ASEE K12 Division Newsletter

May 27, 2015

Included File

Dear ASEE K12 and Precollege Engineering Division Members,

Happy May!  I am going to split this newsletter into two sections.  The first will focus on announcements for everyone, and the second section will focus on information for those able to attend the ASEE Annual Conference in Seattle in June.

For All:

Please read and comment on the beta version of the ASEE’s Strategic Action Plan before the May 31 deadline: http://www.asee.org/strategic_doing.  Your executive board hopes that you will consider the mission and vision of this division as well as your own work in K12 and Precollege.  Many members of the K12 and Precollege executive board have signed on to a lengthy comment about the role of K12 in this plan that has been submitted for posting.  Note that the website allows you to “like” other posts.  We hope that you will read and consider the executive board’s post.

Do you live in the Seattle area of have friends who do?  Be sure to encourage them to register for the K12 Workshop that we will host on Saturday, June 13!  Note that Boeing is sponsoring a registration discount for the first 150 teacher registrations!  Lots more information and a link to the registration system here: http://www.asee.org/conferences-and-events/conferences/k12-workshop/2015.

Given the very large amount of abstracts and papers that are submitted to our division each year as a part of the ASEE Conference, we have had to move away from a single person creating our program to a true committee approach.  This year we have Merredith Portsmore, Tufts CEEO, at our helm (thanks, Merredith!) and she called upon past program chair, Sharlene Yang, and program chair-elect, Nancy Ruzycki, to make everything happen.  To follow up on this and make it more official, we need to make some minor changes to our bylaws.  Please see the attached document for a list of the minor edits we propose making to our bylaws related to this topic and a couple other minor edits that were noticed in this review.  Our 21 day of comment on this topic continues.  We will close this period on Wednesday, June 10, at 5pm central.  Thanks in advance for your responses!

Be sure to sign up for the Center for STEM Education for Girls’ STEM Think Tank and Conference!  It will be held July 8-10 on the campus of the Harpeth Hall School in Nashville, TN, and is hosted by yours truly, Stacy Klein-Gardner.  Our keynote speaker is Dr. Kristina Johnson, former undersecretary of energy and current CEO of Enduring Hydro, LLC.  Find more information at http://stemefg.org/index.php/think-tank-and-conference/.   Download the conference app at the App Store or on Google Play; search for “STEM Think Tank”.

Seeking [collegiate] faculty partners for research about student resistance to active learning: Our research team is studying student resistance to faculty’s use of active learning in the classroom in an effort to identify evidence-based strategies instructors can use to reduce that resistance. We are currently recruiting faculty partners to participate in our research during the coming year. If you are interested, please read more below and complete this application before June 8, 2015.  If you use active learning in your teaching (e.g., have students solve problems in class or use think/pair/share activities), and if you will be teaching an introductory engineering course (i.e., a course in which more than 80% of the enrolled students are typically first- or second-year engineering students) during the coming academic year, we invite you to apply to be a faculty partner.  We will study the active learning practices of our faculty partners and will assess the evolution of student engagement in their classrooms. Specifically, we will ask our partners to work with us to gain IRB approval for the research, to administer a series of short student surveys during the term, and to complete two instructor surveys. Our partners will have an opportunity to reflect on their use of active learning, will have early access to our research findings, and will be offered a $200 honorarium as compensation for their efforts. The application deadline is June 8, 2015. Please contact Cindy Finelli (cfinelli@umich.edu) with questions.

For Those Attending ASEE Annual Conference in Seattle in June:

As you’re making your plans for the ASEE Conference in Seattle, please be sure to mark your calendars for these important division events:

The K12 division is co-sponsoring the Diversity Booth this year!  I hope that many of you will consider spending a session in the booth serving as the K12 representative.  We’ll have division materials that you can share there as well as sharing your own expertise.  So, if diversity is your thing, please sign up here:

ASEE Diversity Booth at 2015 Annual Conference – Sign-up Sheet

You may also be interested in participating in some of the sessions related to the beta version of the Strategic Doing document.  I hope you will consider attending and adding more voices around the K12 division here.

T457·ASEE Strategic Doing Listening Session

Business · ASEE Board of Directors

Tue. June 16, 2015 12:30 PM to 2:00 PM

Washington State Convention Center, Exhibit Hall 4 ABC

Session Description:   A special session with ASEE senior leadership, including President Nick Altiero, Immediate Past President Ken Galloway, President-Elect Joe Rencis, and incoming President-Elect Louie Martin-Vega. The senior leadership will briefly provide a short update on the status of the ASEE Strategic Doing process and Beta version plan. We will then ask the attendees to tell us what you’d like ASEE to be for you. Finally, attendees will have an opportunity to participate in a small team activity to identify potential strategic projects. This session will be held in the Innovation Pavilion on the Exhibit Hall Floor and is open to all attendees. See more at: http://www.asee.org/public/conferences/56/registration/view_session?session_id=5334#sthash.rdZoUv50.dpuf

Another special session of interest to some will be this session:

M565A·Conversation with Your Dean – Special Session

Business · Engineering Deans Council

Mon. June 15, 2015 2:30 PM to 3:30 PM

Sheraton Seattle, Cirrus

Session Description: This session is an opportunity for faculty and academic staff to chat with their deans about what they are learning or hope to learn at the ASEE Conference as well as to discuss ideas for programs or initiatives to advance engineering education. The goal is to support departmental or institutional efforts by providing a dedicated space for engaged discussion among campus colleagues.  See more at: http://www.asee.org/public/conferences/56/registration/view_session?session_id=5379#sthash.Ifoz7HlE.dpuf

The K-12 & Pre-College Engineering division has been selected to participate in a very exciting “Customer Discovery” initiative. ASEE is part of an NSF funded project aimed to better understand how to build and sustain online communities of practice. Communities of practice (CoP) are essentially groups of individuals who share a concern or passion for a topic AND have a desire to deepen their knowledge/expertise in this area through regular interactions.  In an effort to understand how to successfully cultivate and sustain online communities of practice for those interested in advancing STEM education, we are very interested in hearing from you. At our 2015 annual conference in Seattle, we will conduct 20-25 minute interviews with conference attendees to hear their ideas and suggestions.

If you are interested in participating, please respond no later than midnight, Sunday, June 7, 2015.

 Please go to:

https://doodle.com/53uhhmwswnrfk3ii

to schedule an interview time to have you voice heard and assist ASEE as we aim to better serve our members.

If you have any questions for concerns, please contact Stacie Gregory at s.gregory@asee.org or 202-350-5750.

Please don’t hesitate to reach out to me directly for the next two weeks with information that should be shared with the division or if you have questions or concerns about division work.  After this time, I’ll be turning over the newsletter writing duties to Chai-Elect Pam Lottero-Perdue.  It’s easiest to reach me by email at stacy.klein-gardner@vanderbilt.edu.

With best regards,

Stacy

_______________________________________________________________________________

Stacy S. Klein-Gardner, Ph.D.

Adjoint Associate Professor of the Practice of Biomedical Engineering

Adjoint Associate Professor of the Practice of Radiology and Radiological Sciences

Vanderbilt University

 

Chair, K12 and Precollege Engineering Division

American Society for Engineering Education

 

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