Practitioners in Classroom: Viable Tool in Civil Engineering Education

Abstract

The impending shortage of civil engineering professionals and the deteriorating quality of our educational system pose critical problems for our nation. To alleviate the impact of these issues on our society, professional practitioners must become more directly involved in the education process. At the university level, practicing professionals make a valuable contribution when they address the day‐to‐day issues faced by professionals—business, management, human relations, marketing, communication, law, and ethics. These issues, more than technical engineering experience, prove to be the areas that beginning professionals are least equipped to manage. To address the longer‐term problem of a shortage of engineering professionals, practitioners must also intervene at elementary and secondary school levels to stimulate basic curiosity in math, science, and engineering. Through the students engaged in engineering (SEE) program of the American Consulting Engineers Council (ACEC), along with similar initiatives begun by the National Society of Professional Engineers (NSPE), the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and the Associated General Contractors of America, practicing professionals can interact with public school students in a meaningful way.