This paper presents a model, case study, and prototypical example of how a major educational institution evolves from splintered, specialized, interdisciplinary fields of study, in which each major area develops independently of other related areas, to a unified, focused, all-encompassing field of study in which all areas develop as interdependent technologies. This paper will discuss the evolution, challenges, and opportunities for educational institutions that desire to transform a traditional engineering design graphics (EDG) program into a digital media program.

There is presently a shortage of qualified Biomedical Engineering Technology (BMET) job applicants. This trend will be exacerbated by the approaching retirement of many of the baby-boomer BMET professionals. As a result of these shortages, hospital-related employers often hire people with a strong electronics background but a limited or absent specialization in BMET. Many of these employees are graduates of two-year Associate Degree Electronic Engineering Technology (EET) or closely associated BMET programs. Some applicants have a military electronics background. Only a handful of applicants come from the very few Bachelors Degree programs such as the program at East Tennessee State University. Why would someone enter the Bachelors program in BMET when he or she could enter the BMET profession in half the time and for significantly less costs? The answer is expanded professional and financial opportunities during his or her professional career.

A growing pool of graduates from the two-year community college technology programs has become aware of the need for expanded knowledge and the B.S. degree to enhance their professional opportunities. Unfortunately, many of these graduates are working and are isolated by distance from the limited number of universities that provide the B.S. degree in Technology and by the times they can attend classes. Distance learning provides a solution to this challenge, but creates the dilemma associated with teaching lab-intensive courses off campus. It is too expensive to buy equipment that is used irregularly; yet it is too cumbersome to haul the equipment back and forth. One solution to teaching electronic lab-intensive courses is National Instruments' NI ELVIS (Educational Laboratory Virtual Instrumentation Suite) which integrates both hardware and software to shrink the workspace to only two elements: the experiment interface and a computer. All the traditional instruments (DMM, function generator, oscilloscope, spectrum analyzer) are now software. In addition, specialized instruments such as a transistor curve tracer, programmable power supplies, vector impedance meter, arbitrary waveform analyzer, 8-bit digital bus drivers are included in the suite of software instruments. Both hardware and software are completely open so innovation at the experiment, interfacing, or software level can flourish.

This paper describes the integration of NexGen Ergonomics ManneQuin software with the industry standard AutoCAD. Producing a system that provides designers with a powerful graphical tool to evaluate designs for human factors and safety criteria. Many researchers and designers have wanted to CAD-based ergonomic program for some time, and the absence of a truly integrated system was the motivating factor for program development. This paper explains the steps taken to integrated system was the motivating factor for program development. This paper explains the steps taken to integrate these two software packages. Designers now have an ergonomic CAD system to help design products according to the physical abilities and characteristics of end users. This integrated technology can potentially revolutionize the way products are designed and significantly reduce the alarming number of related injuries, thus saving millions of dollars.

This paper presents a joint effort between engineering students from various majors, and their advisors to design a sophisticated global monitoring system to monitor location of children, Alzheimer patients and other valuable items. This project was part of a capstone design course developed to introduce engineering students to real world problems. This funded project was developed in response to growing problems with children abduction and wondering off Alzheimer patients. This invention has received extensive media coverage since its development. Over 30 million people worldwide heard about the project and its abilities through various media channels such as TV, Internet, radio, and newspapers. This paper discusses the development process from conception to finished product.

This paper studies the latest research on the impact of advanced multimedia technology on the classroom 2000. This paper focuses on one such advanced technology entitled "IPTeam Suite," by Nexprise, Inc, which is starting to become widely used by the industry, but is relatively new to the academia. The application of the IPTeams software in data exchange, information sharing, messaging, and scheduling and documentation and its integration into classroom 2000 are discussed. A joint design course between two universities and an industrial partner, utilizing IPTeam software is also presented. Some of the other new cutting edge educational delivery mode and software such as Asynchronous Learning Networks and ZenPad used in pilot programs in leading universities are also studied.

The process of tenure and promotion can be a harrowing experience for faculty in higher education. A tenured faculty member is one whose job, with a few exceptions, is secured for life. These exceptions typically include the closure of the department, (although a good faith effort may be made to place them in a related department within the university), gross negligence, and sexual harassment. Tenure was designed to protect faculty from the volatile behavior and attitudes of administrators. The process generally occurs in the sixth year of employment and for many can be stressful. A candidate for tenure and promotion is evaluated in the areas of teaching, scholarship and service. This manuscript addresses tactics, strategies and approaches that were utilized by the author to overcome the tenure and promotion process.

This paper explores issues relating to the fields of engineering education that are constantly evolving. Business, industry, and higher education institutions must come to a consensus on what skills, talents and resources engineers need if they are to survive in a technological society. The authors investigate a growing division between higher education and industry. The results of a national survey by the US Consensus Bureau on hiring, training, and management practices in American business indicate an increasing conviction among employers that colleges and universities have not adequately prepared students for rapidly changing market environments. The authors also examine the issues that have apparently contributed to the divergence between industry and academia. To bridge the gap between industry and academia, guidelines are suggested that can result in producing a new generation of engineers. Data were gathered from a survey soliciting perceptions from business, industry and engineering students at various colleges and universities. The results of this survey are also discussed.

A PC-based CAD/CAM/DNC system is used extensively in a university's Machine Tool Technology facility. The system supports CAD development, CNC program generation, and two-way file transfer among PC-compatible computers and multiple CNC controllers. From its modest beginnings, the system has evolved into a simple but robust DNC environment supporting all phases of manual and computer-assisted CNC program development. This case study describes system evolution, hardware and software requirements, the benefits of DNC on CNC operations and overall production, and also includes lessons learned from the experience.

Traditional pedagogical techniques are teacher-centered, frequently entail lengthy lecture sessions or one-way presentations, and involve limited student engagement and participation. Research shows diminishing results of such pedagogical techniques in students' learning especially for millennials. As technological, economic, and cultural forces have fundamentally altered the very foundation of traditional educational models, educators try to figure out how to best meet the needs of students in a personalized, meaningful and timely way. As are result, several new innovative teaching methods have been developed. These methods of content delivery deviate from the traditional model of lecturing and passive learning towards a greater focus on active learning, where greater student interaction is encouraged, the boundaries of authority less defined, and a focus on learning over grades is emphasized. However, for a faculty member, identifying new and engaging ways of teaching and course reorganization can be a time consuming and research intensive process. Sometimes, it may also require a significant technology investment. Despite the faculty member's ardent effort, there is a risk of failure since not all pedagogical techniques work for all courses. However, when executed properly, these innovative techniques keep students engaged and motivated and significantly improve students' learning. In this paper, we refer such innovative teaching techniques as pedagogical risk taking techniques. The paper describes pedagogical risk taking activities of four instructors from three different institutions. It gives a critical look at the effort required to create such teaching methods and the results in terms of improvements in student learning and satisfaction. Findings show that taking pedagogical risk is an important pedagogical tool that instructors should have in order to engage and improve students' learning.