Signal Processing - May 2017 - 69

SP education
Mónica F. Bugallo and Angela M. Kelly

Engineering Outreach:
Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow

his article discusses the current
landscape of outreach efforts in the
United States to engage K-12 students in engineering. It then provides an
overview of two programs run by the
College of Engineering and Applied
Sciences, and the Institute for Science,
Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics Education at Stony Brook University (SBU) to promote student
participation and interest in engineering. These efforts are aligned with the
recently released Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS), which emphasize incorporating engineering design
principles in K-12 science education.
We describe two models, one in the
form of an on-campus summer camp
and the other as a series of after-school
activities with both on- and off-campus
offerings. These experiences are rarely
available in K-12 schools and have the
added benefit of exposing students to
engineering faculty and researchers.
The programs are focused on electrical
and computer engineering with emphasis on signal and information processing and analysis and have hosted more
than 200 students for the past six years.
We argue that offering continuing
education opportunities to teachers and
counselors at schools will have a considerably higher impact, and we describe
two innovative programs targeting those
populations as well as a new format of
Digital Object Identifier 10.1109/MSP.2017.2673018
Date of publication: 26 April 2017

student experiences based on one-day
campus visits.

Overview
A major challenge in our increasingly
technological society is the need to build
awareness and excitement for engineering careers to help attract the engineers of
the future. Unfortunately, students often
view engineering as an unattractive and
inaccessible subject and career option
[1]. Contributing to this view is the traditional lack of engineering instruction in
elementary, middle, and high schools
(known collectively as the K-12 schools),
compounded by a limited awareness of
engineering knowledge and careers
among teachers and school counselors
[2], [3]. However, the recent adoption of
the NGSS [4] by 16 states has shown tremendous promise for widespread proliferation of engineering in K-12 education.
The NGSS explicitly integrates science content knowledge, engineering
practices, and cross-cutting concepts so
students may identify, explain, and solve
everyday problems through engineering
design. The NGSS complement the
American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE) K-12 Science, Technology, En gineering, and Mathematics
(STEM) Guidelines for All Americans
[5], which emphasize the scope of engineering practice, understanding engineering design, and applying STEM
concepts to technological challenges.
These standards and guidelines present
an opportunity for universities to impact
IEEE Signal Processing Magazine

May 2017

precollege engineering education by
sharing resources and expertise. This
article explores the current status of
engineering education and careers in the
United States, successful engineering
outreach programs and curricula, and the
efforts at SBU in advocating for a broader participation in engineering through
university-community partnerships.
Recent reports have documented the
chronic shortage of engineering talent in
the United States [6]-[8]. The U.S. Bureau
of Labor Statistics projected an increase
of 365,000 engineering job openings, due
to replacing current engineers between
2010 and 2020, and an additional need
for 160,300 engineers due to new job
growth [9]. It is questionable whether
colleges and universities will be able to
maintain the pace with engineering
employment demands. There were 106,658
bachelor's degrees awarded in all engineering disciplines in 2014-2015 in the
United States [5], yet there are indications that retention and diversity in undergraduate engineering programs are
persistent concerns [10]. Undergraduate
engineering enrollment in the United
States was 541,705 in 2014, including
104,033 women, 27,163 African Americans, and 60,017 Hispanic students [11].
The graduation rate of engineering
majors in the United States was 60%
over six years [12], with both academic
preparation and nonacademic factors
contributing to attrition [12], [13]. The
traditional disparities in undergraduate
engineering education are reflected in
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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Signal Processing - May 2017