American Society for Engineering Education
Encyclopedia
The American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE) is a non-profit member association, founded in 1893, dedicated to promoting and improving engineering
and engineering technology education.
ASEE is more than 12,000 deans, professors, instructors, students and industry representatives.
It accomplishes its mission by
In pursuit of academic excellence, ASEE develops policies and programs that enhance professional opportunities for engineering faculty members, and promotes activities that support increased student enrollments in engineering and engineering technology colleges and universities. Strong communication and collaboration with national and international organizations further advances ASEE’s mission.
ASEE also fulfills its mission by providing a valuable communication link among corporations, government agencies, and educational institutions. ASEE’s organizational membership is composed of 400 engineering and engineering technology colleges and affiliates, more than 50 corporations, and numerous government agencies and professional associations. ASEE directs many of its efforts at providing for open and ongoing dialogues among these groups.
After a generation of students had passed through these new public universities, professors of engineering began to question whether they should adopt a more rigorous approach to teaching the fundamentals of their field. Ultimately, they concluded that engineering curricula should stress fundamental scientific and mathematical principles, not hands-on apprenticeship experiences. To organize support for this approach to engineering education, SPEE was formed in the midst of the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair. Known as the World's Columbian Exposition
, this event heralded the promise of science and engineering by introducing many Americans, for example, to the wonders of electricity. Emerging out of the Fair’s World Engineering Congress, SPEE members dedicated themselves to improving engineering education at the classroom level. Over its history, the society has put out several reports on the subject, such as the Mann Report (1907), the Wickenden Study (1920s), and the Grinter Report (1955).
During World War II
, the federal government started to place more emphasis on research, prompting SPEE to form the Engineering College Research Association (ECRA), which was more concerned with research than SPEE had ever been. The ECRA spoke for most engineering researchers, sought federal funds, and collected and published information on academic engineering research. After the war, the desire to integrate the less research-oriented SPEE with the ECRA resulted in the disbanding of SPEE and the formation of ASEE in 1946.
ASEE was a volunteer-run organization through the 1950s. In 1961, ASEE established a staff headquarters in Washington, DC, and undertook a more activist posture. However, through the 1960s, the Vietnam War
and social unrest in general made the mood on many campuses anti-technology, anti-business, and anti-establishment. In the 1960s and 1970s, ASEE presidents Merritt Williams and George Hawkins reorganized ASEE to better represent its members and return its focus to teaching. As a result of this new focus, ASEE began to administer several teaching-related government contracts, including NASA’s summer faculty fellowships and the Defense Department’s Civil Defense Summer Institutes and Fellowships. Currently, ASEE administers over ten government contracts, including the prestigious National Science Foundation
's Graduate Research Fellowship Program.
Another result of the renewed emphasis on teaching was ASEE’s initiative for recruiting minorities and women into engineering. ASEE created the Black Engineering College Development program which used industry funding to upgrade engineering faculty in traditionally black colleges and to develop public information on these schools. ASEE also received several grants in the 1970s to research the status of women and American Indians and develop programs to attract more of these students to enter engineering. Since then, ASEE has continued to release studies on the subject in its Journal of Engineering Education, and has created divisions specifically devoted to developing programs and research in this area.
With the rise of Silicon Valley
in the 1990’s and the prospect of significant off-shoring of high-tech companies’ activities, the importance of engineering education to America’s continued success has finally made headlines. As a result, ASEE has seen a rise in membership and recognition over the recent years as a clearinghouse of information about engineering education and an important tool in shaping the future of the field.
Engineering
Engineering is the discipline, art, skill and profession of acquiring and applying scientific, mathematical, economic, social, and practical knowledge, in order to design and build structures, machines, devices, systems, materials and processes that safely realize improvements to the lives of...
and engineering technology education.
ASEE is more than 12,000 deans, professors, instructors, students and industry representatives.
It accomplishes its mission by
- promoting excellence in instruction, research, public service, and practice;
- fostering the technological education of society; and
- providing quality products and services to members.
In pursuit of academic excellence, ASEE develops policies and programs that enhance professional opportunities for engineering faculty members, and promotes activities that support increased student enrollments in engineering and engineering technology colleges and universities. Strong communication and collaboration with national and international organizations further advances ASEE’s mission.
ASEE also fulfills its mission by providing a valuable communication link among corporations, government agencies, and educational institutions. ASEE’s organizational membership is composed of 400 engineering and engineering technology colleges and affiliates, more than 50 corporations, and numerous government agencies and professional associations. ASEE directs many of its efforts at providing for open and ongoing dialogues among these groups.
Publications
ASEE produces many publications on the topic of engineering education, including Prism, a popular monthly covering the pervasive role of engineering in the world, the Journal of Engineering Education, a peer-reviewed international journal dedicated to scholarly research in engineering education, Profiles of Engineering and Engineering Technology Colleges, the leading source of data on engineering colleges and universities, and eGFI: Engineering, Go For It!, designed to attract high school students and their parents and teachers to the wide world of engineering and technology. It does this by focusing on the things, activities, and people that inform teens' lives.History
Founded initially as the Society for the Promotion of Engineering Education (SPEE) in 1893, the society was created at a time of great growth in American higher education. In 1862, Congress passed the Morrill Land-Grant Act, which provided money for states to establish public institutions of higher education. These institutions focused on providing practical skills, especially “for the benefit of Agriculture and the Mechanic Arts.” As a result of increasingly available higher education, more Americans started entering the workforce with advanced training in applied fields of knowledge. However, they often lacked grounding in the science and engineering principles underlying this practical knowledge.After a generation of students had passed through these new public universities, professors of engineering began to question whether they should adopt a more rigorous approach to teaching the fundamentals of their field. Ultimately, they concluded that engineering curricula should stress fundamental scientific and mathematical principles, not hands-on apprenticeship experiences. To organize support for this approach to engineering education, SPEE was formed in the midst of the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair. Known as the World's Columbian Exposition
World's Columbian Exposition
The World's Columbian Exposition was a World's Fair held in Chicago in 1893 to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival in the New World in 1492. Chicago bested New York City; Washington, D.C.; and St...
, this event heralded the promise of science and engineering by introducing many Americans, for example, to the wonders of electricity. Emerging out of the Fair’s World Engineering Congress, SPEE members dedicated themselves to improving engineering education at the classroom level. Over its history, the society has put out several reports on the subject, such as the Mann Report (1907), the Wickenden Study (1920s), and the Grinter Report (1955).
During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, the federal government started to place more emphasis on research, prompting SPEE to form the Engineering College Research Association (ECRA), which was more concerned with research than SPEE had ever been. The ECRA spoke for most engineering researchers, sought federal funds, and collected and published information on academic engineering research. After the war, the desire to integrate the less research-oriented SPEE with the ECRA resulted in the disbanding of SPEE and the formation of ASEE in 1946.
ASEE was a volunteer-run organization through the 1950s. In 1961, ASEE established a staff headquarters in Washington, DC, and undertook a more activist posture. However, through the 1960s, the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
and social unrest in general made the mood on many campuses anti-technology, anti-business, and anti-establishment. In the 1960s and 1970s, ASEE presidents Merritt Williams and George Hawkins reorganized ASEE to better represent its members and return its focus to teaching. As a result of this new focus, ASEE began to administer several teaching-related government contracts, including NASA’s summer faculty fellowships and the Defense Department’s Civil Defense Summer Institutes and Fellowships. Currently, ASEE administers over ten government contracts, including the prestigious National Science Foundation
National Science Foundation
The National Science Foundation is a United States government agency that supports fundamental research and education in all the non-medical fields of science and engineering. Its medical counterpart is the National Institutes of Health...
's Graduate Research Fellowship Program.
Another result of the renewed emphasis on teaching was ASEE’s initiative for recruiting minorities and women into engineering. ASEE created the Black Engineering College Development program which used industry funding to upgrade engineering faculty in traditionally black colleges and to develop public information on these schools. ASEE also received several grants in the 1970s to research the status of women and American Indians and develop programs to attract more of these students to enter engineering. Since then, ASEE has continued to release studies on the subject in its Journal of Engineering Education, and has created divisions specifically devoted to developing programs and research in this area.
With the rise of Silicon Valley
Silicon Valley
Silicon Valley is a term which refers to the southern part of the San Francisco Bay Area in Northern California in the United States. The region is home to many of the world's largest technology corporations...
in the 1990’s and the prospect of significant off-shoring of high-tech companies’ activities, the importance of engineering education to America’s continued success has finally made headlines. As a result, ASEE has seen a rise in membership and recognition over the recent years as a clearinghouse of information about engineering education and an important tool in shaping the future of the field.
Presidents
- 1893-1894 - De Volson Wood
- 1894-1895 - G.F. Swain
- 1895-1896 - M. Merriman
- 1896-1897 - H.T. Eddy
- 1897-1898 - J.B. Johnson
- 1898-1899 - T.C. Mendenhall
- 1899-1900 - I.O. Baker
- 1900-1901 - F.O. Marvin
- 1901-1902 - R. Fletcher
- 1902-1903 - C.M. Woodward
- 1903-1904 - C.F. Allen
- 1904-1905 - F.W. McNair
- 1905-1906 - C.L. Crandall
- 1906-1907 - Dugald C. Jackson
- 1907-1908 - C.S. Howe
- 1908-1909 - F.E. Turneaure
- 1909-1910 - H.S. Monroe
- 1910-1911 - A.N. Talbot
- 1911-1912 - W.G. Raymond
- 1912-1913 - W.T. Magruder
- 1913-1914 - G.C. Anthony
- 1914-1915 - A. Marston
- 1915-1916 - H.S. Jacoby
- 1916-1917 - G.R. Chatburn
- 1917-1918 - M.S. Ketchum
- 1918-1919 - J.F. Hayford
- 1919-1920 - A.M. Greene, Jr.
- 1920-1921 - M.E. Cooley
- 1921-1923 - C.F. Scott
- 1923-1924 - P.F. Walker
- 1924-1925 - A.A. Potter
- 1925-1926 - G.B. Pegram
- 1926-1927 - O.M. Leland
- 1927-1928 - R.L. Sackett
- 1928-1929 - D.S. Kimball
- 1929-1930 - R.I. Rees
- 1930-1931 - H.S. Boardman
- 1931-1932 - H.S. Evans
- 1932-1933 - R.A. Seaton
- 1933-1934 - William E. Wickenden
- 1934-1935 - C.C. WIlliams
- 1935-1936 - D.S. Anderson
- 1936-1937 - H.P. Hammond
- 1937-1938 - S.B. Earle
- 1938-1939 - Karl T. Compton
- 1939-1940 - O.J. Ferguson
- 1940-1941 - D.B. Prentice
- 1941-1942 - A.H. White
- 1942-1943 - H.T. Heald
- 1943-1944 - Robert E. Doherty
- 1944-1946 - H.S. Rogers
- 1946-1947 - H.O. Croft
- 1947-1948 - C.E. MacQuigg
- 1948-1949 - Clement J. Freund
- 1949-1950 - T. Saville
- 1950-1951 - F.M. Dawson
- 1951-1952 - S.C. Hollister
- 1952-1953 - W.R. Woolrich
- 1953-1954 - L.E. Grinter
- 1954-1955 - N.W. Dougherty
- 1955-1956 - M.M. Boring
- 1956-1957 - W.L. Everitt
- 1957-1958 - F.C. Lindvall
- 1958-1959 - W.T. Alexander
- 1959-1960 - B.R. Teare, Jr.
- 1960-1961 - E.A. Walker
- 1961-1962 - R.W. Van Houten
- 1962-1963 - G. Murphy
- 1963-1964 - K.F. Wendt
- 1964-1965 - E.C. Easton
- 1965-1966 - G.D. Lobingier
- 1966-1967 - Robert H. Roy
- 1967-1968 - M.R. Lohmann
- 1968-1969 - C.C. Chambers
- 1969-1970 - M.A. Williamson
- 1970-1971 - G.A. Hawkins
- 1971-1972 - H.A. Bolz
- 1972-1973 - Joseph M. Petit
- 1973-1974 - John C. Calhoun, Jr.
- 1974-1975 - C. Wandmacher
- 1975-1976 - Lee Harrisberger
- 1976-1977 - George Burnet
- 1977-1978 - Otis E. Lancaster
- 1978-1979 - J.J. Martin
- 1979-1980 - C.E. Schaffner
- 1980-1981 - Vincent S. Haneman, Jr.
- 1981-1982 - Daniel C. Drucker
- 1982-1983 - Joseph C. Hogan
- 1983-1984 - John C. Hancock
- 1984-1985 - Richard J. Ungrodt
- 1985-1986 - Robert N. Mills
- 1986-1987 - Edmund T. Cranch
- 1987-1988 - Robert H. Page
- 1988-1989 - Lawrence P. Grayson
- 1989-1990 - Anthony B. Giordano
- 1990-1991 - Curtis J. Tompkins
- 1991-1992 - Leighton E. Sissom
- 1992-1993 - J.Ray Bowen
- 1993-1994 - George E. Dieter
- 1994-1995 - Cary A. Fisher
- 1995-1996 - Eleanor Baum
- 1996-1997 - Winfred M. Phillips
- 1997-1998 - Lyle D. Feisel
- 1998-1999 - Ernest T. Smerdon
- 1999-2000 - John A. Weese
- 2000-2001 - Wallace T. Fowler
- 2001-2002 - Gerald S. Jakubowski
- 2002-2003 - Eugene M. DeLoatch
- 2003-2004 - Duane L. Abata
- 2004-2005 - Sherra E. Kerns
- 2005-2006 - Ronald Barr
Past
- 1893 - Chicago, Ill.
- 1894 - Polytechnic Institute of Brooklyn
- 1895 - Springfield, Mass.
- 1896 - Buffalo, N.Y.
- 1897 - University of Toronto
- 1898 - Boston, Mass.
- 1899 - The Ohio State University
- 1900 - Columbia University
- 1901 - Buffalo, N.Y.
- 1902 - Pittsburgh, Pa.
- 1903 - Niagara Falls, N.Y.
- 1904 - St. Louis, Mo.
- 1905 - Atlantic City, N.J.
- 1906 - Cornell University
- 1907 - Case School of Applied Science
- 1908 - Detroit, Mich.
- 1909 - Columbia University
- 1910 - University of Wisconsin
- 1911 - Carnegie Institute of Technology and University of Pittsburgh
- 1912 - M.I.T., Harvard and Wentworth
- 1913 - University of Minnesota
- 1914 - Princeton University
- 1915 - Iowa State College
- 1916 - University of Virginia
- 1917 - Washington, D.C.
- 1918 - Cambridge, Mass.
- 1918 - Northwestern University
- 1919 - The Johns Hopkins University
- 1920 - University of Michigan
- 1921 - Yale University
- 1922 - University of Illinois
- 1923 - Cornell University
- 1924 - University of Colorado
- 1925 - Union College
- 1926 - State University of Iowa
- 1927 - University of Maine
- 1928 - University of North Carolina
- 1929 - The Ohio State University
- 1930 - Ecole Polytechnic
- 1931 - Purdue University
- 1932 - Oregon State College
- 1933 - Stevens Hotel, Chicago
- 1934 - Cornell University
- 1935 - Georgia School of Technology
- 1936 - University of Wisconsin
- 1937 - M.I.T. and Harvard University`
- 1938 - A&M College of Texas
- 1939 - Pennsylvania State College
- 1940 - University of California, Berkeley
- 1941 - University of Michigan
- 1942 - New York City
- 1943 - I.I.T. and Northwestern University
- 1944 - University of Cincinnati
- 1945 - Washington University
- 1946 - Washington University
- 1947 - University of Minnesota
- 1948 - University of Texas
- 1949 - R.P.I.
- 1950 - University of Washington
- 1951 - Michigan State College
- 1952 - Dartmouth College
- 1953 - University of Florida
- 1954 - University of Illinois
- 1955 - The Pennsylvania State University
- 1956 - Iowa State College
- 1957 - Cornell University
- 1958 - University of California, Berkeley
- 1959 - University of Pittsburgh and Carnegie Institute of Technology
- 1960 - Purdue University
- 1961 - University of Kentucky
- 1962 - U.S. Air Force Academy
- 1963 - University of Pennsylvania
- 1964 - University of Maine
- 1965 - I.I.T.
- 1966 - Washington State University
- 1967 - Michigan State University
- 1968 - UCLA (Diamond Jubilee)
- 1969 - The Pennsylvania State University
- 1970 - The Ohio State University
- 1971 - U.S. Naval Academy
- 1972 - Texas Tech University
- 1973 - Iowa State University
- 1974 - Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
- 1975 - Colorado State University
- 1976 - University of Tennessee, Knoxville
- 1977 - University of North Dakota
- 1978 - University of British Columbia
- 1979 - Louisiana State University
- 1980 - University of Massachusetts--Amerherst
- 1981 - University of Southern California
- 1982 - Texas A&M University
- 1983 - Rochester Institute of Technology
- 1984 - University of Utah, Brigham Young, Weber State, & Utah State University
- 1985 - Georgia Institute of Technology
- 1986 - University of Cincinnati
- 1987 - University of Nevada, Reno
- 1988 - University of Nebraska-Lincoln
- 1990 - University of Toronto
- 1991 - University of New Orleans
- 1992 - University of Toledo
- 1993 - University of Illinois, Urbana/Champaign
- 1994 - Edmonton, Canada
- 1995 - Anaheim, CA
- 1996 - Washington, DC
- 1997 - Milwaukee, WI
- 1998 - Seattle, Washington
- 1999 - Charlotte, North Carolina
- 2000 - St. Louis, Missouri
- 2001 - Albuquerque, New Mexico
- 2002 - Montreal, Canada
- 2003 - Nashville, Tennessee
- 2004 - Salt Lake City, Utah
- 2005 - Portland, Oregon
- 2006 - Chicago, Illinois
- 2007 - Honolulu, Hawaii
- 2008 - Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Upcoming
- 2009 - AustinAustin, TexasAustin is the capital city of the U.S. state of :Texas and the seat of Travis County. Located in Central Texas on the eastern edge of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 14th most populous city in the United States. It was the third-fastest-growing large city in...
, TX (June 14-17) - 2010 - LouisvilleLouisville, KentuckyLouisville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kentucky, and the county seat of Jefferson County. Since 2003, the city's borders have been coterminous with those of the county because of a city-county merger. The city's population at the 2010 census was 741,096...
, KY (June 13-16) - 2011 - VancouverVancouverVancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
, BC, Canada (June 26-29) - 2012 - San AntonioSan Antonio, TexasSan Antonio is the seventh-largest city in the United States of America and the second-largest city within the state of Texas, with a population of 1.33 million. Located in the American Southwest and the south–central part of Texas, the city serves as the seat of Bexar County. In 2011,...
, TX (June 17-20)
External links
- Website of the American Society for Engineering Education
- eGFI: Engineering, Go For It! Website Creative Education Publication, Web Site and E-newsletter to Inspire America’s Engineers of Tomorrow. Highlighting the eGFI brand platform is the publication of the 4th edition of eGFI - Engineering, Go For It. eGFI is the colorful, inspiring magazine designed to attract middle-school and high-school students, particularly minorities and young women, and their parents, teachers and counselors to the exciting world of engineering and technology.
- eGFI: Engineering, Go For It! Magazine is designed to attract high school students and their parents and teachers to the wide world of engineering and technology. It does this by focusing on the things and activities and people that inform teens' lives. Engineering, Go For It! opens up new worlds of opportunities for teen-agers to consider as they make the decisions that will determine their future. Published bi-annually, eGFI has reached over 1.6 million K-12 readers since its inception in 2003.
- PRISM Magazine is the flagship publication of the American Society for Engineering Education, a nonprofit association of more than 12,000 engineering faculty members, U.S. colleges of engineering and engineering technology, corporations, and other organizations dedicated to promoting excellence in engineering and engineering technology education.
- ASEE Engineering &... blog
- ASEE Science and Engineering Fellowships blog
- Engineering Libraries Division
- The American Society for Engineering Education records, 1944-2001 (bulk 1960-1992) are located in the Northeastern University Libraries, Archives and Special Collections Department, Boston, MA.
- "A study of engineering education: prepared for the Joint Committee on Engineering Education of the National Engineering Societies" ("Mann Report," 1918)
- PDFs of select ASEE reports
- 1944 "Report of Committee on Engineering Education After the War" (a.k.a. "Hammond Report")
- 1956 General Education in Engineering (a.k.a. "Burdell-Gullette Report")
- 1968 Liberal Learning for the Engineer