2025 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Case Study: Professional Society Faculty Advisor Training Increases Student Engagement

Presented at Student Services & Supports

The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) has invested significantly in developing and supporting student chapters, recognizing that student member engagement is key to transitioning into professional membership. Faculty and Practitioner Advisors (FAs and PAs) provide long-term mentorship and are integral to student engagement. Skills acquired outside the classroom are essential and ASCE student chapters provide members with engagement opportunities to practice what cannot be taught in the classroom. Further, many advisors take on the role out of obligation, often without fully realizing the personal and professional benefits it offers. To address this, ASCE launched the Practitioner and Faculty Advisor Training Workshop (PFATW) in 2000 to empower advisors to expand their professional networks, learn strategies for student chapter successes, and collaborate on solutions to common student chapter challenges. Faculty are provided with resources that they can take back to their universities to support their students better. At the end of the program, advisors are not only equipped with valuable information, but also gain a network of colleagues that they can reach out to for support and advice. Data comparing advisors who attended PFATW to those who did not, show an increase in student engagement and performance, as indicated by the chapter annual report score. Successful student chapters are supported by trained advisors that not only enhance student engagement experiences, but the quality of activities and competitions the chapter participates in.

Authors

Dr. Seema C Shah-Fairbank P.E. California State Polytechnic University, Pomona [biography]

Seema C. Shah-Fairbank is an professor in water resources at California State Polytechnic University in Pomona. She teaches service courses, in addition to hydrology, hydraulics and environmental engineering. She is an active member of the American Society of Civil Engineers. Over the past few years she has been on the Committee for Student Members where she is involved with helping student chapters succeed through leadership training of both faculty and students.
Dr. Eric Steward http://orcid.org/0000-0002-1714-740X University of South Alabama [biography]

Associate Dean, College of Engineering at the University of South Alabama
Dr. Nelson Román Gómez-Torres http://orcid.org/0000-0003-1077-4600 The University of Texas at Arlington [biography]

Nelson R. Gómez-Torres, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor of Instruction in the University of Texas at Arlington Civil Engineering Department. He earned his Ph.D. in Civil Engineering with a focus on Transportation Engineering from the University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez. With over a decade of experience in engineering education, he has served in various academic leadership roles, including Director of Engineering Programs and Department Head at Universidad Ana G. Méndez and Caribbean University. His work focuses on enhancing student engagement, innovative teaching practices, and transportation engineering education. Dr. Gómez-Torres actively advises the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) student chapter at UTA and serves on the ASCE's Committee on Student Members that supports student success and professional development. His scholarly contributions include publications and presentations on transportation systems, sustainability, and engineering education practices.

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