The Engineering Leadership Program:
A co-curricular learning environment by and for students
K. S. Athreya and Michael T. Kalkhoff
Iowa State University
Introduction ning and proved extremely worthy of the chal-
lenge to design, implement, assess and modify Abstract
In recent years, there is a growing rec- program elements iteratively through a partici-
ognition among educators of the imperative patory process with peers and educators. The
to educate engineering students in life and This article describes the Engi-
program uses a leadership model to guide the neering Leadership Program at
leadership skills that their complement techni- scholars in their development. The leadership
cal competence, to prepare them adequately Iowa State University, a pilot edu-
Model is described in the Program Highlights cational program for leadership
for the current global workplace. This was a section of the paper. Individual leadership
theme that emerged from the 2005 Symposium development of undergraduate
- engineering students, designed
at Tufts University on engineering education in ing a personalized electronic portfolio system6.
the 21st century, had already been articulated and built with student ownership
in The Balanced Engineer: Entering the New and leadership. A client focused
as crucial to leadership development. This is leadership model, articulated
Millennium, and one that is emphasized in the described in greater detail in the section Indi-
National Academy of Engineering’s Engineer of through an iterative year long
vidualized development plans for scholars. group exercise, with anticipated
2020 report.1,2,3 The program is divided into two main phases:
The College of Engineering at Iowa State learning outcomes, and compe-
year 1 and years 2+. The following sections tencies that help students achieve
University created the Engineering Leader- will address how the scholars are chosen, fol-
ship Program (ELP) based on the “Engineer them, guides program activities
lowed by descriptions of the two phases of the and individual leadership devel-
of 2020”1 vision articulated by the National program.
Academy of Engineering which emphasizes the opment plans of the students.
civic responsibility of engineers. It is a four year As the pilot phase nears comple-
Scholar Selection tion, efforts are underway to cre-
pilot program for a values-based learning com- Potential ELP scholars apply directly to the
munity of engineering students committed to ate an effective strategy for as-
program expressing their motivation and readi- sessin