Engineering Service Learning and Entrepreneurship Opportunities
Traditionally, engineering has been engaged with the community beyond the
campus boundaries through technical assistance programs, university extension,
and the work of individual faculty serving as consultants to community
organizations. Community engagement is usually not systematically integrated
within the engineering curriculum. Service learning is a pedagogy that provides
students with structured opportunities to learn, develop, and reflect through
active participation and thoughtfully organized community involvement. It
enhances the academic experience of students by relating academic content and
course objectives to issues in the community. Service learning projects indicate
a real need, and many of the projects contain market potential and favorable
conditions for entrepreneurial opportunities. These opportunities not only are
real and make business sense, but they also directly benefit a community while
meeting educational objectives. This paper describes our efforts to develop
an effective engineering service learning model that also provides socially
responsible entrepreneurial opportunities.
View the full paper here >> (requires Adobe Acrobat Reader)