2025 Conference

Authors

Aysa Galbraith, University of Arkansas; Leslie Bartsch Massey, University of Arkansas; Heath Aren Schluterman, University of Arkansas; Latisha Puckett, University of Arkansas; Gretchen Scroggin, University of Arkansas

Tagged Topics

FYEE 2025

competition. The opportunity to learn new skills and exercise autonomy in a well-structured environment was also highly valued. And, the most common dislikes centered aroundgroup-related challenges, the disconnect between project components, time and workload issues,technical frustrations with robotics, lack of clarity or guidance, repetitive assignments, and adesire for more meaningful or engaging work. These themes suggest opportunities for improvingproject integration, communication, time management, and student autonomy in future iterations.ConclusionThe project effectively fostered key skills essential to engineering education, includingteamwork, communication, critical thinking, and reflection. By challenging students to identifyand address an