Opportunity

Award Info:

The program estimates making 10-13 awards for projects in Track 1. The program estimates making a total of 3-6 awards for projects in Tracks 2, 3, & 4.

The budget for Planning (Track 1) proposals is up to $75,000 per year for a duration of up to 2 years.

The budget for Adaptation & Innovation (Track 2) proposals is a maximum of $1,000,000 for a duration of up to 5 years.

The budget for Innovation (Track 3) proposals is between $1,000,000 and $2,000,000 for a duration of up to 5 years.

The budget for Innovation Partnerships (Track 4) proposals is between $1,500,000 and $2,500,000 for collaborations across multiple institutions for a duration of up to 5 years.

Description:

Revolutionizing Engineering Departments (hereinafter referred to as RED) is designed to build upon previous efforts in engineering education research. Specifically, previous and ongoing evaluations of the NSF Engineering Education and Centers Division program and its predecessors, as well as those related programs in the Directorate of Education and Human Resources, have shown that prior investments have significantly improved the first year of engineering students’ experiences, incorporating engineering material, active learning approaches, design instruction, and a broad introduction to professional skills and a sense of professional practice – giving students an idea of what it means to become an engineer. Similarly, the senior year has seen notable change through capstone design experiences, which ask students to synthesize the technical knowledge, skills, and abilities they have gained with professional capacities, using reflective judgment to make decisions and communicate these effectively. However, this ideal of the senior year has not yet been fully realized, because many of the competencies required in capstone design, or required of professional engineers, are only partially introduced in the first year and not carried forward with significant emphasis through the sophomore and junior years.