Engagement in Practice: Community service builds excitement in design

David Mikesell; Lacey Wernoch; Alissa Sayer; Jordan Mullett; Hui Shen

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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: Community Engagement Division Technical Session 2 - Community Engagement without Frontiers
Page Count: 10
DOI: 10.18260/1-2--41317
Permanent URL: https://peer.asee.org/41317
Download Count: 163

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Paper Authors

biography

David Mikesell Ohio Northern University

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David Mikesell is professor and chair of mechanical engineering at Ohio Northern University. He joined the faculty after graduate work in automotive engineering at Ohio State, six years designing automated assembly machines and metal-cutting tools, and service as an officer in the U.S. Navy. His research interests are in land vehicle dynamics, autonomous vehicles, manufacturing, and robotics. Since 2015 he has served in leadership of the ASEE Mechanical Engineering Division including roles as Division Chair and Program Chair.

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Dr. Hui Shen is a professor at Ohio Northern University. Her research interests lie in mechanical behavior of materials, biomaterials, and biomechanics.

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Abstract

The engineering college at Ohio Northern University, a small private comprehensive university in the Midwest, had no professional society to support students interested in the biomedical or biomechanics areas. In order to fill this gap, a faculty member solicited student interest in such a group, and readily found a number of passionate students ready to take ownership of and run with this idea. Engineering students chartered the fledgling “Biomedical Sciences Design Team” and invited nursing students from the School of Health & Behavioral Sciences to join them.

This team desired to exercise and grow their skills through practical application to benefit the community. The team advisor initiated partnership with the Hardin County Board of Developmental Disabilities, and the Simon Kenton School operated by this board. The student team met with school staff and helped them articulate and define issues that they face in their job, issues that the staff sometimes “didn’t even realize had a possible solution.” From these discussions, the team defined three initial service projects. One is an adaptive table to help a wheelchair-bound student to reach kitchen tool in a kitchen-setting classroom. The second project is a fine motor training toy, designed to build the small-muscle coordination of children with special needs. The third project is an improved cleaning/drying system for gastronomy tubes (“G-tubes”) used in the feeding of some students at the school. Other projects for other community clients have followed.

In order to facilitate structure and regular progress on the projects, the team advisor formed a 1-hour EPICS course (Engineering Projects in Community Service). This experience has highlighted the power of benevolent activities to foster enthusiasm in community service and engagement. It has also made clear the value of these activities in “problem finding,” or “empathizing,” a key facet of the problem framing step of the design process. The paper presents details of the service projects, the associated Engineering Projects in Community Service (EPICS) course, student impact, and lessons learned to assist others who may be contemplating this type of activity.

Citation
Format

Mikesell, D., & Wernoch, L., & Sayer, A., & Mullett, J., & Shen, H. (2022, August), Engagement in Practice: Community service builds excitement in design Paper presented at 2022 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, Minneapolis, MN. 10.18260/1-2--41317

TY - CPAPER
AB - The engineering college at Ohio Northern University, a small private comprehensive university in the Midwest, had no professional society to support students interested in the biomedical or biomechanics areas. In order to fill this gap, a faculty member solicited student interest in such a group, and readily found a number of passionate students ready to take ownership of and run with this idea. Engineering students chartered the fledgling “Biomedical Sciences Design Team” and invited nursing students from the School of Health & Behavioral Sciences to join them.

This team desired to exercise and grow their skills through practical application to benefit the community. The team advisor initiated partnership with the Hardin County Board of Developmental Disabilities, and the Simon Kenton School operated by this board. The student team met with school staff and helped them articulate and define issues that they face in their job, issues that the staff sometimes “didn’t even realize had a possible solution.”
From these discussions, the team defined three initial service projects. One is an adaptive table to help a wheelchair-bound student to reach kitchen tool in a kitchen-setting classroom. The second project is a fine motor training toy, designed to build the small-muscle coordination of children with special needs. The third project is an improved cleaning/drying system for gastronomy tubes (“G-tubes”) used in the feeding of some students at the school. Other projects for other community clients have followed.

In order to facilitate structure and regular progress on the projects, the team advisor formed a 1-hour EPICS course (Engineering Projects in Community Service). This experience has highlighted the power of benevolent activities to foster enthusiasm in community service and engagement. It has also made clear the value of these activities in “problem finding,” or “empathizing,” a key facet of the problem framing step of the design process. The paper presents details of the service projects, the associated Engineering Projects in Community Service (EPICS) course, student impact, and lessons learned to assist others who may be contemplating this type of activity.
AU - David Mikesell
AU - Lacey Wernoch
AU - Alissa Sayer
AU - Jordan Mullett
AU - Hui Shen
CY - Minneapolis, MN
DA - 2022/08/23
PB - ASEE Conferences
TI - Engagement in Practice: Community service builds excitement in design
UR - https://peer.asee.org/41317
DO - 10.18260/1-2--41317
ER -