ASEE Conference in Pittsburgh 6/22-25

I'm freshly back from the 2008 ASEE conference in Pittsburgh.  Several things were reinforced for me:

• As I'd hoped, I met several of the AE program faculty that I expect to visit during the year, specifically John Phillips and Al Estes.  Both were helpful and cordial.  
• I was disappointed that ASEE didn't draw as many other AE folk as I'd imagined but I certainly understand the pressures of money, research and family responsibilities.  I've not been a regular attender either.
• I realize that I need to do quite a bit of reading so that I’m not repeating work that has already been accomplished by others. I'll be trolling the past ASEE conferences for relevant work.
• The objectives of my visiting each of the schools were tossed in the air and are somewhat confused.  That’s better before the trip than after. In particular, my conversations made it even more evidident that the diversity of approaches to AE overall makes it unlikely that I'm going to find much agreement on what is design or how it should be taught.
• My sense from multiple sessions is that a social scientist being involved in any educational experiment is a near-necessity if you’re attempting to convince others of the result.  What that means for this year’s effort is unclear, but perhaps it means that I should come back looking for a consultant.
• While not specifically related to teaching design I was particularly impressed with the good work being done with tablet PC's (especially at Virginia Tech) and can see good opportunities for design education as that technology improves.
• Also, Pittsburgh is a lovely town, at its best thanks to grand weather - photos.

Ideal Travel Plans

To visit the 17 AE programs in the US I've put together an Ideal Travel Plan that spaces out my visits and allows two days per visit (with some heavy driving I'm sure). I'd appreciate reactions from possible hosts at the various schools on whether this makes sense to you.

• I'd be amazed if it works out as tidily as this envisions, but one has to have a starting point.
• My calendar where I'll put details as they develop is visible here.

Visit 1 - September 22-Oct 3

California Polytechnic State University San Luis Obispo	Before AEI Conf
University of Colorado at Boulder	After AEI Conf
University of Wyoming	After AEI Conf

Visit 2 - December 1-12

University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Kansas State University (KSU)
University of Kansas (KU)
University of Missouri-Rolla

Visit 3 - February 2-13/2009

Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT)
Milwaukee School Of Engineering
North Carolina A&T State University
Tennessee State University

Visit 4 - April 6-17

Oklahoma State University
University of Oklahoma
University of Texas at Austin
University of Miami

Visit 5 - Individual Visits

Penn State University

Mid-November

Map of Accredited AE Programs

As part of my travel planning for this sabbatical I realized that I needed a map to show where the AE programs are. I thought it would be useful to others as well, so here it is.

• It uses data from the ABET list as of 6/20/2008.
• Note that when you click on the "pin" for each school you'll get a box. Clicking in that will open the site for the AE program or department at that school. Clicking on the list below the map will open a box on the map with a more detailed yahoo map of the location.
• This was created with the splendid free service from BatchGeocode.com.

Sabbatical, Blog and Wiki Purposes

Starting in June 2008 and extending throughout Academic Year 2008-9 until September 2009 I've been granted a sabbatical by Drexel University. My goal is to visit as many of the Architectural Engineering (AE) programs in the USA as possible to discuss with the faculty and students how AE design is defined and taught.

My plan is to chronicle the year in this blog and to develop my/our cumulative understanding of the topic in the associated wiki. The wiki is open for anyone to view, with qualified individuals welcome to become editors/contributors.

At the end of the year I expect that I'll have material for several papers to be presented either in academic journals or conferences. If I think I've learned enough to make recommendations I'll do so.