Homegrown Talent Heads Up CEEO

Starting this spring, three engineering graduates will assume leadership positions within the Center for Engineering Education and Outreach (CEEO). Engineers Merredith Portsmore, Ethan Danahy, and Morgan Hynes--quadruple, triple, and double Jumbos, respectively--will enhance the School of Engineering's research and educational programs at the CEEO.

This restructuring comes on the heels of $3 million gift to the CEEO from members of the McDonnell family and the James S. McDonnell Family Foundation.

"With our new team in place and the financial support given to the center from the McDonnell family and the foundation, the CEEO is poised to take the next step in expanding our scope in research, educational technology, and outreach," says Chris Rogers, CEEO Director and mechanical engineering professor.

Engineers Morgan Hynes, Ethan Danahy, and Merredith Portsmore, (left to right) will help oversee the School of Engineering's research and educational programs at the CEEO.

Morgan Hynes E01, G09 was Tufts' first doctoral recipient in engineering education as part of the Math, Science, Technology, and Engineering Education (MSTE) program in the Department of Education. Morgan began working at the CEEO in 2004, leading teacher professional development programs and developing engineering curriculum. For his doctoral research, Morgan investigated what middle-school teachers knew about engineering and how they were teaching the subject in the classroom.

"In general, little is known about teaching and learning engineering in the K-12 classroom. Many teachers have broad mathematics and science knowledge, but struggle to connect that knowledge to engineering," says Morgan. "When given focused professional development and curriculum, teachers can teach introductory engineering concepts, and I believe our work here at the CEEO supports teachers in being able to apply their developing engineering knowledge."

As the CEEO's new Research Program Manager, Morgan will help upcoming graduate students in the engineering education track of the MSTE program to investigate other aspects of educational pedagogy, such as how students learn or how teachers teach. He will also oversee research projects that are more technology-focused, such as how a technology or tool in the classroom impacts learning.

The development of educational tools and technology used in the classroom has historically been one of the center's greatest strengths. Ethan Danahy, E00, EG02, EG07 came on board at the CEEO to lead the center's development of RoboBooks, an interactive, electronic workbook software.

Now, as the CEEO's Educational Technology Program Manager, Ethan will oversee the design and implementation of other software technologies such as LabVIEW Education Edition in conjunction with National Instruments. He will also expand the deployment of technologies such as the CEEO's Stop-Action Motion software, or SAM Animation, currently being sold by Pitsco. Inc. and featured in the new Klutz/Scholastic Inc., book titled "The Klutz Book of Animation." Ethan has also been appointed a Research Assistant Professor in the Department of Computer Science. In his new position, Ethan will continue his research into how software tools such as RoboBooks can be a platform for teaching engineering concepts.

"I'm excited to bring my expertise to the Center. I feel leveraging Chris' background in mechanical engineering with my knowledge of computer science, combined of course with the variety of other professors with whom our group works, we can really push the envelope of technologies developed within Tufts for engineering education," says Ethan.

How children, specifically young children, can learn engineering design concepts is the bailiwick of CEEO's Merredith Portsmore, A98, E98, G99, G10. To complete her doctoral dissertation in engineering education, Merredith worked with first graders to understand how young students learn to design and plan their creations.

"As we think about how to bring engineering to K-12 classrooms, we have to understand how children approach the design process steps differently from adults. We can't assume that children think the way adults do about things like planning, testing or redesigning," says Merredith. "It's important to make sure the way we teach children engineering design is appropriate and meaningful to them."

Merredith will continue to develop appropriate engineering design curriculum for students at different ages and provide leadership through outreach to schools by overseeing programs such as the such as the Student Teacher Outreach and Mentorship Program (STOMP)--a program she began in 2001 that now has more than 15 participating universities across the United States. As the new Outreach Program Manager, Merredith will oversee STOMP's expansion from academia to industry at companies such as such as National Instruments, Google, Symantec, General Electric, and QinetiQ.

"It is clear to us that we need to help every child learn engineering so that our society will make more scientifically informed choices. To do this, we need to collaborate with as many people as possible to expand the range of research, of educational tools, and of support networks available to schools," says Professor Rogers. "With top-notch leaders like Morgan, Merredith, and Ethan, I believe that Tufts can play a pivotal role in making this change happen across the nation, by working with other universities, industry, and non-profits."

--Julia C. Keller is Communications Manager for Tufts School of Engineering
[story posted on February 19, 2010]