Search for: All records

This work-in-progress research paper describes the prevalence of neurodivergent students (ND) in engineering across two institutions. There is growing awareness that engineering students who are neurodivergent bring unique assets and face challenges to their higher education experience. Neurodivergent students may also face additional challenges associated with chronic illness or being marginalized due to their gender or race/ethnicity. This paper provides background on these issues, followed by demographic data from two institutions. The goal of the paper is to raise the awareness of engineering faculty that the variety of differences and medical conditions among engineering students may be more diverse and/or prevalent than many realize. Students may not disclose these conditions or receive formal accommodations but can be successful. With a notable percentage of engineering students identifying as ND, faculty should ensure these students feel supported. Higher education institutions should also prioritize systematic planning and programming to support the retention and success of these neurodivergent students. 

Academia can engage with communities in a variety of ways, including an education focus (such as service-learning) or geared toward research (community engaged research, CER). These different forms of community engagement (CE) share many elements in common, while other attributes differ. This paper first compares and contrasts educationally-focused CE with CER. We then present a rubric that was developed to evaluate CER in environmental engineering, indicating what aspects are appropriate for community engaged education. The CER rubric proposes nine evaluation categories: centering on communities, capacity building, action-oriented outcome, shared leadership, shared funding, shared data, equitable valuing of CER scholarship, culturally specific assessment, and culturally specific communication and dissemination. For illustrative purposes the rubric is applied to two case studies. In the educationally-focused CE case study, a senior capstone design course in environmental engineering worked on a project defined by a community partner. The rubric did a good job revealing where improvements in the project could have been realized while also revealing that the non-profit facilitator was instrumental in engaging the community. In the second case study, a community sub-contracted an academic partner to explore residential indoor air quality. The project was at a higher level of the rubric for most criteria compared to the educationally-focused case study. Use of the rubric at the start of any project will open important conversations, thereby contributing to both the community and academic partners more fully meeting their needs. 

The population of neurodivergent (ND) students in engineering programs is a topic of growing interest and importance in both academia and industry. Neurodivergence encompasses a range of neurological differences, including but not limited to autism spectrum disorder (ASD), attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), dyslexia, and dyspraxia. This diverse group of students brings unique perspectives, skills, and challenges to engineering education and the workforce. Understanding and supporting neurodivergent students is crucial for promoting inclusivity and diversity in engineering. This paper summarizes existing literature on the prevalence of neurodivergent students. This is followed by data from a large public institution, exploring the extent to which undergraduate engineering students self-identified as neurodivergent. Among over 1000 students, 18% identified as neurodivergent, 19% as maybe neurodivergent, and 62% as not neurodivergent (and therefore neurotypical). Junior and senior students were given the opportunity to self-identify types of neurodivergence, with ADHD and anxiety found as the most common write-in responses. A number of students identified multiple conditions. A higher percentage of female compared to male students self-identified as ND or maybe ND. Large percentages of students who indicated a gender that was not male or female also self-identified as neurodivergent. Similar percentages of White and Hispanic/Latinx first-year students identified as neurotypical; a higher percentage of Asian students identified as neurotypical. The results indicate that studies on the experiences of neurodivergent students in engineering should consider intersectional demographics. Given the significant percentages of engineering students identifying as ND, faculty should work to ensure these students are supported.