Today’s complex global problems necessitate engineering solutions that not only consider sustainability but solutions founded on principles of sustainability to ensure the needs of today can be met tomorrow. Engineering educators face a difficult task of training students with both technical competencies and sustainability consciousness to tackle 21st century challenges. Two successful models for implementing sustainability tenets into engineering curricula have emerged in practice and in literature: course-based and modular-based models. Engineering programs implement the course-based model by establishing one to two distinct courses designed to address sustainability grand challenges in depth. Conversely, engineering programs implement the modular-based model by integrating sustainability grand challenges throughout a host of existing courses and weave student exposure throughout the curriculum via ready-made modules. The goal of this TUES 2 project is to evaluate the two models for implementing sustainability and to provide succinct recommendations and lessons learned for engineering programs tasked with integrating sustainability into their curricula. We are implementing and monitoring these two strategies in seven different engineering programs, including research universities: Arizona State University (located in Tempe, Arizona), University of Pittsburgh (located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania), and community colleges: Mesa Community College (located in Mesa, Arizona), Laney College (located in Oakland, California), and Community College of Allegheny County (located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania).
This paper summarizes the progress and accomplishments during years one through three of this four-year collaborative TUES 2 research project. We review the development of stand-alone sustainability courses and sustainability themed modules that employ experiential and active learning developed in Year 1. In addition, we review Year 2 dialogues and critical collaborations that led to the establishment of a faculty network to explore both the stand-alone course and modular methods. We also present results from ongoing research to assess student-learning outcomes related to sustainability in Year 3.
Claire L. A. Dancz is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Civil Engineering and online active experiential learning and assessment with Clemson Online at Clemson University. Dr. Dancz received her B.S. in Environmental Microbiology and Biology from Michigan State University, her M.S. in Civil Engineering from University of Pittsburgh, and Ph.D. in Sustainable Engineering from Arizona State University. Her areas of research include modular, course, and blended models for integrating sustainability into civil engineering programs, entrepreneurship for engineering grand challenges and service-learning, and assessment in engineering education. Dr. Dancz has developed and evaluated open-access online active and experiential learning activities that immerse engineering students in sustainability and enable students to exercise their voice in solving grand challenges. As a Kolbe® certified consultant, Dr. Dancz utilizes conation and team science to recruit and retain students with diverse problem-solving instincts to improve communication, leadership, and impact the diversity of engineers as global change-makers.
PhD student in Environmental Engineering and Earth Sciences, Clemson University;
MS in Chemical Engineering, Oklahoma State University;
BS in Chemical Engineering, Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology
Dr. Bilec is an associate professor in the Swanson School of Engineering’s Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. Dr. Bilec’s research program focuses on the built environment, life cycle assessment, sustainable healthcare, and energy im
Kristen Parrish is an Associate Professor in the School of Sustainable Engineering and the Built Environment at Arizona State University (ASU). Kristen’s work focuses on integrating energy efficiency measures into building design, construction, and operations processes. Specifically, she is interested in novel design processes that financially and technically facilitate energy-efficient buildings. Her work also explores how principles of lean manufacturing facilitate energy-efficiency in the commercial building industry. Another research interest of Kristen’s is engineering education, where she explores how project- and experience-based learning foster better understanding of engineering and management principles. Prior to joining ASU, Kristen was at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) as a Postdoctoral Fellow (2009-11) and then a Scientific Engineering Associate (2011-2012) in the Building Technologies and Urban Systems Department. She worked in the Commercial Buildings group, developing energy efficiency programs and researching technical and non-technical barriers to energy efficiency in the buildings industry. She has a background in collaborative design and integrated project delivery. She holds a BS and MS in Civil Engineering from the University of Michigan and a PhD in Civil Engineering Systems from University of California Berkeley.
Dr. Elizabeth Adams is an Assistant Professor at Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo, California. She a civil engineer with a background in infrastructure design and management, and project management. Her consulting experience spanned eight years and included extensive work with the US military in Japan, Korea, and Hawaii. In 2008 Elizabeth shifted the focus of her career to education and academia, later receiving her Ph.D. in Civil Engineering from Arizona State University. Prior to her position at Cal Poly Dr. Adams taught engineering for 13 years in community colleges in Arizona and California. Her work highlights a commitment to undergraduate engineering education and its improvement through best teaching practices. Her research efforts are focused on increasing transfer student success.
Dr. Landis joined Clemson in June 2015 as the Thomas F. Hash ’69 Endowed Chair in Sustainable Development. Previously, she was an Associate Professor at Arizona State University in the School of Sustainable Engineering and the Built Environment. She began her career as an Assistant Professor at the University of Pittsburgh, after having obtained her PhD in 2007 from the University of Illinois at Chicago under the supervision of Dr. Thomas L. Theis. She has developed a research program in sustainable engineering of bioproducts. Her research ranges from design of systems based on industrial ecology and byproduct synergies, life cycle and sustainability assessments of biopolymers and biofuels, and design and analysis of sustainable solutions for healthcare. Since 2007, she has lead seven federal research projects and collaborated on many more, totaling over $7M in research, with over $12M in collaborative research. At ASU, Dr. Landis continues to grow her research activities and collaborations to include multidisciplinary approaches to sustainable systems with over 60 peer-reviewed publications. Dr. Landis is dedicated to sustainability engineering education and outreach; she works with local high schools, after school programs, local nonprofit organizations, and museums to integrate sustainability and engineering into K-12 and undergraduate curricula.
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