The Engineering Education Frontier
Julia Ross, professor and chair of chemical and biochemical engineering at UMBC, was selected to attend the National Academy of Engineers (NAE) first Frontiers of Engineering Education (FOEE) symposium. Ross joined 49 of the nations brightest engineering researchers and educators who are developing and implementing innovative educational approaches in a variety of disciplines and are in the first half of their careers. Ross was the only participant chosen from a Maryland institution.
Throughout the 2-1/2-day event, educators and researchers shared ideas, learned from research and best practices in education and left with a charter to bring about improvement at their home institution. The participants were chosen from a competitive pool of applicants and were nominated by fellow engineers or deans.
Rosss research focuses around the application of chemical engineering principles to examine how cells bind to one another. Her goal is to identify and understand the mechanisms involved in the process so cells can be manipulated to achieve advances in engineering. When it comes to education, Ross feels the need to recruit more students into engineering fields is urgent. Although employment opportunities for engineering graduates are stable, enrollments have declined. Rosss goal is to attract more students to the engineering fields by preparing them at the high school level. She is currently working on high school curricula that will make this possible.
The FOEE program gave Ross and others a unique venue to share and explore innovations in teaching and learning. NAE President Charles M. Vest hopes that FOEE will become a major force in identifying, recognizing and promulgating advances and innovations to build a strong intellectual infrastructure and commitment to 21st-century engineering education.
Ross was nominated by Warren DeVries, dean of the College of Engineering and Information Technology and a professor of mechanical engineering.
The symposium was held November 15-18 in Herndon, Virginia.
(11/18/09)
