2025 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

INdustry Sponsored Projects InspiRing Engineering Success (INSPIRES): Designing an Experiential Learning Course for Second-Year Students (Work in Progress)

Presented at Cooperative and Experiential Education Division (CEED): Assessment, Curriculum & Instructional Design

INSPIRES is a multidisciplinary experiential learning course, delivered in Fall 2024 to target second-year students. This two-credit hour course was designed to provide an introductory framework to guide student teams through project planning, management, and successful completion of real-world engineering challenges. Throughout the course, students integrated previous knowledge to complete engineering analysis; practiced elements of the engineering design process; developed and implement project plans; and practiced professional skills, such as working on teams and communicating technical outcomes effectively. Industry mentors/clients were recruited and provided topics for teams that resulted in three industry, one community-based, and one peer-mentor project. An electronic platform (EduSourced) was implemented for external mentors, in addition to the university blackboard system (Canvas) for internal use to grade assignments and monitor progress. Students were assigned teams via project bidding through EduSourced and were selected for projects based upon their project bidding interest, availability, and other demographics. An outline and description of course activities will be presented with individual team project results. In addition, the implementation of the EduSourced educational software for use by external mentors/clients will be discussed.

Authors

Dr. Shawna Fletcher http://orcid.org/0000-0001-8206-4400 Texas A&M University [biography]

SHAWNA L. FLETCHER, PhD ITDE, MS BME - Director of Project Teams and Experiential Learning within the Engineering Academic and Student Affairs (EASA) Department at Texas A&M University. She has mentored/advised engineering student project teams to attend statewide, national and international competitions for over two decades. Her expertise in directing programs and teaching include positions at Arizona State University (1997-2007), The Ohio State University (2011-2015), and Texas A&M University (2015 - present). Fletcher has also served in leadership positions as President/CEO of the Arizona Promotors of Applied Science in Education (APASE) (2006 - 2016), National Underwater Robotics Challenge (2007 - 2015), Carey Inspection Services (2001 - 2015), and American Association of University Women (AAUW) Columbus Branch (2011 - 2014) and Brazos Valley Branch (2016 - 2018).
Ms. Magdalini Z Lagoudas Texas A&M University [biography]

Magda Lagoudas, Executive Director for Industry & Nonprofit Partnerships, has been at Texas A&M University since 1992 and served on several capacities across the College of Engineering, including Director for the Space Engineering Institute and Associate Director for the Space Engineering Research Center. Current responsibilities include pursuing strategic partnerships with industry to provide engineering students with opportunities to collaborate on multidisciplinary teams addressing real world challenges and with industry engagement. College signature programs include the Texas A&M I-Corps Site, AggiE_Challenge, INSPIRES, and two annual Project Showcases. Magda is the Principal Investigator of the Texas A&M University I-Corps Site grant and has been active in promoting entrepreneurship both at the local and national level. Member, Institute for Engineering Education & Innovation.

2025 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

INdustry Sponsored Projects InspiRing Engineering Success (INSPIRES): Designing an Experiential Learning Course for Second-Year Students (Work in Progress)

Presented at Cooperative and Experiential Education Division (CEED): Assessment, Curriculum & Instructional Design

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