The Integrated Teaching and Learning Laboratory
Thursday, October 26, 1995, was a ground breaking day for the College in
both literal and figurative senses. Students, alums, friends, faculty, and
staff of the College and the entire Boulder Campus did indeed come together
for the symbolic turning of the earth marking the beginning of the construction
of Drescher Undergraduate Engineering, the facility that will house
the Integrated Teaching and Learning (ITLL) Laboratory.
But in a larger sense, participants were celebrating more than the construction
of a new building. They were inaugurating a new vision for the College:
a vision involving the pioneering of a multidisciplinary teaching and learning
environment that will fundamentally change how our undergraduates receive
their engineering education.
The facility alone is impressive enough. Drescher Undergraduate Engineering
will be a 33,500 square foot, three-story structure, connected to the existing
Engineering Center by a raised bridge housing several group study areas.
More than 1,200 students, half the College's undergraduates, will use it
every day.
The vision underlying the facility encompasses the redesign of our
undergraduate engineering curriculum to become horizontally integrated
through all 6 engineering departments and vertically integrated through
all 4 years of the curriculum.
The vision involves integrating theory with practice through experiential
learning and problem solving by teams of students. The ITL educational experience
will mirror professional engineering practice by providing opportunities
to learn by discovery and collective effort, and to experience the entire
creative process: design, analysis, simulation, building, and testing.
The vision is well underway: classes inspired by the ITL paradigm are already
being taught in the College. And now the building itself is also underway,
with completion scheduled for the spring of 1997.
October 26 was truly a ground breaking day in more ways than one!
Many people joined us in our celebration of the ITL Laboratory ground
breaking. Here (from left) Joel Broida, Jennifer Anderson, Roderic Park,
Richard Broida, Clancy Herbst, Judith Albino, John Drescher, Jackie Sullivan,
and Ross Corotis each lend a hand in turning the first shovelfuls of dirt
for this important project.
Jennifer Anderson represented our students, who have been steadfast in their
support of the ITL and who are, through their own Undergraduate Excellence
Fund, contributing over a million dollars toward its completion. Jennifer
is a senior in chemical engineering and president of the College's student
government. Brothers Joel and Richard Broida, John Drescher, and Clancy
Herbst represented alumni and friends who have given crucial encouragement
and support to the project; CU President Judith Albino and Boulder Chancellor
Roderic Park represented the administration of the University; and Dean
Ross Corotis and ITL Co-Director Jackie Sullivan represented the College.
The keynote speaker at the ITL Laboratory ground breaking ceremony was
John Prados, Senior Education Associate in the Engineering Education and
Centers Division of the National Science Foundation.
"It is particularly encouraging," he said, "to see a large,
state-aided research university like the University of Colorado make the
major investment in undergraduate engineering education reform reflected
in the Integrated Teaching and Learning Laboratory. The commitment of the
ITL to active, experiential learning and to developing graduates who are
effective both as independent learners and as team members is wholly consistent
with the new paradigm for engineering education. Intellectual skills developed
in the ITL will serve the University's engineering graduates well in a 21st
Century marked by global competition, not only for sales of manufactured
goods but for professional services as well."
Also speaking were Judith Albino, CU President; Roderic Park, Boulder Chancellor;
Richard Ross, Colorado Commission on Higher Education; and Jackie Sullivan,
ITL Co-Director.
Lawrence E. Carlson, Co-Director, ITL Laboratory
Imagine....
IMAGINE It's 1997, you're 18 years old, and it's your first day as a bright-eyed
engineering student. You navigate the maze of the Engineering Center, crossing
the skyway to the brand new Integrated Teaching and Learning Laboratory.
You stop, captivated by the random gyrations of a chaotic pendulum. Years
later, youll use a computer to take data from that same lobby display to
study the quirky field of nonlinear dynamics.
Entering the Engineering Projects classroom, you don't know what to expect.
You sit at an oval table, where you huddle with your new teammates to learn
engineering by doing. You'll be expected to formulate and solve open-ended
problems, such as a better way for a school child in a wheelchair to open
ordinary doors. Like practicing engineers, you'll have to make concise oral
presentations, write cogent reports, keep to a schedule, and manage a budget.
And you haven't mastered calculus yet!
Leaving the classroom, you gaze down at the large laboratory plaza below,
where teams of sophomores and juniors cluster around arrays of LabStations,
equipped with cutting edge technology. Wheeled up to the LabStations, you
see intriguing experiments that reinforce the fundamental concepts of engineering
in a hands-on way. Occasionally, an instructor will summon the troops to
the breakout space, a quiet refuge from the buzz of activity, to discuss
a salient point for 5 minutes, then disperse her charges back to the plaza
floor to continue their process of discovery.
Visible behind the windows on the lowest lab plaza, you'll watch capstone
design projects unfold over the course of a year. Projects such as race
cars, satellite experiments, or robotic vehicles; nothing is beyond your
reach. Need to make a part for your own project? You can do that in the
student shop, using computer-controlled machine tools. You can design and
wire the special circuit you need. Using a chemical hood, you can mix noxious
chemicals without getting a noseful, and you can examine the microstructure
of a fractured tensile test specimen with the microscopes in the instrument
room.
The ITL Lab is different. Computers are everywhere, including the Simulation
Lab, where you can model complex phenomena, like fluid turbulence or plastic
deformation. If all the computers are occupied, you can duck into one of
10 group study spaces with your team, connect your laptop computer, and
get the data you took this morning from the network. If you're into such
things, you can even tinker with an experimental network that's 50 times
faster than today's Ethernet. That means you could download the entire text
of the Encyclopedia Britannica in 5 seconds.
Gazing around at the large, visible spaces and exciting architecture, you
wonder: what does it take to make a 3-story building like this work? Through
transparent panels, you can see behind the walls, into the elevator machinery,
and even see water coursing through the roof drain. Unlike most architecture,
where the fruits of engineers' labors are hidden behind acoustic tiles and
gypsum wallboard, the large ducts that distribute fresh air pierce the space.
What's the temperature, humidity and flow rate in that duct? A computer
display can tell you that, and more. How hot does it get behind a high-tech,
thermochromic window, compared to the old-fashioned, single pane of glass
right next to it? How much energy does the ITL Lab use? How can you cool
a big building like this with only cascading water? How much does the structure
vibrate in the Chinook winds of January? The answers to these questions,
and many others, are at your fingertips.
Now, imagine it's 2001, the dawning of the new millennium. You're in the
first graduating class to have spent 8 semesters experiencing the joys,
and frustrations, of engineering with the help of this new, exciting facility.
Now, let's return to today. We're celebrating the birth of a new building
p; a marvelous building. With it, we are poised to be pioneers in engineering
education, taking the lead nationally in preparing the engineer of the 21st
century. But this can only happen if we all p; faculty, students, and
staff p; team together to make our dream a reality, fueled by our imagination,
and by our courage.
Jacquelyn F. Sullivan, Co-Director, ITL Laboratory
Our 21st Century Challenge
IMAGINE It's the year 2001, and you've just graduated from CU's College
of Engineering. You're a member of the first graduating class to experience
hands-on learning through the ITL Laboratory. After 4 challenging years,
you're ready for the real world p; a world that is changing at the most
rapid rate in history. With knowledge doubling every 7 years, you've begun
the 40 years of continuous learning demanded by your engineering career.
In this new millennium, it is imperative that you make technology pay off.
You realize the challenge for your generation will be the relentless pursuit
of productivity. You must have the knowledge to do things right and the
judgment and ethics to do the right things. Through your hands-on learning
experiences in CU engineering you understand the basic constructs of the
engineering process:
- While you understand certainty, you can handle ambiguity.
- You not only solve problems, you formulate them.
- You not only analyze, you can synthesize.
- You know the difference between data, information, and knowledge.
- You've gained self-confidence through the hands-on learning that has
augmented your journey in engineering theory.
- In short, you're becoming the master integrator.
You're aware that engineering problem solving in today's world requires
you to evaluate not only technical considerations, but the environmental,
economic, societal, and political impacts of your actions. Sustaining the
environment while promoting the health of our global economy is demanded
of your generation. In addition to your sound technical base, the communications
and leadership skills you've developed in teams will serve you to coach
others to do the right things.
The innovation process intrigues you. The discovery of new knowledge and
the ability to integrate that knowledge to the purpose of getting things
done is the reason you chose engineering. Looking back, you're glad you
did. Through your CU engineering experience, you've specialized in the construction
of the whole. An exciting, challenging, and rewarding career awaits you.
You're ready for a world that is more swift, complex, and connected than
your parents ever imagined. They grew up in a world economy concerned with
competing ideologies; the concern for your generation will be competing
resources. In this resource-oriented battle, who will control the information
and therefore hold the power?
But today is not 2001; it's October 26, 1995, and we, the engineering faculty,
have a challenge before us. We cannot become what we need to be by remaining
what we are.
- The engineering curriculum for the 21st century must be relevant to
the lives of our students and connected to major societal problems.
- We must become team players.
- We must learn to value integration in addition to specialization.
- We must value teamwork in addition to independence.
- We must resolve the clash between the dynamic advancement of technology
and our relatively static engineering curriculum.
- We must expand our teaching methods to exploit teaming, group learning,
and project-based experiences.
We as CU engineering faculty carry the burden, but we also have the opportunity
to take a national leadership position in engineering education reform.
To prepare our students for the 21st century, we must accelerate our rate
of change and embrace that change as an opportunity. We must understand
that the engineers of the 21st century face a new set of challenges as we
move from a technology mandate rooted in national security to a more diffuse
technology based on international economic competitiveness, communications,
and sustainable development.
The ITL Laboratory presents us with an unparalleled opportunity; our success
in actualizing that opportunity will be judged by the class of 2001 and
their successors. We cannot become what we need to be by remaining what
we are.
By Enid Ablowitz, Director, Engineering Development
Dear Friends,
The recent ground breaking for the Integrated Teaching and Learning Laboratory
has been a testament to the vision and hard work of many, and to the generosity
of all of you. ITL is an idea whose time has come, and now we see it taking
shape before our eyes.
My message to you is very simple. Thank you.
To all of you who allowed us to dream, thank you.
To all of you who poked and prodded when we doubted or faltered, thank you.
To all of you whose tax dollars were part of the $3.6 million state appropriation,
thank you.
To all of you who invested in the future of the College through gifts and
pledges, and in doing so, gave the project the weight of your conviction,
thank you.
And to all of you who will respond to this request to complete the funding
for the project, THANK YOU!
We have two special leveraging opportunities.
- First: You know that John Drescher will match, dollar for dollar, all
gifts between $100 and $1,000.
- Second: The Gates Foundation has made a generous gift of $250,000. They
have also issued THE GATES CHALLENGE:
When our donors give $600,000 more for ITL, the Gates Foundation will make
another gift of $250,000!
YOUR GIFT CAN PUT US OVER THE TOP!
PLEASE CONSIDER MAKING YOUR COMMITMENT NOW. CALL 492-7335 TO DISCUSS
A 5-YEAR PLEDGE, TO FIND OUT HOW TO MAKE A TAX-WISE
GIFT OF APPRECIATED SECURITIES, OR TO DISCUSS THE NAMING OPPORTUNITIES
STILL AVAILABLE IN THE ITL LAB.
Aerospace freshman Dave Imboden demonstrates a student project for
John Drescher during ITL ground breaking ceremonies
As Dean Corotis looks on, John Drescher prepares to cut ITL cake at reception
following ground breaking ceremonies
John Drescher may have graduated from the College over 60 years ago (EE
'32), but his vision remains firmly fixed on the 21st century. The one individual
who has probably done more than any other person to make the Integrated
Teaching and Learning Laboratory a reality has done it again!
He has issued yet another challenge to raise money for the College and to
expand its network of supporters. Through June 30, 1996, John Drescher
will match any gift between $100 and $1,000 dollar for dollar.
Why is John trying to give away money?
"That's how much I believe in the College, its excellent work, and
the ITL Laboratory," he says. "Our College is literally re-engineering
the way the field is taught with the development of the Integrated Teaching
and Learning Laboratory.
"The ITL Laboratory will offer our students a chance to get their hands
dirty, to get real-world experience and to become both independent learners
and team members p; skills they can certainly use in today's competitive
environment. They'll use the same hands-on, collaborative, interdisciplinary
approach that professional engineers use every day.
"Exciting new courses have already been developed with the ITL Laboratory
in mind, including one for first-year students. As far as we know, there's
nothing like it anywhere else in the country. It will put our College of
Engineering in a position to become one of a handful of leaders of undergraduate
engineering education in America!
"Tomorrow looks very exciting for the CU College of Engineering, and
I'm asking you to be a part of it. Your support of the College of Engineering
can help to support the innovative changes underway!"
Thank you, John Drescher. We couldn't have said it better ourselves.
Those individuals who will have a portion of the Integrated Teaching and
Learning Laboratory named as a testament to their generosity include the
following.
Anonymous '74
Hobie Group Study Room
Salvador J. Archuleta '61
Salvador J. "Arch" Archuleta Group Study Room
AT&T Foundation
AT&T Foundation Group Study Room
Stephen D. Bechtel, Jr. '47
Bechtel Active Learning Center
Joel G. Broida '73
Richard A. Broida '75
Dan Broida Lab Plaza
Wllliam C. Caile '65
Sara Caile '68
Theodore N. and Caroline Prouty Shreve Academic Living Room
John F. Drescher '32
Drescher Undergraduate Engineering
Gates Foundation
Gates Interactive Building-As-Lab
Timothy E. Gill '76
Gill Capstone Design Lab
Clancy Herbst, Jr. '50
Linda Herbst
Herbst Plaza
Judith S. Liebman '58
Jon C. Liebman '56
Liebman/Stenzel Group Study Room
David and Lucile Packard Foundation
Packard Breakout Areas
Charles M. Palmer '76, '88
Palmer Group Study Room
James L. Patterson '60
Pam Patterson
Dorothy A. and Donald W. Patterson Academic Living Room
George M. Philpott, Sr. '29
Philpott Group Study Room
Quantum Corporation
Quantum Simulation Laboratory
Gary L. Roubos '53
Terie A. Roubos '60 '75
Roubos Group Study Room
U S WEST Foundation
U S WEST Group Study Room
Donald G. White '65
Donald G. White Group Study Room
John Woodhull '57, '60
Barbara A. Woodhull '56
Woodhull Group Study Room
William S. Ashton '78
Robert D. Blakley '77 and Catherine M. Blakley
L. R. Branch '59, '63 and Susan S. Branch '58
Wayne P. Burleson '89
Craig D. Chapman '87 and Vera L. Harnaday
Charles K. Dietz '71 and Ilene S. Dietz
John D. Fader '64 and Mary Lynn M. Fader '64
Leslie E. Firlie '92 and Michael E. Firlie '92
Robert A. Franchino '60
Geoffrey D. Green '56
William J. Hanna '43, '48, '51
Paul M. Hart '58, '64 and Burgette A. Hart
Charles V. Henkle Jr. '67
Todd A. Henkle '90
Charles F. Hix, Jr., '48, '49 and Alma I. Hix
William C. Kriz '59 and Patricia M. Kriz '59
Frederick J. Kroll '48, '49 and Ella M. Kroll
Edward A. Krupotich '44 and Phyllis M. Corrigan
Jack E. Layne '59 and Margaret Layne
K.S. Lewis '51
Eugene C. Long '64, '68, '77 and Jeannette L. Long
Steven M. Lovs '81
Thomas E. Mallette '57 and Connie L. Mallette
Sam W. Maphis '56, '72 and Coila J. Maphis '73
Jim P. Metziner '72, '73 and Helen D. Metziner
Jacque J. Meyers II '72
Austin B. Milhollin '37 and Ava M. Milhollin
Lewis L. Mundell '32 and Elsie L. Mundell
Leslie N. Niss '61 and Harriet B. Niss '61
Nannette Nelson
Michael L. Oldham '76, '77 and Holly R. Howard
Norman A. Parker '30, '35 and Geraldine P. Parker '28
Irene C. Peden '47 and Leo J. Peden
Randall W. Peterson '56
William B. Phillips and Joan M. Phillips
Ludie G. Richard '48 and Christine Richard
Juan A. Rodriguez and Alicia S. Rodriguez
Sherwood J. Shankland '69 and Eunice M. Shankland
David A. Simms '78, '86 and Loretta J. Simms
William E. Smith and Connie Smith
Joseph W. Snider '63 and Jean A. Snider '77
Thomas W. Stalnaker '43 and Elizabeth F. Stalnaker
Peter B. Teets '63, '65 and Vivian Teets
Howard R. Yates '52 and Delores M. Yates