Empowering Engineering Students: The Impact of ePortfolios and the Biggadike Innovation Grant

Photo Submitted

Jacob Holmes and Alyssa Ball present at the ASEE Midwest Conference.

In December 2022, the College of Engineering announced the inaugural recipients of the Biggadike Innovation Grants (BIG). Brandon Crisel, instructor and adviser in the Department of Industrial Engineering, was one of those inaugural recipients.

With his grant, Crisel established ePortfolios for students. A purposeful collection of sample student work, ePortfolios include examples that highlight students' learning progression, achievements and evidence of what they can do.

"Through discussion with industry representatives and reading through case studies, it was apparent that ePortfolios are a valuable tool for both job seekers and employers," Crisel said. "While they are only just starting to gain traction in industry, we predict that they will become common practice. Through this project, students get ahead of the game and are preparing their portfolio while projects and college experiences are actively happening and fresh on their minds."

Earlier this year, Crisel and a team of students participating in the project completed research on technical platforms, industry standards, stakeholder buy-in and what makes relevant content for an ePortfolio. In summer, they began creating a series of modules directed at developing an independent learning process for students to build their own ePortfolios.

The team has developed assignments to accompany the learning modules and has begun presenting these assignments to students. During the fall semester, they hope to improve and expand the materials, achieving more widespread engagement in the Department of Industrial Engineering and potentially the College of Engineering.

Two of Crisel's initial students, Alyssa Ball and Jacob Holmes, presented their work at the recent ASEE Midwest Conference held at the University of Nebraska in early September.

Ball said, "The driving motivation behind the project is the empowerment of engineering students and, while tackling an objective like this seemed intimidating at first, contributing to the innovation and advancement of the engineering student community at the U of A is quite rewarding."

Holmes echoed Ball's comments. "I believe the ePortfolio curriculum will be very beneficial to students wanting to demonstrate their work to employers. This research is already being implemented and will hopefully be applied to courses across the College of Engineering," he said.

Kevin Hall, associate dean for academics in the College of Engineering, expressed his excitement about the ePortfolio project.

"The benefits of a student ePortfolio system are substantial. This allows students to truly showcase their knowledge, skills and abilities far beyond a bare recitation of traditional metrics such as GPA and course listings. We certainly hope that the results of Mr. Crisel's work will be considered by all departments across the college," he said.

The Biggadike Endowment for Teaching and Learning was established in 2014 through the generosity of Robert H. Biggadike, a 1958 graduate of the mechanical engineering program at the University of Arkansas. Its purpose is to promote student success through innovation in curriculum, classroom instruction and student support. The endowment provides resources to ensure University of Arkansas engineering graduates are thoroughly equipped to tackle the challenges facing society in the 21st century.

About the Department of Industrial Engineering: The Department of Industrial Engineering at the University of Arkansas was founded in 1950, led by department head John L. Imhoff who believed deeply in the global impact of industrial engineering. Today, the department averages over 200 undergraduate students and over 40 doctoral and master's students. In addition, the department has three online master's degrees: the Master of Science in Operations Management, Master of Science in Engineering Management and Master of Science in Operations Analytics. These three programs alone enroll over 600 students each academic year. To learn more about the Department of Industrial Engineering please visit our website.