Texas A&M Helps ‘Engineer’ The Educational Pipeline In Texas With Innovative Outreach Programs
Among the most effective ways for Texas A&M University to help build the educational pipeline in Texas is through outreach, which is especially critical in the high need STEM fields (science, technology, engineering and math).
One proponent of the outreach and recruitment model is Joseph Morgan, professor of engineering technology and director of the Mobile Integrated Solutions Laboratory ESET (electronic systems engineering technology) program. Morgan noticed that over the last few years the number of undergraduate students in electrical and mechanical engineering and computer science was in decline.
“We all knew we had a national and state need for professionals who were proficient in the STEM fields and that we weren’t training enough of them,” says Morgan.
“We realized that it was imperative to do more outreach at the high school level,” Morgan adds. “In this department, we wanted to engage students in the world of electronics and software development so they would be prepared to meet the complex technical challenges of society and ultimately make a real contribution to the state of Texas and beyond.”
Jay Porter, professor of engineering technology and program director for ESET, agrees. “All of us recognize that students need to see the value in being able to produce things, be innovative and build products in the United States — this is a national need that must be met.”
Four years ago, students in the electronic systems program (formerly known as electronics and telecommunications) came up with the phrase: “There is a crisis at Texas A&M and we’re it.” But as Morgan explains, “The phrase is ironic; because crisis was spelled ‘krisys,’ and referred to the code name for the overwhelmingly successful robotics workshop that was developed by the undergraduate students.”
In a Krisys Robotics Workshop, students are divided into teams of four (three high school students paired with a sophomore engineering student) and within a week, not only build and assemble a small three-wheeled “robot/vehicle” but then populate the control/ driver circuit board, install it on the mechanical robot and design the program that allows the vehicle to navigate and race on a circuitous path. As daunting as that sounds, the workshops not only inspire and motivate the student team members, but the racing competition that caps the experience brings out the competitive spirit of all participants.
“What’s really exciting about Krisys,” says Porter, “is that we discovered that when college sophomores are mentoring high school students, those high school students not only learn more, but also say to themselves: ‘Hey, in two or three years I can be YOU!’ And that epitomizes how we think outreach and recruiting should be done. The challenge, of course, is to reach these kids even earlier in the education pipeline — in grade school and middle school — so they take the right courses to prepare for a STEM major.”
Krisys Workshops have become a focal point for a variety of outstanding outreach programs across campus, including the College of Education and Human Development’s Youth Adventure Program; the Women Exploring Engineering Summer Camp; the E-12 Summer Camp program targeting twelve Texas high schools based on demographics, TEA performance ratings and other criteria; The Summer Transfer Engineering Workshops (STEW) aimed at community college students and others.
Media Contact: Lynn Paris, Texas A&M News & Information Services.