ENG-23-4200-I3-Magazine_Final Version

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IMAGINE•INNOVATE•INSPIRE

USD ENGINEERING

A Glimpse Into the Future s the school looks ahead, it continues to define the next generation of Changemaker

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successes so far are driving what comes next. “We’re showing we can grow the engineering and computer science programs and make the school inclu sive for students, staff and faculty,” he says. “We are attracting people to engineering who might not have seen themselves in the profession 20 years ago. We are offering new, more di verse options for people who want to have impactful careers that make the world a better place. I think the Shi ley-Marcos School of Engineering will continue to do that.” For Roberts, it is the liberal arts education combined with an engineering degree that is shaping the future of leadership. “Students are taking a full robust set of core courses that make them broad in their educational back ground and they’re taking as much engineering as anybody else I know. They’re marrying those two so they can engage in a social context and so they can become ethical leaders,” he says. “The person who can design something, see what it means, how to do it and who it impacts, and de sign around the community and oth er people, that’s the leader.” Perhaps benefactress Darlene Marcos Shiley sums this up best. “We have come so far in such a short period of time because every one is really working together. It would make my husband wildly happy to know that there are so many different kinds of engineers here and I think he would look around and say, ‘this is a group that was able to do amazing things in 10 years and I can hardly wait to see what they do in 20.’”

In addition to this program, the school is growing its industry part nerships on an international level, expanding through connections with universities, companies, alumni and alumni families in India and Saudi Arabia. Since 2014, the school has invested in these industry partner ships, giving students real-world experiences outside the classroom. “Before 2013, few capstone proj ects were for external partners. Now they are all sponsored by companies, or nonprofit [organizations] or entre preneurial projects created by stu dents,” says Olson. “It has been suc cessful because of the faculty who have worked hard to build connec tions and the students have done really nice work for the partners.” USD engineering is also continu ing to invest in its learning spaces, fostering an environment where the best learning can occur. This in cludes renovating the second-floor electrical engineering labs, which have not been updated since engi neering was first established at USD. “The labs do not have windows and are dark and dingy, with anti quated furniture,” says Lurkis. “Electrical Engineering (EE) is, in part, about light, and we are seek ing to renovate these spaces so that they are light and inspiring, with updated equipment and furniture that fosters collaboration. This is an opportunity to breathe new life into the EE major at USD.” For Olson, who has witnessed so much change in the program, the proof that USD engineering can cre ate the future is evidenced in all that has been achieved so far. Where the future may lead is uncertain, but the

Engineers. Preparing students now for the future means establishing the pro grams that can support what comes next. This includes the launch of a dual bachelor of science and bachelor of arts degree in data science. “Both data science and artificial intelligence (AI) are becoming sig nificant drivers of the world econo my,” says Roberts. “I foresee a future where most engineering and com puting professionals will need skills in both to be competitive. We have a team of faculty members and indus try leaders working now to create a new degree and a minor in data sci ence that will include the use of AI tools such as chatbots. The major provides an opportunity for students to fully engage in data science, while the minor should provide students with an opportunity to learn to use data science and AI in their majors.” The school is also launching its India Engineering Education Part nership — creating educational paths for 4,000 hybrid students in India to pursue one of the school’s engineering master’s programs. “We are embarking on a journey to provide access to thousands of students in India. This is a mission of access where we have figured out how we can provide many of our online engineering degrees at a tuition rate that is affordable in India,” says Roberts. “The big picture is internationalization. We are in the process of expanding our intranational reach for the Shiley-Marcos School of Engineer ing and we will start next year.”