2026 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

WIP: Navigating Scale and Scope: Designing a Preeminent First-Year Experience in Engineering—A Case Study in Curricular Overhaul, Collaborative Implementation, and Entrepreneurial-Minded Learning

Presented at First-Year Programs Division (FPD) Poster Session

This Work in Progress paper details the historical process of designing and implementing a new Common First-Year (CFY) program for the William States Lee College of Engineering at UNC Charlotte. Spanning a nearly three-year period, this initiative aimed to develop a new first-year course structure based on modern pedagogies, current technologies, and a holistic multi-disciplinary approach, with the goal of creating a preeminent first-year experience for our students. The program was designed to provide students with a strong foundation in core skills, allowing them to explore various disciplines before declaring a major.

A unique aspect of this initiative has been the intentional inclusion of a cross-collaboration model involving faculty and staff from different departments within the College, and with campus partners. The curriculum design was heavily influenced by the Kern Entrepreneurial Engineering Network (KEEN) framework, which embeds Entrepreneurial-Minded Learning (EML) concepts such as curiosity, connections, and value creation into each new course. The initiative also required addressing new College-based policies related to admissions, which has allowed for a larger and more diverse enrollment. Additionally, a new University-based approach to classroom assignment policies made it necessary to leverage existing active learning classroom spaces, while doubling or tripling first-year engineering class sizes.

With an expected enrollment increase of approximately 45%, the largest in the program’s history, the College hired five new faculty members to support first-year instruction and curriculum development and recruited three additional discipline-specific faculty from partner departments to contribute to the initiative. We are currently in the first-semester implementation of this program and have not formally assessed or measured outcomes for any of the four new courses. Our early observations suggest high levels of student engagement and positive feedback from both students and instructors regarding the new CFY courses.

Although formal assessment and long-term learning outcome measures are still in progress, the success of the curriculum redesign will be evaluated using metrics related to academic performance, student retention, engagement, and self-efficacy, as well as faculty perceptions of interdisciplinary and cross-department collaboration. It is our expectation that students who successfully complete all needed CFY courses will transition from their first-to-second years having developed a broader set of necessary fundamental skills, while cultivating a deeper level of foundational understanding of the College of Engineering degree programs and associated careers, allowing them to accurately chart their path forward. This Work in Progress paper outlines the challenges and successes of this multifaceted collaboration model and provides a detailed timeline of the curriculum development process, offering a case study for other institutions pursuing similar curricular overhauls.

Keywords: Common First-Year; Curriculum Development; Multidisciplinary; KEEN; Active Learning; Holistic

Authors

Mr. Kevin Lindsay University of North Carolina at Charlotte [biography]

My name is Kevin Lindsay, and I am an Associate Professor of Practice and Director for the Lee College of Engineering's Maximizing Academic and Professional Success (MAPS) Program. I have been working in the Lee College of Engineering since 2014, and I came to UNC Charlotte after 10 years at the Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI) in Baltimore, Maryland. My time at STScI culminated in my final duties as a Senior Research and Instrument Analyst, working on astrophysics research, astronomical data analysis, and space-based instrumentation characterization and calibration.
Dr. Yi Cao UNC Charlotte [biography]

CAO Yi is a teaching assistant professor at William States Lee College of Engineering at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. She earned her PhD from the Department of Engineering Education at Virginia Tech. She also worked as a research associate at the International Center for Higher Education Innovation(ICHEI), a UNESCO Category 2 Center for two years.
Lisa Glymph Lattimore MBA, MS University of North Carolina at Charlotte [biography]

I am an Associate Professor of Practice for the Office of Student Success and Development within William States Lee College of Engineering at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. I am currently a doctoral student in Curriculum and Instruction focusing on STEM Education. I hold a Master of Business Administration from The College of William & Mary of Williamsburg VA and a Master of Science in food engineering from Cornell University of Ithaca NY. I graduated with a Bachelor of Science in chemical engineering from Syracuse University of Syracuse NY. Prior to my role at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, I was employed within the food and beverage, cosmetics, medical device and pharmaceutical industries for thirty years focusing on product/process development and quality compliance and management systems.
Mr. Sherman Mumford University of North Carolina at Charlotte [biography]

Sherman Mumford is a Senior Lecturer in the Lee College of Engineering at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. He serves as Director of Engage ME!, a mentoring and support program for broadening participation in Engineering, Engineering Technology and Construction Management. A graduate of UNC Charlotte and Eastern Michigan University, he previously held engineering and manufacturing leadership roles in Fortune 500 companies across the commercial vehicle, aerospace, defense, and diagnostic imaging sectors. His work in continuous improvement, ergonomics, automation, and robotics earned multiple quality achievement awards. Additionally he has earned professional certifications, including Six Sigma Green Belt, CMfgE, and ASQ‑CQE. Mr. Mumford is an active member of ASEE, NSBE, and SME, and serves on several STEM education advisory boards. His teaching and service focus on student success, inclusive excellence, and strengthening STEM identity and belonging.
Dr. Rachael B. Ohu University of North Carolina at Charlotte [biography]

Dr. Rachael Ohu is a Lecturer and serves as the Director of the WE Engage! (Women Engineers Engaging the World) program in the Office of Student Development and Success in the William States Lee College of Engineering at UNC Charlotte. Dr. Ohu's teaching centers on first-year student engagement and foundational skills, including teaching Engineering Visualization and Graphical Communication (ENGR 1303), Engineering Pathways (ENGR 1100), and Engineering Practices and Principles (ENGR 1201). She also previously taught first-year engineering courses at Montana State University, Billings. She is dedicated to the holistic development of early-career students, guiding them in exploring engineering career paths, and providing focused support for female engineering students. Dr. Ohu earned her M.Sc. and Ph.D. degrees in Structural Engineering from Universiti Putra Malaysia and her BSc. Eng. degree in Civil and Water Resources Engineering from the University of Maiduguri in Nigeria. Her professional background includes industry experience as a structural engineering consultant in Abuja, Nigeria, specializing in multi-story structures and reinforced concrete design.
Her academic expertise in Structural Engineering—including her research specialization in the structural strengthening and rehabilitation of reinforced concrete structures—informs her instruction, allowing her to connect core engineering principles to real-world infrastructure challenges.

Note

The full paper will be available to logged in and registered conference attendees once the conference starts on June 21, 2026, and to all visitors after the conference ends on June 24, 2026

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