The Dean of the School of Engineering, Math and Computer Science at Elizabethtown College Dr. Sara Atwood has recently been elected to the Engineering Deans Council Executive Board of the American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE).
“The overall responsibility is to provide vision and leadership in engineering education, research and engagement,” Atwood said when asked what her responsibilities would be like serving on the executive board. “That might take different forms in advocacy, serving constituents, influencing US public policy, partnering with stakeholders, fostering dialogue amongst members and promoting diversity and inclusion.”
Specifically, Atwood is expected to attend three meetings with the executive board each year and bring her own perspective in providing insight into questions and initiatives in front of the council. Members of the board can also choose to volunteer to head one of the committees too, such as the Undergraduate Experience Committee or the Diversity Committee. “I hope to bring the perspective of an undergraduate, teaching-focused engineering program housed within a multidisciplinary School of Engineering, Math and Computer Science,” Atwood said. “As this Council comprises over 90 percent of all U.S. Engineering Deans, most are from large universities with graduate programs and fewer institutions that think across disciplines as much as we do at Etown.”
The ASEE’s annual Engineering Deans Institute took place from Monday, March 7 to Thursday, March 10 at The Venetian in Las Vegas, Nev. Atwood gave a talk during the event that focused on the mastery-based curriculum offered at Etown to approximately 150 engineering deans from colleges and universities in the U.S.
“Primarily, it was a wonderful networking experience,” Atwood said when asked about her first experience at ASEE Engineering Deans Institute. “I had met several of the other Deans at other conferences, and a group of undergraduate-focused deans have been meeting on Zoom during the entire pandemic. That group has been enormously helpful to me in terms of knowing how similar institutions are handling some of the same challenges, and also being mentored by more senior deans.”
As Atwood has emphasized, coming from a smaller college like Etown gave her a different perspective and provided her with a unique background. Although this was Atwood’s first ASEE Engineering Deans Institute event, she has been engaged with the parent organization ASEE for over a decade, publishing engineering education papers at their annual conference and has served as an officer in one division. In addition to that, she had won several ASEE awards including a new educator award from Women in Engineering Division and a Best Diversity Paper award. Atwood also serves as an Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET) evaluator for ASEE and has just received the ASEE Diversity Recognition. Her long history at Etown and in ASEE has undoubtedly led to her eventual election to the executive board.
Seeing as Etown breeds national excellence, Atwood had a message for Etown students that have a dream of one day sitting on the executive board of the Engineering Deans Council.
“I never thought that I’d be a dean, let alone be elected as one of a few representatives of over 350 engineering deans from across the country,” she said. “My message is to make your best effort at the opportunities that come your way, one opportunity at a time, and they may lead you somewhere great that you did not expect!”
One theme that kept coming up was the unique Etown experience and how one must use that to their advantage, as not everyone has the background of studying in a small college that allows them to have countless opportunities to grow. “One of my purposes in serving on the Engineering Dean’s Council is to bring my unique Etown perspective,” Atwood said, “and to promote the great things we do at Etown on a larger, national stage.”
