An adventure in extreme curriculum integration to stimulate innovation and collaboration

Abstract

In summary, as a model for professional university education in the 21st century, Philadelphia University's College of Design, Engineering and Commerce is focused on providing graduates with the skills necessary to be leaders in their professions at every level of their careers. By bringing these three disciplines together (design, engineering, and business), the new College will push students to think beyond the boundaries of existing disciplines and focus on market-driven innovation through teamwork, collaboration and connections with industry partners. Students will gain expertise in their disciplines and a fluency in the interdisciplinary ways of the 21st-century work world on a much larger scale than what has been seen in higher education to date. The new College is a forward-thinking and timely concept because it combines the best aspects of these three disciplines to focus on innovation and entrepreneurship. This is happening at a time when innovation is universally recognized as a critical element in global economic recovery, as well as in solving today's complex, world-scale "grand challenge" problems. This exciting new college is being strongly and actively supported by Philadelphia University in ways ranging from the hiring of new interdisciplinary faculty; to the recruiting of a new generation of students who are interested in innovation, collaboration and leadership experiences; to the building and equipping of new labs and studios. In fact, Philadelphia University is in the process of building a brand new building to house the key activities of the new college. This exciting 40,000 square-foot building will be in the center of campus, and will house new studios and classrooms, new prototyping spaces, and a range of new collaborative workspaces for students and faculty to work on real-world projects for external customers. It will be an amazing collaborative workspace, and will be ready for occupancy in late 2012. So, the adventure in extreme curriculum integration to stimulate innovation and collaboration has begun at Philadelphia University, and initial assessments indicate that it is working extremely well. However, the real proof will be when the inaugural graduating class of the College of Design, Engineering, and Commerce begin their careers in 2015 as entrepreneurs and leaders of innovation, doing amazing things in their chosen fields. © 2012 American Society for Engineering Education.