2007 ERC Program Annual Meeting Presentations

2007 ERC Annual Meeting Presentations

National Science Foundation Engineering Research Centers
NSF ERC 2007 Annual Meeting
November 28-30, 2007
Hyatt Regency Bethesda

Note: File sizes are shown; some are large.

WEDNESDAY, November 28, 2007

Annual Meeting – Day One
Student Retreat and Closed Sessions

Student Retreat –

Organizers: CenSSIS, Kristin Hicks, Education Services Coordinator, and SLC co-leaders Anthony Serino and Hadi Esiely-Barrera)

Continental Breakfast

Morning Session (NSF & ERC staff invited for this session only)

SLC Introductions and Welcome

Welcome & remarks by Bruce Kramer, NSF ERC Program Director

Self-introductions by participants

Presentation by Jorge Cham on “Surviving Grad School”

Break

Talk by Allen Soyster, NSF EEC Div. Director, on the future of the Engineering PhD

Philip Cheney (CenSSIS Sr. Partnerships Consultant) on what industry needs (and finds) in engineering grads
Michael McCorquodale (Founder, Mobius Microsystems) on the special needs of small/start-up firms and the shortcomings of current engineering graduate education with regard to business/financial needs

Lunch

Roundtables for initial discussions on “Designing the Ideal PhD Program” and on building engineering leaders through grad school education

Meeting Plan Overview Session – All breakout session moderators, scribes, and Synthesis Group members meet with the NSF Meeting Planning Team

Center Directors’ & Deputy Directors’ Closed Meeting –

Co-moderators: Jorge Rocca (EUV) & Anthony Johnson (MIRTHE)

Welcoming Remarks –

Kristina Johnson (Provost, Johns Hopkins University) on the impacts of the ERC Program in education and on her career path from ERC researcher to Director to Dean to Provost

Time with Lynn Preston and Allen Soyster

Lunch

Kelvin Droegemeier (Chair) National Science Board Task Force on Cost Sharing; and Michael Crosby, NSB Executive Director – open roundtable discussion of the potential impacts on ERCs of the NSF policy on eliminating cost sharing

Fernando Muzzio (C-SOPS) on strategies for developing broad-based support for the ERC and the ERC program

Prof. Krishna Vedula (UMass-Lowell) on the Indo-US Collaborative on Engineering Education

Open discussion of Design of the Future ERC

Administrative Directors’ Closed Meeting –

Moderator: Beth Tranter (CPES)

Time with Lynn Preston and Barbara Kenny

Doris Lee (BMES) on Lessons Learned re: Year 3 Critical Review

Working lunch; 2008 Summer Retreat plans; review of new online ADs Resource Center– Shawna Young-Garcia (GTEC

Charles Zeigler & Tim Kashmer (NSF), Ganga Talasila (QRC), Barb Kenny, NSF Program Director – Q&A and QRC presentation

Karen Richardson (WIMS)– SLC Organization and Lessons Learned

Industrial Liaison Officers’ Closed Meeting –

Moderator: Lani Hummel (CISST)
Theme: Reengineering University/Industry Partnerships

Susan Butts (435KB), Sr. Director of External Technology, Dow Chemical, on potential changes in the Bayh-Dole Act
Bill Behn, IEEE/AAAS Congressional Fellow, House Science and Technology Committee, Subcommittee on Technology and Innovation and Meghan Housewright, House Research and Science Education Subcommittee – Perspectives on University/Industry partnerships from recent House and Senate Committee hearings

Working Lunch – Continued discussion with Dr. Butts, Mr. Behn, and Ms. Housewright

Time with Lynn Preston, Deborah Jackson, Vilas Mujumdar, NSF

Continued discussion among attendees of issues raised

Education/Outreach Directors’ Closed Meeting –

Moderator: Cyndi Ramey (Johns Hopkins University CISST)

Claire Duggan (Northeastern University CenSSIS)– Mini-workshop on Building Sustainable Precollege Outreach Programs

Working Lunch
Discussion with Lynn Preston, Mary Poats, and Win Aung, NSF

Anne Donnelly (University of Florida PERC) – Sustainability of Your ERC Education Program After Graduation

Leo McAfee (University of Michigan WIMS) – Improving Diversity in ERC Education Programs

Open discussion

Research Thrust Leaders’ Closed Meeting –

Co-moderators: Sandra Cruz-Pol (UPRM CASA) and Alberto Cuitino (Rutgers University C-SOPS)

Jim Kurose (U. Massachusetts CASA); Chris Cox (Clemson University CAEFF); Rajesh Dave (Rutgers C-SOPS) – Best Practices for implementing a strategic research plan within and across the thrusts

Working lunch – Continuing informal discussion with panelists

Discussion with three presenters of Best Practices for Thrust Leaders

Discussion with Sohi Rastegar, Bruce Kramer, & Lynn Preston, NSF

Plenary Session I: Opening Session
Moderator: Lynn Preston

Welcome & Meeting Plan (setting the stage for the meeting’s tasks) – Lynn Preston and Court Lewis (3.35MB)

Major Impacts of CISST & Lessons Learned – Russell Taylor(1.39MB), Director (Lynn Preston intro)

Major Impacts of CPES & Lessons Learned – Fred Lee (4.42MB), Director (Lynn Preston intro)

Major Impacts of CAEFF & Lessons Learned – Douglas Hirt (3.96 MB), Director (Bruce Kramer intro)

Major Impacts of GTEC & Lessons Learned – Robert Nerem (3.79MB) , Director (Sohi Rastegar intro)

Directors of ERC Class of 1998 (CAEFF, GTEC, CISST, CPES, plus MAE) meet with Lynn Preston and Barbara Kenny to discuss graduation celebrations

Welcome Reception for All

THURSDAY, November 29, 2007

Plenary Session II: NSF Session

Welcome & Plan for the Day – Court Lewis

NSF & ERC Program Update – Lynn Preston (5.08MB)

Plenary III: Centers Worldwide–A Global View
Moderator: Al Soyster, Director, Engineering Education & Centers Division

Bhavya Lal (596KB), Project Director, Science and Technology Policy Institute, summarizes findings/recommendations of the recent study of foreign research centers programs

Foreign Centers panel– four ERC participants in international study (Siddharth Dasgupta (134KB), Caltech CNSE; Fred Lee (46KB), Virginia Tech CPES; Erik Sander, University of Florida PERC; Rao Tummala (481KB), Georgia Tech PRC)
-- moderator: Bhavya Lal
-- includes audience Q&A with panel, directed by Bhavya

Lunch

Speaker: Dean Kamen, Founder, DEKA Research & Development Corporation and FIRST (Robotics, Lego League, and Tech Challenge) – includes Q&A (Click Here for WMV file - 128MB)
– Introduction by Al Soyster

Lynn Preston (327KB) presents charge to meeting attendees

Breakout Session I – Designing the Future ERC
12 breakouts: Participants will be pre-assigned by NSF. Each breakout will have the same task (see below). See separate list for session moderators. Note that NSF PDs and selected students will meet in parallel sessions.

For approximately the first hour, participants in all 12 main breakouts will discuss and identify strengths and shortcomings of Gen-2 and Gen-3 ERC key features (working from handout materials). The remainder of the time, participants will discuss the Design of the Future ERC, focusing on key features. Scribes will summarize the main points of discussion and agreement. All sessions break as needed, at discretion of each session moderator.

NSF ERC PDs conduct an “ERC Program Leadership 360º” (Moderator: Barb Kenny, ERC Program Director)

Selected students meet to Design the Ideal Engineering PhD Program

Plenary Session IV: Reporting-out and Looking Ahead
Moderator: Lynn Preston

Students report (62KB) on “Design of the Ideal Engineering PhD Program”

Lynn describes Synthesis Group evening assignment & recaps plan for Friday

Synthesis Group
Pre-selected group of 12 participants (see separate list) integrate the findings from the 12 breakouts to develop three outputs: (1) a synthesized list and brief description of each of the key features and characteristics of a Future ERC (with rationale), (2) a presentation/briefing for Friday morning summarizing their findings, and (3) a list of six issues or topics that they feel require additional discussion and clarification.

FRIDAY, November 30, 2007

Plenary Session V: Reporting-out
Moderator: Lynn Preston

Welcome & Plan for Day – Lynn Preston & Court Lewis

Synthesis Group Reporting-out and Q&A
David McLaughlin (2.35MB) (Director, U. Massachusetts CASA) gives presentation and moderates Q&A. Presentation includes “special topics” needing further attention.

other Synthesis Group members in audience field questions as directed by Dave, based on interests and expertise

Lynn recaps charge and instructions for Breakout Session II

Break and self-select into 6 groups based on special topics identified by Synthesis Group
-- Meeting planning team helps direct self-assignments to minimize imbalances in group size
-- Each group include 2 Synthesis Group members (preassigned)

Breakout Session II: Special Topics
6 breakout groups expand on the Future ERC key features in terms of the special topics or issues identified by the Synthesis Group (one topic per group)

Scribes will summarize the main points of discussion and agreement. The moderators of these breakouts (and one scribe) will meet with the chair and co-chair of the Synthesis Group immediately following meeting adjournment to compile an organized findings summary, which will be given to NSF.

ERC PDs discuss the synthesis of recommendations for the Design of the Future ERC (Moderator: Bruce Kramer, ERC Program Director)

Plenary Session VI — Reporting-out and Wrap-up
Moderator: Lynn Preston

Special Topics session moderators report-out (5 min. each)

Comments from the floor

Lynn Preston and Court Lewis summarize briefly, describe follow-on plan, thank participants, and adjourn meeting

Post-meeting: Prepare Findings Summary
All Breakout II moderators (and one scribe) work with two members of the Synthesis Group (Dave McLaughlin and Jay Keasling) to revise Synthesis Group findings based on Breakout II results, organize & finalize findings. Lynn Preston and Barb Kenny available nearby for questions and to accept output results.

Meeting Photos