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Valparaiso University Engineering in the News

Professor honored for work in engineering education

4-11-08

A Valparaiso University engineering professor who has won national recognition for his scholarship on ethics and emerging technology was honored by the American Society of Engineering Education's Illinois/Indiana Section earlier this month.

Dr. Doug Tougaw, Richardson professor of engineering, received the section's Outstanding Service Award at its annual conference, held April 3 to 5.

Last year, Dr. Tougaw (along with co-author Dr. Michael McCuddy, Morgal professor of Christian business ethics at Valparaiso) was honored by the ASEE for presenting the best overall paper at its national convention . The paper, "Implementing a New Approach to Teaching the Ethics of Emerging Technology," described the use of a new teaching method to demonstrate how different aspects of human development can illustrate a variety of ethical issues associated with emerging technologies.

"All the inhabitants of this planet are increasingly impacted by the moral consequences of emerging technologies," Dr. Tougaw said. "Engineers are in a unique position to understand the technical issues surrounding the emerging technology they are helping to create, and it is imperative that as engineering educators we help our students develop the knowledge, skills and attitudes needed to assist society in making wise choices concerning the development and application of emerging technologies."

"Implementing a New Approach to Teaching the Ethics of Emerging Technology" received the "Best Paper Award" at the 2006 ASEE Illinois/Indiana Section conference. In 2004, Dr. Tougaw and two other Valparaiso engineering professors also won the section's Best Paper Award for their paper "Using Computer Technology to Improve Classroom Assessment," which they presented at the 2005 ASEE national conference.

Dr. Tougaw serves as editor of the Illinois/Indiana section's newsletter and will organize next year's conference, hosted by Valparaiso's College of Engineering.

ASEE, a national organization committed to furthering education in engineering and engineering technology, has more than 12,000 members representing hundreds of institutions of higher education, corporations and government agencies.