2024 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

How Do We Take Full Advantage of the Academic Benefits of Student Competitions

Presented at Civil Engineering Division (CIVIL) - ASCE Collaborations

The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) organizes and hosts two popular civil engineering student competitions each year: Concrete Canoe and Steel Bridge. Many colleges and universities that compete in these competitions are voluntary clubs for students to participate in ranging from freshman to graduate students. Their primary purpose, to win. However, winning is not the only benefit of these competitions. By participating, students are exposed to an open-ended, interdisciplinary problem, which requires them to apply fundamental civil engineering concepts, think critically about a problem, and formulate innovative solutions. Moreover, it provides the students with an opportunity to apply the technical knowledge they gained during their academic journey such as structural analysis, project planning and management, design optimization, and evaluation of sustainability and economic considerations applied against a real-world scenario. Many of these desired goals are difficult to attain in a traditional classroom setting and are not realized till students complete their senior capstone design projects. Senior capstone design projects are the culminating experience for undergraduate civil engineering majors. Student’s performance on these projects may serve as an individual assessment tool that allows programs to evaluate the student learning objectives in accordance with the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET) student outcomes. The ABET student outcomes include a student’s ability to apply knowledge, design, communication both written and orally, conduct experiments, and function effectively as a member of a team. One of the main considerable challenges for civil engineering programs is properly scoping capstone projects so each team member demonstrates the pre-mentioned five student outcomes. This project details the multiyear evolution of offering the ASCE Concrete Canoe and ASCE/American Institute of Steel Construction (AISC) Steel Bridge Competitions as senior capstone experiences. This paper aims to summarize the advantages of using the student competitions as senior capstone design projects. It outlines the organization and assignments used to assess both individual and group performance. It will detail how instructors can use various aspects of the student competitions to assess each student outcome on an individual basis.

Authors

Carly Woelfel United States Military Academy
Major Brett Rocha P.E. http://orcid.org/0009-0003-2673-3448 United States Military Academy [biography]

MAJ Brett Rocha is a third year instructor at the US Military Academy in the Department of Civil and Mechanical Engineering. She received her B.S. in Civil Engineering from USMA in 2012, her M.S. in Engineering Management from Missouri University of Science and Technology in 2016, and her M.S. in Civil Engineering from University of Central Florida in 2021. She teaches mechanics of materials, design of steel structures, and design of concrete structures.
Dr. Kevin Francis McMullen http://orcid.org/https://0000-0002-2820-7682 United States Military Academy [biography]

Kevin McMullen is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Civil and Mechanical Engineering at the United States Military Academy, West Point, NY. He received his B.S. and Ph.D. in Civil Engineering from the University of Connecticut. His research interest areas include bridge engineering, protective structures, and engineering education.
Major Kevin Taylor Scruggs United States Military Academy [biography]

Major Kevin T. Scruggs is an Instructor in the Department of Civil and Mechanical Engineering at the United State Military Academy, West Point, NY. He earned a B.S. in Civil Engineering from the United States Military Academy and an M.S. in Civil Engineering from the University of Texas, Austin. His research interests include transportation engineering, concrete materials engineering, and sustainable engineering practices.
Dr. Talal Salem United States Military Academy [biography]

Dr. Talal Salem is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Civil and Mechanical Engineering at the United States Military Academy, West Point, New York.
Col. Aaron T Hill Jr. P.E. http://orcid.org/https://0000-0002-2441-4094 United States Military Academy [biography]

Colonel Aaron Hill is the Deputy Department Head and Professor U.S. Military Academy in the Department of Civil & Mechanical Engineering, responsible for teaching, scholarship, and leadership at the Academy and Department levels. He was commissioned as an Engineer Officer from the U.S. Military Academy in 1997, where he majored in Civil Engineering. He has served in a variety of assignments around the world, including Afghanistan, the Sinai Peninsula, Bosnia, and Croatia. COL Hill served in the department from 2006-2009 and from 2016 to the present. Along the way, he earned Master’s degrees in Engineering Management (Missouri S&T) and Civil Engineering (Virginia Tech) and a Ph.D. in Civil Engineering (The University of Texas at Austin). He has taught several courses in the civil engineering curriculum ranging from structural engineering and steel design to infrastructure systems and construction management. Each spring, he co-teaches Project Management Professional prep classes to the West Point community. His research interests include topics in structural engineering and engineering education. He serves as the Chair of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) Committee on Education Chair and the American Institute of Steel Construction (AISC) Partners in Education Committee Vice Chair. Additionally, he serves as the Head Officer Representative for Men’s Basketball. He is a licensed Professional Engineer in Virginia and a Project Management Professional.

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