Connecting Education Abroad with an in-class EWB International Challenge Project

Thomas Siller; Abigale Johnson; Samantha Fischer; Matthew Lurtz

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Conference: 2022 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition
Location: Minneapolis, MN
Publication Date: August 23, 2022
Start Date: June 26, 2022
End Date: June 29, 2022
Conference Session: International Division Technical Session 3 - Humanitarian Design
Page Count: 19
DOI: 10.18260/1-2--41455
Permanent URL: https://peer.asee.org/41455
Download Count: 509

Paper Authors

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Thomas Siller Colorado State University

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Thomas Siller has been a faculty member at Colorado State Unversity for over 34 years.

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Abigale Johnson

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Abigale Johnson is a learning and development professional who most recently served as the Education Program Director at Engineers Without Borders USA, leading the organization's transformational educational initiatives. Through her role, Abigale served on the international steering committee of EWB organizations that were responsible for developing and delivering the Engineering for People Design Challenge in participating countries, and worked closely with colleges in the US to implement this and other academic programs. Abigale has spent the last decade working in the education space, focusing on a variety of curricular and co-curricular programs, from e-learning course development to project-based, experiential, and competency-based learning programs. She is passionate about education that helps to inspire global responsibility and support of social and ecological systems and wellbeing.

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Samantha Fischer Colorado State University

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Samantha Fischer is a current graduate student at Colorado State University (CSU) working towards a Masters of Science in Civil Engineering. She has particular interest in water resources and hydrology and hopes to pursue a career in that field, as well as participate in nonprofit work pertaining to water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH). She has worked with a humanitarian aid organization previously and hopes to continue her involvement with them as a WASH technician for disaster response. Additionally, Samantha is specializing in Water and International Development (WAID) during her graduate studies at CSU, and she had the unique opportunity to travel to a small coastal town in Peru as a trip leader for a new education abroad program related to service-learning in sustainable engineering for developing communities. She has loved traveling and gaining new perspectives on global engineering and looks forward to a lifelong career pursuing that passion.

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Matthew Lurtz

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I am a graduate student at Colorado State University (CSU) pursuing my doctorate in Hydrologic Science and Engineering. I have served as a graduate researcher and teaching fellow while at CSU. I study ecohydrology in groundwater-dependent ecosystems impacted by human activity. My current work focuses on spatial-temporal connections between an agroecosystem and an evolving natural ecosystem in southeastern Colorado.

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Abstract

This paper describes how an education abroad program was connected to an international design competition organized by Engineers Without Borders (EWB) to educate students in engineering abroad, the not-for-profit sector, and international travel. During the spring of 2021 students at XXX university participated in an international design project focused on a community in northern Peru. In January 2022, a small group of students completed a two-week education abroad program in Lobitos, a coastal community near the small city of Talara (Piura Region) located in northwestern Peru. This paper describes both the details of the design competition, which was officially held in the United States (US) for the first time during the academic year 2020-2021, and the follow-up education abroad program. Connecting these two activities has allowed us to strengthen the international theme in our department and college.

The international design challenge has been operating for many years through EWB organizations in Australia and the United Kingdom (UK). Beginning in 2019, EWB organizations in South Africa, the UK and USA partnered to develop design challenge and run the competitions nationally. In the 2020-2021 academic year, XXX university participated in the program and EWB-USA competition. University X participated in the program and EWB-USA competition. The project was implemented in two first-year courses: one for first-year civil engineering students, one for first-year environmental engineering students. The project represented one-third of the content in these courses. After the project, student teams submitted design reports that were judged by a panel of international experts with top teams being identified from the pool from multiple US institutions.

Based on student input, a new education abroad program was developed that involves two weeks of travel to the Peruvian community. During the program, students engaged in service-learning activities hosted by the NGO (non-government organization) that partnered with the local community and EWB to run the design competition. This course focused on the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals. This effort reached a broader audience of students from several other majors in the college - extending the infusion of international content beyond the original competition held within the Civil and Environmental Engineering department.

Results will include reflections from students who engaged in the design competition and/or the education abroad program. Surveys administered as part of the design competitionn regarding students developing international competencies are presented, as well as post-travel reflections from the students who participated in international travel and worked hands-on with the nonprofit in Peru.

Citation
Format

Siller, T., & Johnson, A., & Fischer, S., & Lurtz, M. (2022, August), Connecting Education Abroad with an in-class EWB International Challenge Project Paper presented at 2022 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, Minneapolis, MN. 10.18260/1-2--41455

TY - CPAPER
AB - This paper describes how an education abroad program was connected to an international design competition organized by Engineers Without Borders (EWB) to educate students in engineering abroad, the not-for-profit sector, and international travel. During the spring of 2021 students at XXX university participated in an international design project focused on a community in northern Peru. In January 2022, a small group of students completed a two-week education abroad program in Lobitos, a coastal community near the small city of Talara (Piura Region) located in northwestern Peru. This paper describes both the details of the design competition, which was officially held in the United States (US) for the first time during the academic year 2020-2021, and the follow-up education abroad program. Connecting these two activities has allowed us to strengthen the international theme in our department and college.

The international design challenge has been operating for many years through EWB organizations in Australia and the United Kingdom (UK). Beginning in 2019, EWB organizations in South Africa, the UK and USA partnered to develop design challenge and run the competitions nationally. In the 2020-2021 academic year, XXX university participated in the program and EWB-USA competition. University X participated in the program and EWB-USA competition. The project was implemented in two first-year courses: one for first-year civil engineering students, one for first-year environmental engineering students. The project represented one-third of the content in these courses. After the project, student teams submitted design reports that were judged by a panel of international experts with top teams being identified from the pool from multiple US institutions.

Based on student input, a new education abroad program was developed that involves two weeks of travel to the Peruvian community. During the program, students engaged in service-learning activities hosted by the NGO (non-government organization) that partnered with the local community and EWB to run the design competition. This course focused on the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals. This effort reached a broader audience of students from several other majors in the college - extending the infusion of international content beyond the original competition held within the Civil and Environmental Engineering department.

Results will include reflections from students who engaged in the design competition and/or the education abroad program. Surveys administered as part of the design competitionn regarding students developing international competencies are presented, as well as post-travel reflections from the students who participated in international travel and worked hands-on with the nonprofit in Peru.

AU - Thomas Siller
AU - Abigale Johnson
AU - Samantha Fischer
AU - Matthew Lurtz
CY - Minneapolis, MN
DA - 2022/08/23
PB - ASEE Conferences
TI - Connecting Education Abroad with an in-class EWB International Challenge Project
UR - https://peer.asee.org/41455
DO - 10.18260/1-2--41455
ER -