The MEERC speaker series aims to dissiminate current findings in STEM education to our affiliates by bringing in renowned experts in the field. 

Idalis Villanueva
Lost in Translation: From Engineering Norms to Identities

Description: While much effort has taken place to help underrepresented and minoritized groups to remain in engineering, not much improvement has been seen over the past few decades. This workshop will explore some of the hidden messages and pervasive ideas that, while commonly known, have been lost in translation to students. In this talk, we will explore the role that the hidden curriculum, or the implicit messages of a learning or working environment, can have on its students and how these may influence the formation of an engineering professional identity. We will explore the role that instruction may have in communicating inclusion (or exclusion) to its students. Finally, simple strategies to mitigate the negative influences of hidden curriculum will be discussed collaboratively with attendees.

About the Speaker:

Villanueva

Dr. Idalis Villanueva has a Ph.D. in Chemical and Biological Engineering from the University of Colorado-Boulder and a postdoctoral degree from the National Institutes of Health in Analytical Cell Biology. After her postdoctoral fellowship, she worked as a lecturer in the Fischell Department of Bioengineering in the University of Maryland where she developed an interest in engineering education research. For the past 8 years, Dr. Villanueva has worked on several engineering education projects where she derives from her experiences in engineering to improve outcomes for underrepresented minorities in engineering using mixed-methods approaches. She is currently an Assistant Professor of Engineering Education and Adjunct Assistant Professor of Biological Engineering at Utah State University.

Time & Location: September 20, 2019, 11:30am-1:00pm, SUB 168.
References: Hidden Curriculum Handout, Hidden Curriculum Slides
I. Villanueva. (2019). Lost in Translation: From Engineering Norms to Identities. Invited Talk to Montana Engineering Education Research Center, Montana State University, Bozeman, MT, September 20, 2019.