The Red and Black

Issue date: 2/19/09 Section: News

Media Credit: ALLISON CARTER Environmental science major William Johnson shares opinions on food sustainabililty. [Click to enlarge]

As the University plans to bulk up its engineering program in the next few years with the addition of new majors, some University professors are taking the program a step further by fusing engineering with humanities courses.

Art education and engineering have combined this semester at the University, integrating the Lamar Dodd School of Art and the University's engineering school.

The thought was prompted by University professors Nadia Kellam and Tracie Costantino, who met during the Lilly Teaching Fellows Program, a grant-based program that allows selected University professors to expand on their research and teaching. Kellam, an assistant engineering professor, and Costantino, an assistant art professor, developed plans for a pilot course combining art instruction and engineering principles for the 2008-2009 year.

"We realized we had a common interest in interdisciplinary course designs," Costantino said.

The two worked shortly after the program's end, gaining national support from the National Science Foundation. With the help of Bonnie Cramond, former director of the Torrance Center for Creativity and Talent Development, $150,000 funded the fusion of art and engineering disciplines.

The national aid only added to the staff's expectations for the winter course.

Engineering, though typically found in technical applications, can thrive in a liberal arts environment because students can receive a balanced courseload of the two fields, Kellam said.

"Typically, you get bogged down with the engineering courses and humanities courses aren't seen as essential," Kellam said.

"The students are very excited," Kellam said. "They're very engaged and spending so much time."

The expectations are met with challenge as the program strives for a larger end goal, Kellam said. The objective of the program includes understanding multiple perspectives, observing phenomena and modeling these concepts.

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