ASEE News

ASEE Awards 24 Grants to Infuse Sustainability in Engineering Education

Grants Will Fund Teams of Educators Pursuing New Approaches to Integrating Sustainability into Curricula 

Press Contact: 
ASEE EOP-MGP Project Team 
eop-mgp@asee.org  
  

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE  

Washington, D.C. – April 22, 2025 

The American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE) is excited to announce the awardees of its fourth cohort in the Engineering for One Planet Mini-Grant Program (EOP-MGP). The program will award $8,000 and expert mentorship to each of the 24 teams of educators from across the country to pursue new ways to integrate social and environmental sustainability learning outcomes into their curricula. ASEE received 99 applications for the initiative this year. 
 
The EOP-MGP is supported by The Lemelson Foundation as part of its Engineering for One Planet (EOP) initiative, which seeks to establish sustainability as a core tenet of the engineering profession by equipping all future engineers with the skills and knowledge to support the health of the planet and the lives it sustains. The program leverages the EOP Framework—a faculty-vetted menu of ABET-aligned student learning outcomes co-developed with hundreds of academic, industry, nonprofit, and public sector stakeholders—to inspire curricular change. The EOP Framework offers 93 learning outcomes reflecting social and environmental sustainability topics, such as systems thinking, social responsibility, and life-cycle assessment, and related professional skills such as communications, teamwork, and critical thinking. 
 
The first three EOP-MGP cohorts comprised a total of 45 awardees from a variety of small and large institutions across the U.S., including 16 Minority-Serving Institutions, of which 4 represented Historically Black Colleges and Universities. More than 350 faculty from these institutions collectively modified or created 150 courses that have impacted more than 6,500 students across engineering disciplines.  

Building upon the promising outcomes observed in earlier cohorts, The Lemelson Foundation has committed to supporting expanded cohorts of 24 teams each for cohort IV in 2025 and cohort V in 2026, demonstrating a sustained dedication to embedding sustainability as a core tenet of the engineering profession by equipping future engineers to champion planetary and human well-being.  

EOP recognizes the importance of including people from historically marginalized and low-income communities who are disproportionately negatively affected by climate and environmental degradation as partners in creating change. As such, a key goal of the EOP-MGP is to engage and elevate diverse faculty and institutions. Seven (7) of the twenty-four (24) grants were awarded this year were to Minority-Serving Institutions (*), including three (3) Hispanic-Serving Institutions, two (2) Historically Black Colleges and Universities, and four (4) Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-Serving Institutions. This year, ASEE welcomes the first Community College to the EOP-MGP! The teams are geographically dispersed and represent a mix of institutional sizes and programs, including non-engineering disciplines (Natural Science and Global Studies).  
 
Cohort IV ASEE EOP-MGP Awardees: 

• Anderson University, Jonathan Maier, Associate Professor, Mechanical Engineering  

• Colorado State University, Ellison Carter, Associate Professor, Civil and Environmental Engineering  

• Drexel University, Fernanda Campos da Cruz Rios, Assistant Professor, Civil, Architectural, and Environmental Engineering  

• George Mason University*, Shima Mohebbi, Assistant Professor, Systems Engineering and Operations Research 

• Hampshire College, Juliet Johnston, Assistant Professor, Natural Science / Environmental Microbiology 

• Houston Community College*, Reem Salim, Faculty, Engineering   

• Howard University*, Cristiano Reis, Assistant Professor, Chemical Engineering   

• Mercer University, Natalia Cardelino, Assistant Professor, Environmental & Civil Engineering 

• Missouri University of Science and Technology, Sharon Uwanyuze, Assistant Teaching Professor, Materials Science and Engineering  

• Morgan State University*, Seong W. Lee, Professor and Lab Director, Industrial and Systems Engineering 

• New Jersey Institute of Technology*, Ashish D. Borgaonkar, Assistant Professor, Engineering Education 

• North Carolina State University, Cameron Denson, Associate Professor, STEM Education 

• NYC College of Technology*, Melanie Villatoro, Professor, Construction/Civil Engineering 

• Olin College of Engineering, David Shuman, Professor, Data Science and Applied Math 

• Sam Houston State University*, Michael Ulan Genialovich Dakeev, Associate Professor, Engineering Technology/Engineering Design Technology  

• Syracuse University, Xiyuan Liu, Associate Teaching Professor, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering 

• Trine University, Gurudutt Chandrashekar, Assistant Professor, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering 

• University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Shannon L. Bartelt-Hunt, Professor, Civil and Environmental Engineering   

• University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Alexis Gillmore, Teaching Assistant Professor, Applied Physical Sciences  

• University of Pittsburgh, Amr Mahmoud, Assistant Professor, Electrical and Computer Engineering Department  

• University of Southern Indiana, Ryan Integlia, Associate Professor, Engineering   

• University of Texas at Tyler, Carla Lacerda, Assistant Professor, Chemical Engineering  

• University of Toledo, Glenn Lipscomb, Professor, Chemical Engineering 

• Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Corey Dehner, Associate Professor of Teaching, Integrative and Global Studies 

 
For more information about this program, visit https://eop-mgp.asee.org or contact the ASEE project team at eop-mgp@asee.org. For more information about Engineering for One Planet, visit https://www.engineeringforoneplanet.org. 

About ASEE 

Founded in 1893, the American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE) is a nonprofit organization of individuals and institutions committed to furthering education in engineering and engineering technology. ASEE develops policies and programs that enhance professional opportunities for engineering faculty members and promotes activities that support increased student enrollments in engineering and engineering technology colleges and universities. ASEE also collaborates with national and international organizations to advance its mission. For more information, visit www.asee.org.  
 
About The Lemelson Foundation 

Established in 1992 by prolific U.S. inventor Jerome “Jerry” Lemelson and his wife Dorothy, The Lemelson Foundation is dedicated to improving lives in today's rapidly changing world and recognizes the urgent need for inventive solutions that address critical global challenges. Guided today by members of the Lemelson family, the Foundation invests in and supports inventors, invention-based enterprises, and strategic initiatives that advance social and economic prosperity. Recognizing the profound impact of engineering and technology on our planet, The Lemelson Foundation launched the Engineering for One Planet (EOP) initiative in 2020. This initiative underscores the Foundation's commitment to fostering a future where invention and engineering are not only drivers of innovation but also catalysts for environmental sustainability and social equity. Since its founding, The Lemelson Foundation has contributed more than $350 million in grants and investments, supporting organizations worldwide. Based in Portland, Oregon, the Foundation is a key driver in cultivating the ingenuity of inventors and engineers who will contribute to a future where technological advancement and environmental stewardship are intrinsically linked. For more information, visit www.lemelson.org.