Indianapolis, Indiana
June 14, 2014
June 14, 2014
June 14, 2014
Faculty Development
10
20.20.1 - 20.20.10
10.18260/1-2--17183
https://strategy.asee.org/17183
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Dr. Kris Y. Maillacheruvu, P.E. is an Associate Professor in the Department of Civil Engineering and Construction at Bradley University in Peoria. Dr. Maillacheruvu's research interests include biological treatment systems, industrial waste treatment and reuse, mathematical modeling of environmental systems (water), and hazardous waste treatment and management (soil and groundwater clean-up) and has published several technical articles and co-authored books in environmental engineering. He has also published papers on learning and teaching related to civil and environmental engineering education.
Dr. Al-Khafaji is the Executive Director of the Center for Emerging Technologies in Infrastructure and a Professor of Civil Engineering at Bradley University. He earned his BS in Civil Engineering and MS degree in Construction Management from Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan. He received a second MSCE in soil dynamics and a Ph.D. in Geotechnical Engineering from Michigan State University in East Lansing, Michigan. Dr. Al-Khafaji is the co-author of 11 engineering textbooks including Numerical Methods, geotechnical, Statics and Dynamics, and software application. These books were used internationally by major institutions. He is also the author of many significant publications in internationally renowned journals. He is responsible for the Innovations Conference in Asphalt and Transportation and the International Construction Innovations Conference. He is the recipient of numerous leadership awards including the 2006 "Man of the Year" Award from the Illinois Asphalt Pavement Association. He is also the only recipient in Bradley’s history of all three University excellence awards in Teaching, Scholarship and Public Service. He serves the Easter Seals, W.D. Boyce Council of the Boy Scouts of America, Muscular Dystrophy Association, A Safe Haven Foundation, and the Illinois State Black Chamber of Commerce.
Dr. Al-Khafaji is the Executive Director of the Center for Emerging Technologies in Infrastructure and a Professor of Civil Engineering at Bradley University. He earned his BS in Civil Engineering and MS degree in Construction Management from Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan. He received a second MSCE in soil dynamics and a Ph.D. in Geotechnical Engineering from Michigan State University in East Lansing, Michigan. Dr. Al-Khafaji is the co-author of 11 engineering textbooks including Numerical Methods, geotechnical, Statics and Dynamics, and software application. These books were used internationally by major institutions. He is also the author of many significant publications in internationally renowned journals. He is responsible for the Innovations Conference in Asphalt and Transportation and the International Construction Innovations Conference. He is the recipient of numerous leadership awards including the 2006 "Man of the Year" Award from the Illinois Asphalt Pavement Association. He is also the only recipient in Bradley’s history of all three University excellence awards in Teaching, Scholarship and Public Service. He serves the Easter Seals, W.D. Boyce Council of the Boy Scouts of America, Muscular Dystrophy Association, A Safe Haven Foundation, and the Illinois State Black Chamber of Commerce.
Impact of International Collaboration on the Learning EnvironmentThe Engineering Accreditation Commission (EAC) places a high value on the international studyexperience – in fact it is part of the eleven outcomes that accredited civil engineering programsare expected to integrate into their curricula. The Department of Civil Engineering andConstruction (CEC) at Bradley University has long recognized that international experiencesprofoundly influence students and faculty and that a graduate’s global experience is highlyvalued by employers adapting to a rapidly changing multi-cultural world.The CEC Global Explorer Program (GEP) has profoundly enlightened students and faculty. Thetwo to three weeks January interim program established in 1996 is ideally suited to fit students’summer employment obligations. The GEP revolutionized the way that study abroad programsare offered at Bradley University. The study-abroad experience also includes sabbaticalexperiences, which have enriched the civil engineering program and curriculum.In this paper, a comparison of the impact of scholarly and pedagogical exchanges in Denmark-Norway-Sweden, England-France, Egypt-Jordan, Malta, and India are presented. Directmeasures including student exit interviews, indirect student measures as well as anecdotalevidence and assessment data such as employer surveys clearly shows that the GEP is verysignificant to all stakeholders. Employers get quality employees with the cultural awareness andthe needed understanding of the global dimensions of their future profession. Analysis of theimpacts of administrative, time management, and policy decisions on the study abroad programis also presented.A comparative study of student attitudes both at the undergraduate and graduate level in the U.S.and India is presented to increase the awareness of cultural, social, and intellectual norms, basedon teaching experiences and observations during an intense 6-month sabbatical at Indian Instituteof Technology Bombay. Technology and environmental policy workshops organized for high-level decision makers and government organizations reveal valuable insights on attitudes andrealities of technology-transfer mechanisms and sustainable solutions in rapidly developingnations like India. This journey, including meetings with high-level Planning Commissionmembers, provided the co-author a unique perspective and enabled him to pursue scholarlycollaboration with foreign institutions and other global scholars.Visiting scholars on sabbatical from other international academic institutions (e.g., U.K.) havecollaborated and taught course with CEC faculty as well as written proposals, technical papersand co-authored textbooks. Insights provided by these visiting scholars have contributed toacademic program revisions and long-term collaborative partnerships especially in the area ofsustainability and social media.Finally, the past decade has seen an increasing trend, throughout the United States, ininternational students enrolling at the undergraduate level and not just at the graduate level. Theinternational education experience from different countries documented and discussed in thispaper also provides some insights on how universities can effectively adapt to this changingcultural landscape on campuses nationwide.
Maillacheruvu, K. Y., & Al-Khafaji, A. W. (2014, June), Impact of International Collaboration on the Learning Environment Paper presented at 2014 ASEE International Forum, Indianapolis, Indiana. 10.18260/1-2--17183
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