Challenges And Rewards Of On Campus Projects In Capstone Design

This paper discusses the Environmental Engineering capstone design course for Civil and Environmental Engineering undergraduates at the University of Colorado. Over the past four years, the course has successfully introduced a variety of service learning projects as options among the three to four projects available each year. Clients for these projects have included the University of Colorado and various communities. The structure for the course is briefly described, followed by a description of student feedback on their learning experiences and mentor satisfaction. The benefits and drawbacks of working on projects for the University are described and contrasted with projects for communities, industrial clients, and municipalities. Although each project provides a unique experience and perspective, the greatest benefit of University projects is the accessibility and frequency of contact between mentors and students. Although political and stakeholder buy-in may be difficult to achieve from all parties in order to implement student designs, the benefits of these projects make it worth pursuing future projects with the University. Background A significant design experience in the senior year caps off most undergraduate engineering curriculum. Per the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET) the requirements for design are: “Students must be prepared for engineering practice through the curriculum culminating in a major design experience based on the knowledge and skills acquired in earlier course work and incorporating engineering standards and realistic constraints that include most of the following considerations: economic, environmental, sustainability, ... ethical, health and safety, social, and political.” Content related to a number of other ABET criteria for engineering curricula can also be incorporated within a capstone design course, including abilities to work on multi-disciplinary teams, communicate effectively, and engage in lifelong learning. At the University of Colorado (CU), the course CVEN 4434 Environmental Engineering Design fulfills the capstone design requirement for students in two different ABET-accredited B.S. degrees: environmental engineering (EVEN) and Civil Engineering (CVEN). EVEN is a crossdepartmental degree, incorporating chemical, civil, and mechanical engineering courses. Within CVEN, the course is required for students self-selected into a special water/environmental track and optional for other general CVEN students. Starting in 2003, the course was officially crosslisted as a 5000-level course and M.S. students, particularly those without a traditional engineering bachelor’s degree, have begun to enroll in the course. The course is structured around group projects where a team of students tackles a single design project for an entire semester. The projects in this course have included traditional municipal water and wastewater problems, remediation projects for local clients, and service learning projects for various communities. P ge 10297.1 Proceedings of the 2005 American Society for Engineering Education Annual Conference & Exposition Copyright © 2005, American Society for Engineering Education In the past two years projects serving the University of Colorado have been added. Campusbased projects have the potential to provide an ideal learning experience and provide a true service to the University. The various projects in the course appear to emphasize different aspects of the overall design process, and feedback from students in the course has been gathered to assess these differences. The content of this paper is based on the seven years that I have taught this course, with basic course data summarized in Table 1. Table 1. Summary of the CU Environmental Engineering Design Course Year Course Element 1998 1999 200