Changing the Landscape of the Digital Workforce and DEI:  A Call to Action for Engineering Education

Janis P. Terpenny; Tracee Gilbert

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Conference: 2023 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition
Location: Baltimore , Maryland
Publication Date: June 25, 2023
Start Date: June 25, 2023
End Date: June 28, 2023
Conference Session: Equity, Culture & Social Justice in Education Division (EQUITY) Technical Session 13
Tagged Divisions: Equity and Culture & Social Justice in Education Division (EQUITY)
Tagged Topic: Diversity
Page Count: 18
DOI: 10.18260/1-2--43168
Permanent URL: https://peer.asee.org/43168
Download Count: 166

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Paper Authors

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Janis P. Terpenny National Science Foundation orcid.org/0000-0003-3193-647X

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Janis Terpenny serves as a Program Director in CMMI at NSF. She is also Professor of Systems Engineering & Operations Research and Mechanical Engineering at George Mason University. Her research focuses on smart integrated systems for design and manufacturing and on design education. She is area editor for two journals, Chair of the ASME Intelligent Manufacturing Technology Group (IMTG), and Senior Vice President for Academics on the IISE Board of Trustees. Previously, she served as Professor of Industrial & Systems Engineering (ISE) and Dean of Engineering at the University of Tennessee, Department Head of Industrial & Manufacturing Engineering at Penn State, Department Chair of Industrial & Manufacturing Systems Engineering at Iowa State, Technology Thrust Lead for the Digital Manufacturing and Design Innovation Institute (DMDII, now MxD), Director of the NSF Center for e-Design, Program Director at NSF in the Division of Undergraduate Education, and Professor at Virginia Tech and the University of Massachusetts. She worked in industry for General Electric, including a 2-year rotational management program in information systems. She is fellow of ASME and IISE, and member of AAAS, Alpha Pi Mu, ASEE, INORMS, SME, and Tau Beta Pi.

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Tracee Gilbert System Innovation

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Dr. Tracee Gilbert is the Founder and CEO of System Innovation, which provides digital engineering services and digital technology innovation to help government, educational, and commercial enterprises implement Digital Engineering. Dr. Gilbert has over 24 years of experience leading large-scale initiatives and driving strategy and implementation for digital engineering, engineering research, and engineering programs across various domains. She has held various leadership positions at Lockheed Martin, MITRE, Engility and served as a fellow for the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Science and Technology Policy Fellowship (STPF) at Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Department of Defense (DoD). Dr. Gilbert was the contractor lead and chief architect of the DoD Digital Engineering concept and strategy. She also led the initial implementation efforts across the military services, industry, and academia in the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering. Dr. Gilbert received her B.A. (Physics, Minor in Japanese) from Lincoln University and her M.S. (Systems Engineering) and Ph.D. (Industrial and Systems Engineering) from Virginia Tech. She chairs the AAAS STPF Advisory Committee, and is a board member of the GMU Mechanical Engineering Board, Morgan State University Executive Council, Boys Town DC, and the American Institute of Physics Team Up Together Campaign Committee.

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Abstract

Digital transformation has been implemented across a wide range of industries. Advanced technologies (e.g., artificial intelligence, robotics, cloud, internet of things etc.) and data are used to digitally connect organizations, automate processes, and represent each aspect of complex systems, products, and services. While digital transformation has changed the landscape of the engineering workforce, engineering programs of today remain largely based on 20th-century needs. Due to the interdisciplinary nature and interconnectedness of digital transformation, the traditionally siloed engineering disciplines require innovation to keep pace with the workforce demands. This paper explores the digital transformation workforce demands and digital competencies that are needed now and for the future of the engineering workforce. These skills extend beyond the technical, but also encompass social, emotional, and higher cognitive skills. Further, digital transformation will have tremendous impact on diverse communities - with the opportunity to either create access or create further disparity due to access to engineering education and opportunities beyond. The paper also reports on the experiences and advice of participants in the invited panel that was held at the 2023 ASEE Southeastern Regional Conference where panelists addressed the need to modernize engineering education in the era of Digital Transformation and the strategies they envision or have implemented to address opportunities and risks for diversity, equity, and inclusion.

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Terpenny, J. P., & Gilbert, T. (2023, June), Changing the Landscape of the Digital Workforce and DEI: A Call to Action for Engineering Education Paper presented at 2023 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, Baltimore , Maryland. 10.18260/1-2--43168