Dr. Norman Fortenberry, Executive Director of the American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE)
On Friday, February 11, Dr. Norman Fortenberry, Executive Director of the American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE), spoke to an audience of approximately 40 people, sharing thoughts and perspectives he’d gained during his career. His presentation, “21ST Century Engineering: Implications for Students, Faculty, and Curricula” provided staff and students valuable insight into promoting excellence in instruction, research, public service, and practice.
As part of the IEEI Distinguished Speaker Series, faculty, staff, and students will hear from current and former engineering leaders about their work to build inclusive, welcoming communities, in addition to providing a forum for advancing knowledge and fostering wide-ranging dialogue. The event was hosted by Dr. Tracy Hammond, Director, IEEI.
In this talk, Fortenberry reviewed the global context for engineering education and discussed the desired characteristics for 21st Century engineers (those that acknowledge unintended consequences of engineering work, and those that understand ethics at the level of the profession and not just the individual).
Fortenberry spoke about how to produce “socially good” engineers, and the implications for engineering students and their educations. He also highlighted relevant models of engineering education with examples to illustrate.
He had several recommendations on how institutions can re-vision engineering culture like raising awareness, using the implicit association test as a university-wide tool, revisiting gender bias through climate surveys, conducting curriculum reviews, encouraging innovation among faculty, and pairing faculty mentors with new hires.
Fortenberry also emphasized on the importance of building an equity-minded culture and keeping it at the forefront of strategic priorities.
The IEEI Distinguished Speaker series will continue to run throughout the academic year, and will feature current and former Engineering Education leaders.