Targeted Infusion Project: Integrating Risk and Resilience into Undergraduate Engineering Education Towards a Hazard-Resilient Built Environment

The Historically Black Colleges and Universities Undergraduate Program (HBCU-UP) through Targeted Infusion Projects supports the development, implementation, and study of evidence-based innovative models and approaches for improving the preparation and success of HBCU undergraduate students so that they may pursue science, technology, engineering or mathematics (STEM) graduate programs and/or careers. The project at the University of the District of Columbia (UDC) seeks to improve students' preparation and success towards an engineering career or an advanced degree by infusing interdisciplinary risk and resilience training into undergraduate engineering education, especially in civil engineering. Undergraduate students are involved in the project as researchers, and outreach activities to high school and community college students are part of the project.

This project has the objectives to: update the educational experiences in civil engineering and related STEM programs at UDC by integrating interdisciplinary knowledge and skills development in risk and resilience; enrich the undergraduate research experiences through creation of an interdisciplinary summer research program for resilient built environment; and increase the enrollment and retention rate in engineering programs through engaging students and outreach to local high schools and community colleges. This project will contribute to a diverse engineering workforce in the area of built environment. It is expected that at least 600 students will be directly impacted by this project.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.