Deans’ messages

Dean’s Message

In my first year as Dean, what has impressed me the most is our students—and that includes our former students. Our alumni inspire me through their generous support and enthusiasm for Queen’s Engineering. Their level of engagement sets us apart and allows us to dream big about the future. Our current students are among the very best in Canada and internationally. I’m so proud of what they accomplish in and out of the classroom—from solving problems, designing, and developing leadership skills, to participating on competitive teams, planning events such as the Science Formal, and engaging in community outreach activities. We focus our attention on these outreach activities in this issue of The Complete Engineer. Queen’s Engineering and indeed the field of engineering has undergone significant transformation. As we begin celebrations for our 125th anniversary this is a perfect time to reflect on the evolution of the Faculty, from its beginnings as the Kingston School of Mining and Agriculture in 1893 to becoming one of the top engineering programs in the country. As we move towards a future where every job is a tech job, society is looking to engineers to contribute in a wide variety of ways. Today’s engineer may be working with health professionals to design new treatments or therapies, or collaborating with business partners for a new startup. Our alumni are thriving in all segments of the economy, and some are working in jobs that did not exist when they were students. With such an amazing range of career possibilities, we believe that it’s important to capture the interest of potential future engineers as early as possible. In this issue of The Complete Engineer, you’ll learn about our new Tech ‘n Tinker trailer, a mobile makerspace lab filled with educational technology tools to stimulate design thinking and invention in elementary students. The lab travels to schools and community events challenges. We have always included rigorous training in foundational math and science, and now we supplement that with the tools to think creatively and work collaboratively to address the problems in our world. Professional and critical thinking skills are crucial for engineers to thrive in an interdisciplinary environment. We are striving to train our students to be systems-minded, strong communicators and team leaders. In fact, industry representatives tell us that they look to hire Queen’s students because they know they can quickly take on leadership roles. The way we deliver our curriculum has also evolved, with instructors using a broad range of teaching approaches, teaching spaces, and technology to support learning. They’re supported by a team of educational specialists who help develop content and provide tools for the classroom. These tools also expand our reach, giving students across the country access to our programs via our expanding online courses and programs. We’re reaching out to primary and secondary students to highlight opportunities in engineering and to help develop a sense of curiosity about the world. Our outreach activities, including those run in our Aboriginal Access to Engineering program and new Tech n’ Tinker makerspace trailer, provide around our region to provide experiential learning around the math and science curriculum, and to support teachers who may not have the background to integrate new tools, such as 3D printers and coding tools, into their class plans. The mobile lab is part of our Connections program, designed to raise awareness of engineering careers and to challenge students to think more broadly about career opportunities. The program also provides professional development opportunities for elementary- and secondary-school teachers, helping them bring their math and science curriculum to life. The Connections program is part of our larger outreach activities, which also include our very successful Aboriginal Access to Engineering program and Science Quest, which is run by our students and offers in-class workshops, student clubs, and summer camps for students from kindergarten to grade eight. These activities are great recruitment tools for future students, but more importantly they are an investment in our next generation of explorers. Our Tech ‘n’ Tinker trailer features the phrase “Ignite Your Imagination” along its side. We hope that the stories in this issue inspire you and get you as excited as I am about our next 125 years!

Dr. Kevin Deluzio (Sc’88, MSc’90, PhD’98)

Associate Dean’s Message

Over the past decade, Queen’s Engineering has been reimagining how we prepare engineers to solve societal Dean, Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science critical support for students and teachers in the elementary- and secondary-school systems through guided projects and resources that bring engineering to life. We are particularly focused on supporting teachers in the elementary system who may not have an educational background in science and engineering. As our world becomes more complex, we must continue to expand on what we learn and how we learn it. That means ensuring that our curriculum is inclusive, interdisciplinary, and culturally sensitive, and that it can adapt to new ideas and new challenges. The skills that we give our students today are the foundation for discovery tomorrow.

Dr. Brian Frank (Sc’97, MSc’99, PhD’02) Associate Dean (Teaching and Learning) DuPont Canada Chair in Engineering Education, Research and Development