2026 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Photovoice: Understanding How Engineering Students Engage, Reflect, and Grow Through a Learning Abroad Program in Brazil

Presented at International Division (INTL) Technical Session 5: Workforce Readiness, Employability, and Career Pathways (feat. INTL Best Paper Awards 2026)

Study abroad programs are recognized as a mechanism for fostering global competence, as high-quality experiences can cultivate the insight, skills, and motivation needed to thrive in international settings. However, significant barriers persist, including financial constraints, racism, lack of information, limited program options, and discomfort with unfamiliar environments. Students of color, in particular, often perceive study abroad processes as unwelcoming or inattentive to their needs. Furthermore, limited participation among faculty and staff of color may further deter student engagement. Simultaneously, while existing research has emphasized pre- and post-assessment of intercultural competence, emerging scholarship highlights the importance of understanding students’ lived experiences. Scholars argue that unplanned, spontaneous intercultural interactions often yield the most meaningful learning, suggesting that program design should intentionally create space for such experiences. To more fully understand the range of experiences students encounter abroad, this project is two-fold: (1) we designed an equity-centered learning abroad program that assembled an interdisciplinary, diverse cohort of students from a large public research university for a 10-day National Academy of Engineering (NAE) Grand Challenges–focused experience in Rio de Janeiro and Salvador, Brazil, and (2) we used Photovoice, a participatory action research method, to elicit images and rich experiential descriptions to answer our research question, using photovoice, how do participants describe their engineering abroad experience? Four engineering students completed two photo prompts focused on global engineering identity and key takeaways, and a post-program focus group to describe their images. Using thematic analysis, we inductively developed two themes: Dispelling Myths and Reframing Cultural Identity on a Global Stage, which describe how students dispelled myths, deepened cross-cultural understanding, and strengthened their self-concept as engineers. Findings highlight the value of intentionally designed learning abroad experiences that foreground reciprocal engagement and structured reflection, and they support the use of visual, dialogic methods to examine how engineering students develop global competence in context.

Authors

Dr. Jerrod A Henderson http://orcid.org/https://0000-0002-0501-5805 University of Houston - COE [biography]

Dr. Jerrod A. Henderson (“Dr. J”) is an Assistant Professor in the William A. Brookshire Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering in the Cullen College of Engineering at the University of Houston (UH).

He began his higher education pursuits at Morehouse College and North Carolina Agricultural & Technical State University, where he earned degrees in both Chemistry and Chemical Engineering as a part of the Atlanta University Center’s Dual Degree in Engineering Program. While in college, he was a Ronald E. McNair Scholar, which afforded him the opportunity to intern at NASA's Langley Research Center. He also earned distinction as a Phi Beta Kappa member and an American Chemical Society Scholar. Dr. Henderson completed his Ph.D. in Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. During his time as a graduate student, he was a NASA Harriet G. Jenkins Graduate Fellow.

Dr. Henderson has dedicated his career to increasing the number of students who are on pathways to pursue STEM careers. He believes that exposing students to STEM early will have a lasting impact on their lives and academic pursuits. He is the co-founder of the St. Elmo Brady STEM Academy (SEBA). SEBA is an educational intervention aimed at exposing fourth and fifth-grade students and their families to hands-on STEM experiences.

His research group aims to understand student engineering identity trajectories and success mechanisms, using interpretive qualitative, and action-based participatory research methods.

He was most recently recognized by INSIGHT Into Diversity Magazine as an Inspiring STEM Leader, by the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign with the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences (LAS) Outstanding Young Alumni Award, and with a National Science Foundation CAREER Award in 2023 to advance his work that centers engineering identities of Black men in engineering.
Geoff D. Green University of Houston [biography]

Geoff D. Green II, Ph.D. is a Postdoctoral Research Associate in the Authentic Community-Engaged Scholarship (ACES) in STEM Education Fellowship at the University of Houston. He earned his Ph.D. in Cognitive Brain Science from The Ohio State University and holds a B.S. in Neuroscience with a minor in Engineering Sciences. During his graduate studies, Dr. Green’s interdisciplinary research examined brain-to-brain synchrony and cognitive effort in communication, with his work published in the Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research and The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America. Following his doctoral training, Dr. Green spent several years consulting across education, corporate, and wellness sectors, developing evidence-based frameworks and leading seminars that help organizations transform stress into sustainable performance.
In his current role as an ACES Postdoctoral Research Associate, his research explores the intersection of stress, cognition, and human performance within engineering and STEM education. His work investigates how stress appraisal and neurocognitive processes influence learning, retention, and burnout, with the goal of designing educational environments that promote both academic excellence and mental wellbeing. He seeks to integrate neuroscience, education, and artificial intelligence to develop scalable, brain-based tools that enhance cognitive performance, equity, and student success
Dr. David Horton Jr. University of Houston [biography]

Dr. Horton is a Research Assistant Professor for STEM/Engineering Education. His research addresses the curricular and co-curricular experiences of marginalized groups within higher education, such as Black males, women,
and faculty of color. His work is most situated within minority serving institutions. He holds bachelor's and master's degrees in history from Dallas Baptist University. He earned his Ph.D. in
Higher Education Administration from the University of Florida in 2009.
Omar Joseph Sanchez University of Houston [biography]

Omar Sanchez is a Senior Undergraduate Research Assistant whose research examines the role of early STEM experiences and their impact on Black male undergraduates in engineering. His work focuses on cultivating early engineering identity through community engagement and hands-on STEM programming.

Omar has served as a STEM mentor for the St. Elmo Brady STEM Academy (SEBA) and has been actively involved with the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE), serving as both an officer and board member for the University of Houston chapter.

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