Out of almost 5,000 engineering education innovators, four Elizabethtown College faculty members earned recognition for success in the field.<\/p>\n
Sara Atwood, associate professor of engineering and physics and chair of the engineering and physics department; Kurt DeGoede, professor of engineering and physics; Brenda Read-Daily, associate professor of engineering and Stacy Zimmerman, Associate Director of Strengths Coaching and Ethical Leadership Development in the Division of Student Life, were the four faculty members whose papers and presentations highlighted an engineering conference this past June.<\/p>\n
That conference was the annual meeting of the American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE). Described as \u201cthe largest and most prestigious membership society for the U.S. engineering education community,\u201d the ASEE has provided engineering educators with leadership and innovation support for over a century.<\/p>\n
It is rewarding to have our work recognized at a national level.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
The ASEE Annual Conference and Exposition invites educators from over 500 colleges and universities to share research and ideas in the field of engineering. E-town\u2019s faculty was honored with three unique top awards.<\/p>\n
Atwood\u2019s paper, \u201cEffects of Research and Internship Experiences on Engineering Task Self-Efficacy on Engineering Students Through an Intersectional Lens<\/a>,\u201d earned the Best Diversity Paper Award. Co-authored with three Stanford University faculty, the paper addresses minority experiences in the field of engineering.<\/p>\n
The Best Diversity Paper Award is bestowed upon authors who \u201cbroaden participation in engineering and influence the inclusive, diverse future of engineering,\u201d according to ASEE\u2019s website.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt’s been especially meaningful to me that all three of us faculty who had papers at the conference this year were recognized for outstanding work,\u201d Atwood said. \u201cTo me, this group of awards signifies how our faculty at E-town are thought leaders in engineering education.\u201d<\/p>\n
One of those professors, DeGoede, walked away from the conference with two awards. The first was for a mechanics-based paper, \u201cCompetency Based Assessment in Dynamics<\/a>.\u201d This published piece received recognition as the Best Paper in the Mechanical Engineering Division, a category with over 1000 members.<\/p>\n
DeGeode\u2019s paper discusses his method of competency-based assessment, by which he grades students on how many skills they can do well instead of how well they are able to use the numerous skills studied.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe award drew significant attention to my paper, and the presentation was well attended,\u201d DeGoede said. \u201cMany faculty, from a wide variety of institutions, have since asked me for help moving their course to such a model.\u00a0 Often, an engineer with full competency of fewer skills is at a competitive advantage of a peer with only partial competency in more skills.\u201d<\/p>\n