AE Senior Thesis - Become an e-Studio Practioner Mentor!
Do you have an interest in collaborating with future engineers?
Do you want to help enhance the educational experience of the Penn State AE
students?
Do you want to be involved in the AE program, but are at a distance from University
Park?
Many of you are familiar with the AE Senior Thesis course and are aware of the importance of the capstone project and the many opportunities this course offers in effectively linking our future engineers to the professional environment. One way of providing this benefit to the students is through meaningful collaboration with practicing professionals. In previous years, practitioners have shared their expertise via on-campus lectures, sponsoring student projects, and consulting via mail, telephone, and fax.
In Spring 2004, Professor M. Kevin Parfitt and AE doctoral student Jonathan Dougherty instituted a new method of communication and collaboration for the consulting aspects of the senior thesis course – the “e-Studio Practitioner Mentor Program.”
How does it work? In electronically collaborating with the fifth year students, practitioner names are placed on an option specific (structures, mechanical, lighting/electrical, construction) database that is also linked to a discussion board. The best part about this discussion board is that it sends e-mails directly to your inbox, so you don't have to remember to check the board on a regular basis. Students post questions on the discussion boards, and the practitioners receive updates via e-mail when a new question has been posted. By replying to the e-mail, you can answer the question and it will automatically post to the discussion board. This technology is user-friendly and has proven to have a significant positive impact on the senior thesis program in its first semester of implementation.
Special thanks to the following firms that have volunteered representatives to serve as e-Studio Practitioner Mentors in 2004:
Construction Management:
Barton Malow
James G. Davis Construction Company
McClure Company
Lighting/Electrical:
Burt Hill Kosar Rittelmann Associates
Clark Nexsen
CUH2A, Inc.
Glumac International, Inc.
Horton Lees Brogden Lighting Design
Mueller Associates, Inc.
Sylvan R. Shemitz Designs, Inc.
SmithGroup
Structural:
American Institute of Steel Construction
DeSimone Consulting Engineers
HLW International LLP
Holbert Apple Associates, Inc.
LZA/Thorton-Tomasseti
Mikula Group
The New Columbia Joist Company
Nitterhouse Concrete Products
Providence Engineering
Rathgeber/Goss Associates
Simpson Gumpertz & Heger, Inc.
Woods Peacock Engineering Consultants
Mechanical:
Clark Nexsen
CUH2A, Inc.
Ewing Cole Cherry Brott
GRG Consulting Engineers
HLW International LLP
LLI Technologies
To join our group of innovative e-Studio Practitioner Mentor’s, please contact Jonathan U. Dougherty (JUDougherty@psu.edu) or M. Kevin Parfitt (mkp@psu.edu).