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Session 2253

TTU College of Engineering Pre-College Engineering Academy© Estacado High School Pilot Program

John R. Chandler, Ph.D., and A. Dean Fontenot, Ph.D. College of Engineering, Texas Tech University

Abstract This paper reports on progress to-date in the planning, design, and initial implementations in a K- 12 Pre-College engineering program being developed collaboratively by Texas Tech University (TTU) and Lubbock Independent School District (LISD). The Pre-College Engineering Academy© is a multidisciplinary, project-based curriculum that presents high school students with realistic engineering problems and supports K-12 teachers by providing mentoring, training, and detailed specifications for design, documentation, testing, and other engineering project requirements. A Memorandum of Understanding between Texas Tech and the Lubbock Independent School District formalizes a partnership in which both entities commit resources to develop the Academy program.

In the pilot, Estacado High School teachers and other K-12 teachers are paid stipends by Texas Tech to work with TTU faculty and students to integrate engineering projects into courses they teach and to horizontally align their classroom activities with the other participating teachers at the high school. For example, the project for the 2002-03 school year requires students at Estacado to research, design, and propose building a neighborhood playground. Academy students take classes in cohort groups, and the engineering problem serves as an illustration for their classroom activities–––i.e., in their physics and mathematics classes students examine structural considerations and make calculations related to the playground, in their English class they learn the documentation conventions necessary to implement a project of this nature, in their chemistry class they address relevant environmental considerations, etc.

The TTU College of Engineering is also working with other K-12 schools to develop feeder programs for the program, including Dunbar Junior High School Math and Science Academy, and Harwell and Wheatly Elementary Schools. Teachers in these schools are working with teachers from Estacado and TTU faculty and students to find ways to align the pre-engineering curriculum vertically. Ultimately, the goal of the Academy program is to get students excited about science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) at an early age, and then to provide them with a consistent learning experience that continually extends their knowledge and practical use of STEM concepts and skills throughout their academic careers from middle school, to high school, and into college.

Overview Estacado High School is located in the Northeast quadrant (quadrant four) of Lubbock, and its student population reflects that of the surrounding community, which has an overwhelmingly

Proceedings of the 2003 American Society for Engineering Education Annual Conference & Exposition Copyright © 2003, American Society for Engineering Education

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Chandler, J., & fontenot, D. (2003, June), Ttu College Of Engineering Pre College Engineering Academy© Paper presented at 2003 Annual Conference, Nashville, Tennessee. 10.18260/1-2--12026