Opportunities for University- Opportunities for University- Industry- Government Collaboration Industry- Government Collaboration for Engineering Workforce: for Engineering Workforce: My perspectivesMy perspectives

Kamlesh (Kam) Lulla, Ph.D.;Ph.D.Kamlesh (Kam) Lulla, Ph.D.;Ph.D.Director, University Research, Collaboration and Director, University Research, Collaboration and Partnership Office, NASA Johnson Space CenterPartnership Office, NASA Johnson Space Center

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National Aeronautics and Space Administration

DisclaimerDisclaimer

Views expressed in this presentation are those of the author and do not reflect the policies of the US

Government or NASA. Any references to trade names, commercial products or private firms or public agencies

in this presentation is for research and descriptive purposes only and does not imply any endorsement by the author or his employers or US Government. Please contact the author prior to any use of this presentation. Pre-approval for use of this presentation is required.

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OutlineOutline

• Part I: Perspectives on Industry-University and Government collaboration in Texas during the NASA Shuttle retirement decision

• Part II: Reflections on Engineering education and workforce development

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Retirement of the Space ShuttleRetirement of the Space Shuttle

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Engineering workforce in transitionEngineering workforce in transition

• Engineers as commodities• Engineers with transferrable skills • Engineers learning new skills

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Engineering workforce in transitionEngineering workforce in transition

• What role can universities, government and industries play in transitions?

• NASA Shuttle retirement decision: Contractor engineers displaced in Texas, Florida and Alabama

• Small numbers of engineers transitioned to Energy sector, some to other general engineering firms.

• Unchartered territory for industry, • government, and universities

The Partnership Continuum: One modelThe Partnership Continuum: One model

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One View of the Future One View of the Future (Lulla 2011)(Lulla 2011)

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• Phase I: Visions of Engineering in the New Century

• Phase II: Adapting Engineering Education to the New Century

The Engineer of 2020The Engineer of 2020

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Engineering and the FutureEngineering and the Future

Disciplinary Mind

Synthesizing Mind

Creating Mind

Respectful Mind

Ethical Mind

Source: Five Minds for the Future … Howard Gardner Harvard University

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Academies within the agenciesAcademies within the agencies

• Seven years ago, NASA Johnson Space Center created Engineering Academy to meet its needs for retraining, “refreshen” its engineering workforce..

• What can industry, government, and universities do to meet these needs?

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International scene International scene

State of International Aerospace Education:• Emergence of privately funded Engineering institutes across many parts of the world (e.g. Eastern Europe, India, Singapore)

• Space Agencies creating their own aerospace engineering Academies for aerospace workforce development (e.g. Indian Space Research Organization has created the largest in-house aerospace academy)

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Business case for Master’s degreeBusiness case for Master’s degree

Source: Russell, J. S., B. Stouffer, and S. G. Walesh (2001). Business case for the master's degree: The financial side of the equation. Pp. 49-58 in Proceedings of the Third National Education Congress, Civil Engineering Education Issues, D. E. Hancher, ed. Reston, Virginia.

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Business case for Master’s degreeBusiness case for Master’s degree

• Engineering academy is pushing for advanced degrees with BS as the first step and with accelerated Master’s as required professional degree

• Engineering academy is pushing for engineers to be well rounded, especially in communication, ethics and global view and have international experience

• Hands on experience: the iterative process of designing, building and testing - should be taught from the earliest stages of the curriculum, including the first year.

(Recommendations from Engineer 2020)

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Opportunities at my Center:Opportunities at my Center:

• Revamping JSC Coop and Intern programs to enable interdisciplinary, international and unique opportunities: Coop experience with JAXA, CSA, ESA, INPE etc.

• Integrate JSC K-12 science and engineering education with the UG engineering experiences

• Expand role of NASA alumni/retirees in outreach to UG engineering schools

• Explore “on-loan” or sabbatical like approaches to bring in “experts” to interact with JSC engineers and Coop (ITAR rule/s etc may have to be revisited)

The Partnership ContinuumThe Partnership Continuum

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SummarySummary

• Partnership and collaboration models need to be expanded to include “transition states” of Engineering workforce

• There is a need for university-industry- government collaboration in creating “ecosystems” that enable life-long learning.

Learning is not compulsory neither is survival!W. Edward Deming

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ADDITIONAL CHARTS

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• Possess strong analytical skills

• Exhibit practical ingenuity; possess creativity

• Good communication skills with multiple stakeholders

• Business and management skills; leadership abilities

• High ethical standards and a strong sense of professionalism

• Dynamic, agile, resilient, flexible

• Lifelong learners

• Ability to frame problems, putting them in a socio-technical and operational context

Attributes of the Successful Engineer of 2020Attributes of the Successful Engineer of 2020

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What has changed in education?What has changed in education?

Need for Integrated engineering education:• Interdisciplinary- to include technical and system engineering

• Business and ethical components• International and global perspectives• Green and environmentally sensitive• Life long learning mindset• Gen Y learning modes: internet, webcasts, twitter, non-traditional learning settings both virtual and real

• (National Academy of Engineering)

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What are the challenges for JSC?What are the challenges for JSC?

• Can we attract, recruit and retain the best of engineering students to JSC or NASA?

• Are our programs/tools in place adequate to accomplish the objective?

• Are our programs flexible and adaptable to retain the members of Gen Y in our workforce?

• What changes do we need to implement?

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Opportunities at my Center:Opportunities at my Center:

• Revamping JSC Coop and Intern programs to enable interdisciplinary, international and unique opportunities: Coop experience with JAXA, CSA, ESA, INPE etc.

• Integrate JSC K-12 science and engineering education with the UG engineering experiences

• Expand role of NASA alumni/retirees in outreach to UG engineering schools

• Explore “on-loan” or sabbatical like approaches to bring in “experts” to interact with JSC engineers and Coop (ITAR rule/s etc may have to be revisited)

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• Phase I: Visions of Engineering in the New Century

• Phase II: Adapting Engineering Education to the New Century

The Engineer of 2020:The Engineer of 2020:National Academy of EngineeringNational Academy of Engineering

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• Attrition rate in engineering education is unacceptably high.

• 24/7 engineering and outsourcing• Value and productivity issues• Innovation and entrepreneurism

• Preparation and awareness of high school graduates• Out of sync engineering curricula• Replacing with one engineer for every 2 lost

What are our challenges?What are our challenges?

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Some engineering curriculum reform experts call for

“Renaissance Engineers”…with very strong technical foundation and a broader non-traditional skills set”Dr Jim Jones, Purdue University, Associate Dean for Engineering

Attributes of the Successful Engineer of 2020Attributes of the Successful Engineer of 2020

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Transforming Engineering EducationTransforming Engineering Education

“For too long traditional engineering education has been characterized by narrow, discipline-specific approaches and methods, an inflexible curriculum focused exclusively on educating engineers (as opposed to all students), an emphasis on individual effort rather than team projects, and little appreciation for technology’s societal context.

Engineering education has not generally emphasized communication and leadership skills, often hampering engineers’ effectiveness in applying solutions. Engineering is perceived by the larger community to be specialized and inaccessible, and engineers are often seen as a largely homogenous group, set apart from their classmates in the humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences. Given these perceptions, few women and minorities participate in engineering, and non-engineering students are rarely drawn to engineering courses.” Princeton, 2005

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Demographics ofDemographics ofEngineering Students at U.S. InstitutionsEngineering Students at U.S. Institutions

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The Challenge to U.S. EngineersThe Challenge to U.S. Engineers

• Engineers must develop the capacity of working in global markets characterized by great cultural diversity.• Much faster pace of innovation, shorter product cycles, lower

prices, and higher quality than ever before.• Shift from traditional problem solving and design skills to

more innovative solutions imbedded in an array of social, environmental, cultural, and ethical issues.

• They must achieve several times the value-added of engineers in other parts of the world to sustain their competitiveness relative to global sourcing.

RecommendationsRecommendations

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• The engineering education establishment should participate in a coordinated national effort to promote public understanding of engineering and technology literacy of the public.

• Engineering schools and employers of engineers should lend their energies to a national effort to improving math, science and engineering education at the K-12 level.

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The Challenge for K-12 EducatorsThe Challenge for K-12 Educators

The Quiet Crisis• Nurturing our human capacity for innovation requires a

configuration of elements - multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary • Students

• Whet their curiosity• Spark their imaginations• Awaken their eagerness for science and math

• Entire education system - K-12 and higher education• Reach out to these students, the underrepresented majority in science,

engineering and technology• Help them find their way in and help them stay in• Encourage them to pursue the preparatory course work for engineering or

science degrees

• Mentor and show role models for nontraditional students • Provide hands on science, math and engineering experiences

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Concluding ThoughtsConcluding Thoughts

We can not be complacent about U.S. pre-eminence in science and technology in this rapidly changing world…without a renewed effort to bolster the foundations of competitiveness, we can expect to lose our privileged position in global economy …

Norm Augustine

As a nation we are obliged to renew our commitments and investments in education, research and innovation to ensure that the American people continue to benefit from the rapid developments of the global economy which is fueled in large part by science and technology.

National Academy of Engineering

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The Challenge of ChangeThe Challenge of Change

• The changing workforce and technology needs of a global knowledge economy are changing engineering practice, demanding far broader skills.

• Importance of technological innovation to economic competitiveness and national security is driving a new priority for application-driven basic engineering research.

• Challenges such as out sourcing and off shoring, decline of student interest in STEM careers, inadequate social diversity, and immigration constraints are raising serious questions about the adequacy of the current national approach to engineering.

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The stakes are very high!!!The stakes are very high!!!

• An extrapolation of current trends, such as the off shoring of engineering jobs and services, inadequate investment in long-term engineering research, inadequate innovation in engineering education, declining interest on the part of students in STEM careers, and immigration constraints raises very serious concerns

• Without concerted action, America faces the very real prospect of losing its engineering competence in an era in which technological innovation is the key to economic competitiveness, national security and social well-being.

• Bold and concerted actions are necessary to sustain and enhance the profession of engineering in America–its practice, research and education!

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Innovation and GlobalizationInnovation and Globalization

• A radically new system for creating wealth has emerged that depends upon the creation and application of new knowledge and hence, upon educated people and their ideas.

• “Intellectual work and capital can be delivered from anywhere–disaggregated, delivered, distributed, produced and put back together again…” (Friedman)

• “Some three billion people who were excluded by the pre-internet economy have now walked out onto a level playing field, from China, India, Russia and Eastern Europe, regions with rich educational heritages.”

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Engineering Workforce ConcernsEngineering Workforce Concerns

• Student interest in science and engineering careers is at a low ebb–and likely to go much lower as the implications of global sourcing become more apparent!

• Cumbersome immigration policies in the wake of 9-11, along with negative international reaction to U.S. foreign policy, are threatening the pipeline of talented foreign science and engineering students.

• It is increasingly clear that a far bolder and more effective strategy is necessary if we are to tap the talents of all segments of our increasingly diverse society (particularly women and underrepresented minorities).

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International ComparisonsInternational Comparisons

• While absolute comparison production of U.S. engineers (85,000/y) with China (350,000/y) and India (170,000/y), of far more importance is the trend.

• Similarly, Ph.D. comparisons of the U.S. (17,000/y) and China (8,000/y) is misleading; China is doubling every 5 years.

• Today the U.S. currently produces less than 8% of the world’s engineers and this is dropping fast.

• Clearly the U.S. cannot achieve engineering leadership through the number of engineering graduates. • Focus on quality • New educational paradigms for a rapidly changing, global, knowledge-

driven economy.

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Yet, same old…same old…Yet, same old…same old…

• Curriculum still stresses analytical skills to solve well defined problems rather than engineering design, innovation and systems integration

• Continue to pretend that an undergraduate education is sufficient, despite fact that curriculum has become bloated and overloaded, pushing aside liberal education

• Failed to take a more formal approach to lifelong learning like other professions (medicine, law)

• Need to broaden education to include topics such as innovation, entrepreneurial skills, globalization and knowledge integration

• And make it all exciting and attractive to young people!

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We need new paradigms…We need new paradigms…

• To respond to incredible pace of intellectual change (e.g. from reductionism to complexity, analysis to synthesis, disciplinary to multidisciplinary)

• To accommodate a far more holistic approach to addressing social needs and priorities, linking economic, environmental, legal and political considerations with technological design and innovation

• To reflect in diversity, quality and rigor the characteristics necessary to serve a 21st century world

• To infuse in our students a new spirit of adventure, in which risk-taking and innovation are seen as an integral part of engineering practice

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What Can We Do?What Can We Do?

• Actions needed not only by the federal government, but at the state and local levels and in each American family

• Need to avoid complacency by assuming the U.S. will remain competitive and pre-eminent in science and technology

• World is changing and we need to take action to renew our nation’s commitment in education, research and innovation policies so our nation’s children have jobs