EPICS to bring national service-learning leaders together
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Approximately 200 people from more than 90 universities throughout the United States and two other countries on May 24-25 will attend a national conference on service-learning in engineering at the National Academy of Engineering in Washington, D.C.Sponsored by the National Science Foundation and organized by Engineering Programs in Community Service, which is based at Purdue University, the conference seeks to expand engineering service-learning, which weaves community service into academic curricula.
"This will be the first time we have brought all the leaders in engineering service-learning together under one roof," said William Oakes, EPICS co-director and associate professor of engineering education. "By building a broader community, we hope to equip other people eager to start their own projects or institutionalize their own service-learning programs. We also plan to identify national needs in this emerging field."
Purdue President Martin C. Jischke will provide the keynote address on the future of service-learning. EPICS co-founder Leah Jamieson, Purdue College of Engineering interim dean and Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineering president-elect, also will speak on the benefits of engineering service-learning. Additional remarks will be provided by Wm. A. Wulf, president of the National Academy of Engineering. A conference schedule is available online.
Organizations being represented at the conference include Engineers Without Borders, Engineers for a Sustainable World, Environmental and Spatial Technology, the American Society of Civil Engineers and EPICS. Corporate participants will include Microsoft Corp., Hewlett-Packard Development Co., Rolls-Royce Corp., Bechtel Corp. and National Instruments Corp.
Founded at Purdue in 1995, EPICS harnesses the talents of students to solve real-world problems. Purdue's program includes about 400 students in 29 teams working on such projects as computer-controlled and electromechanical toys for preschool children with disabilities through the Greater Lafayette Area Special Services, an environmental monitoring system for the Art Museum of Greater Lafayette, and design systems and structures to minimize home construction and energy costs for Habitat for Humanity.
Fifteen additional higher education institutions have adopted the EPICS program, including the University of Notre Dame, Butler University, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Georgia Institute of Technology, University of California-Merced, University of California-San Diego, Columbia University, Penn State University, University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez, Worchester Polytechnic Institute, University of Dayton, Illinois Institute of Technology, Dartmouth, San Jose State and the University of Auckland, New Zealand, in addition to Bedford North Lawrence High School in Indianapolis.
Writer: Marydell Forbes, (765) 496-7704, mforbes@purdue.edu
Sources: William Oakes (765) 494-3892, oakes@purdue.edu
Diane Masters, national EPICS program coordinator, (765) 494-3750, epicsnational@purdue.edu
Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; purduenews@purdue.edu
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