The College of Engineering at Valparaiso University provides a state-of-the art engineering education in a liberal arts setting. We seek to attract bright, aspiring young people who relish the challenge of preparing for leadership roles in the engineering profession. The college enrolls approximately four hundred students distributed into five majors: Bio, Civil, Computer, Electrical, Environmental and Mechanical Engineering. International Engineering and Integrated Business and Engineering majors are also available for interested students.
Unique features of the college include small classes, close faculty-student collaboration, undergraduate research, international study, and hands-on service projects. Led by readily accessible professors with varied backgrounds in both academic and professional practice, the college offers a curriculum that integrates scientific and engineering principles, practical laboratory and computer work, and engineering design experiences culminating in a major design project.
Why We're In KEEN
The Kern Foundation has supported both the things that we do and the manner in which we do them. Our first semester General Engineering experience was developed with both KEEN support and KEEN partner input to provide a learning experience grounded in the 3Cs. This serves as a springboard to the students' “Valpo Engineering Experience.”
Being a KEEN partner also creates a great opportunity for our faculty members to network with like-minded educators who are devoted to preparing future leaders. KEEN’s networking opportunities enable us to learn from entrepreneurial learning experts. The KEEN events and Engineering Unleashed Faculty Development Workshops are a wellspring of knowledge and energy
Someone visiting Valparaiso University College of Engineering would see the good influences of the Kern Family Foundation in all areas of study. The lab meetings of the previously mentioned First-Year Program with Kidney Dialysis and Smart Structures Modules would be a must to visit. In addition to the KEEN project foundations, the course was recently updated with curiosity-driven content and open-ended project options. Our Bioelectricity class (BE 340) includes a topic introduction conceived of and established at an Engineering Unleashed Faculty Development Workshop and is documented with a KEEN card.
Valparaiso University is a proud partner in Research4All, a Kern Family Foundation initiative to make undergraduate research accessible to all students. Undergraduate research opportunities are often only sought – and obtained – based on the personality of the student. Undergraduate research opportunities often model jobs. One of the goals of Research4All is to turn undergraduate research opportunities into a conversation. Valparaiso University – in close cooperation with fellow researchers at Olin College of Engineering University and Baldwin Wallace University – strives to make research truly be for all.
Current Work
Our efforts to embed entrepreneurially minded learning content in our courses is ongoing. Many courses within all of our disciplines have been influenced by KEEN. These include content ranging from course or concept introductions, semester projects, and learning activities.
One example of KEEN influence is a connection creation activity in a Human-Machine Interfaces course that includes an empathy-immersion activity in conjunction with the Brauer Museum of Art. A recent Special Project in a Signals and Systems course included an open-ended vibration control solution arrived at using approaches (Gallery Walks, etc.) described in Engineering Unleashed Faculty Development Workshops.
Our continued and increasing involvement Engineering Unleashed Faculty Development Workshops is a catalyst for continued course development and the use of best practices for engineering education due to both the impact of the organizers and the interactions with fellow participants.
Featured Cards
Unique features of the college include small classes, close faculty-student collaboration, undergraduate research, international study, and hands-on service projects. Led by readily accessible professors with varied backgrounds in both academic and professional practice, the college offers a curriculum that integrates scientific and engineering principles, practical laboratory and computer work, and engineering design experiences culminating in a major design project.
Why We're In KEEN
The Kern Foundation has supported both the things that we do and the manner in which we do them. Our first semester General Engineering experience was developed with both KEEN support and KEEN partner input to provide a learning experience grounded in the 3Cs. This serves as a springboard to the students' “Valpo Engineering Experience.”
Being a KEEN partner also creates a great opportunity for our faculty members to network with like-minded educators who are devoted to preparing future leaders. KEEN’s networking opportunities enable us to learn from entrepreneurial learning experts. The KEEN events and Engineering Unleashed Faculty Development Workshops are a wellspring of knowledge and energy
Someone visiting Valparaiso University College of Engineering would see the good influences of the Kern Family Foundation in all areas of study. The lab meetings of the previously mentioned First-Year Program with Kidney Dialysis and Smart Structures Modules would be a must to visit. In addition to the KEEN project foundations, the course was recently updated with curiosity-driven content and open-ended project options. Our Bioelectricity class (BE 340) includes a topic introduction conceived of and established at an Engineering Unleashed Faculty Development Workshop and is documented with a KEEN card.
Valparaiso University is a proud partner in Research4All, a Kern Family Foundation initiative to make undergraduate research accessible to all students. Undergraduate research opportunities are often only sought – and obtained – based on the personality of the student. Undergraduate research opportunities often model jobs. One of the goals of Research4All is to turn undergraduate research opportunities into a conversation. Valparaiso University – in close cooperation with fellow researchers at Olin College of Engineering University and Baldwin Wallace University – strives to make research truly be for all.
Current Work
Our efforts to embed entrepreneurially minded learning content in our courses is ongoing. Many courses within all of our disciplines have been influenced by KEEN. These include content ranging from course or concept introductions, semester projects, and learning activities.
One example of KEEN influence is a connection creation activity in a Human-Machine Interfaces course that includes an empathy-immersion activity in conjunction with the Brauer Museum of Art. A recent Special Project in a Signals and Systems course included an open-ended vibration control solution arrived at using approaches (Gallery Walks, etc.) described in Engineering Unleashed Faculty Development Workshops.
Our continued and increasing involvement Engineering Unleashed Faculty Development Workshops is a catalyst for continued course development and the use of best practices for engineering education due to both the impact of the organizers and the interactions with fellow participants.
Featured Cards
- Giant Squids QFT: An Introduction to Bioelectricity. This card describes a Question Formulation Technique (QFT) designed to spark students' curiosity about bioelectricity and electrophysiology.
- EMphasizing Teaching Techniques & Approaches. Examples of how to embed EM into your course while maintaining subject content.
- Tissue scaffold design using computational modeling. Students will develop a computational model of cell effects on an extracellular matrix (ECM) in a synthetic anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) scaffold.
Valparaiso University's mission is to prepare students to lead and serve in both church and society. I believe that KEEN's focus on an entrepreneurial mindset by demonstrating Curiosity, making Connections, and Creating Value is aligned exceptionally well with that mission. Every one of our students and faculty benefit from the opportunities made possible by our partnership with KEEN, and I believe that the College is stronger as a result of our collaboration. Thanks to KEEN, our students are better prepared to lead and serve in an ever-changing world, and I look forward to continuing to work with KEEN for many years to come.
