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HONORS EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING PROJECT PROPOSAL FORM

Complete this proposal prior to your projects start date and upload it in the UHP Database
(https://webapps.uc.edu/uchonorsstudent). Create a project (Add a new record) in the Tracking Project tab and then
upload your proposal document as an attachment. The deadline for submitting proposals is on the 5th of each month.
While the quality of the proposal is most important, strong proposals are typically 3-4 pages in length (single-spaced).
Please maintain the proposal format.
Basic Information
Full Name: Derek A. Schulte
UC Email: schultdr@mail.uc.edu
College: Engineering and Applied Sciences
Major: Mechanical Engineering
Title of Project: Middle School Engineering Exposure
Thematic Area (choose only one): Leadership
Expected Project Start Date: Monday, March 2
Expected Project End Date: Friday, June 19
Project Information
1. Provide a detailed abstract of your proposed honors experiential learning project.
The goal of project is to develop and run a program for middle school students to gain an early exposure to
engineering. Early engineering education is something thats really important to me because of its effect in my own life. I
have found that early exposure to engineering has fueled my passion for engineering and resulted in a wide range of
positive side effects such as constructive hobbies, self-motivation in school, and a goal to work towards. Similarly I have
seen friends discover early that engineering is not something they are passionate about, instead of wasting years pursuing
an engineering career. Although there are activities that do introduce students to engineering, many of them are poorly
structured, focus more on the science and math, or are otherwise imperfect. My goal is to create a program tailored
specifically for engineering that teaches students through hands on activities and applied learning.
This project will include three main parts; research, planning, and execution. Research will be a long term stage
taking about 2 hours a week and last 12 weeks, totaling in 24 hours. Planning will be relatively long term, taking about 4
hours a week, and lasting 5 weeks, totaling in 20 hours. Finally, execution will be a short stage, but intense, taking 20
hours a week, and lasting 2 weeks totaling in 40 hours. These three stages will overlap to a limited extent, but still require
separated blocks of time, since they entail different types of work. Overall, it will take 84 hours of total work.
The research stage will start during spring break (Monday, March 16) and continue until the execution stage begins
(Monday, June 8). During this stage of the project, I will reach out to professors and teachers who teach STEM classes for
advice and inspiration as well as do individual research into different methods for teaching engineering. This is where I
will decide what kind of activities to use and how to best teach with the available resources as well as my method for
keeping the students interested and engaged.
The planning stage will start as soon as the spring semester ends (Saturday, May 2) and last until the beginning of the
execution stage (Monday, June 8). Although some details will be planned out before this stage starts, this is where the
technical details will be hashed out and the program will be pitched to students potentially interested in engineering. This
is where I will plan the more mundane details of the program, like the times, where it will be hosted, how students will
sign up, and how to avoid legal trouble.
The final stage will be the execution stage. It will begin as the other two stages complete (Monday, June 8) and end
(Friday, June 19). In this stage of the project, I will actually work with students and evaluate how different methods
resonate with the students themselves. In this stage, there will be two five day sessions, each lasting three hours a day with
one additional hour reserved for setup, preplanning, break down, and structured reflection.

Clearly and thoroughly address how each of the following elements will be exhibited in your work:
2. Connection to Learning Outcomes within the Honors Thematic Area (identified above)
Has the ability to relate, communicate and work effectively with peers
This project will require an ability to relate and communicate effectively with both adults and middle school
students. I will have to be able to effectively convey my ideas to the adult teachers in charge of their students, not only
making sure that everything is in order, but also effectively convey my ideas to them in a convincing and mature manner. I
will have to respect the fact that the adults in charge have the final say and I must work with and within their constraints if
I want to program to become a reality. On the flip side, I will also have to effectively communicate with the students Im
working with, meeting them where they are in terms of maturity and ability. My goal with the middle school students will
be to educate them about engineering, conveying information in a way that keeps their interest without going over their
heads or talking down to them. The point with both groups is to convey information in an accessible way so its received
as effectively as possible.
In addition to school officials and students, I will also have to communicate with the parents/guardians of the
students, convincing them that the program is something worth letting their children participate in. In order to gain their
support, I will have to advertise the program through various means of communication such as fliers, the internet and
possibly school communication systems. I will also have to ensure a reputable image for the program, making sure that
everything is well done with a decent amount of polish and attention to detail.
Develops a vision of the future and acknowledges the impact of decisions (as applicable to the individual and
affiliated organizations)
In every stage of this project, the decisions will be of critical importance. With every decision, I will have to keep
every possible result in mind. Since I will be working with the schools, I will have to consider a wide range of rules and
legal constraints. In addition, I will have to make sure my ideas meet the scrutiny of teachers and parents. If I make a
decision without the adults in mind, the program will be at risk of never happening. I will also have to keep time
constraints in mind when making decisions. Not only do middle school students have a limited attention span, but I also
have a limited amount of time to teach a wide range of possible engineering concepts. I will have to prioritize and make
itinerary decisions that maximize the quantity, quality and absorption of information conveyed. There are too many factors
to be considered to be mentioned in a brief paragraph, but I will have to consider as many possible effects of every
decision without falling into indecision for the program to be a success.
During the planning and research stages, I will have to define and improve upon my initial vision of this program,
making sure that the vision is possible and that every decision is a step towards the vision laid out. In the early weeks of
my research phase I will put a well-defined vision for the program in writing. This will keep me on track as I make
decisions and delve into the specifics of this program as well as prevent to program from becoming something that is
neither informative, nor helpful, but instead making it into something that can do the most possible good for the middle
school students who are looking into engineering.
3. Connection to Goals and Academic Theories (include reference list, as appropriate)
A. Connection to my goals
Although this project is connected to my future career, it is more connected to my personal goals that professional
or academic goals. As discussed earlier, middle school engineering programs are what led to my interest in
engineering. I personally believe that giving back to society is extremely important. I think that I can use my skills
to help others in a way that I personally believe to be effective. The idea of teaching engineering early is
something that I think is increasingly important as fields such as engineering increase in importance. Also, this
project will help expand my planning and interpersonal skills, which will be useful in almost any future endeavor.

B. Connection to theories.
By the time I begin this project, Ill have already taken a class on leadership and will have been well read on
various theories on leadership. As far as leadership goes, I will already have substantial access to theories on
leadership, and will be able to pick and choose which ones might be applicable to this situation.
I will most of my research into theories on education. Since I am personally a very hands on learner, I will rely
more heavily on approaches that encourage a more constructivist approach to education. Although I have done
personal research into different approaches to teaching, most of the research has been YouTube and TedTalk
based. This is a decent starting point, however, early on in my research, I will have to delve into the research
papers themselves to find theories of education that I can both expand upon and use in my program.
4. Initiative, Independence, and/or Creativity
Although I have some experience with teaching younger students engineering related topics and have worked with my
high school engineering teacher in a program similar to the one outlined here, I hope to expand the availability, design,
and extent of this program, bringing my own personal experiences to the table. In the past, I was approached with
opportunities to passively help with various programs, given limited opportunity to apply my own ideas or effect the final
outcome. With this program, I hope to take the primary role in the planning, research and execution even as I work within
an existing system with people experienced in the teaching role. As a student, I believe I can bring a different angle into
extracurricular engineering education while keeping teachers in the loop. Hopefully, this will result in something better
than veteran teachers or students like myself could create alone.
5. Reflection
Throughout the course of my project I will keep a website similar to the honors page where I record my path as I go
from the beginning of research to the final reflections after the execution phase ends. On this website, I will record the
research I do each week, as well as my thoughts and plans for the program. This part of the website will serve as a journal
to keep thoughts and collect all the research that I have done in one, easily accessible place. This website will also be
where I put my official plans and itinerary in writing, as well as reflect on the process of planning the program. Finally,
during the execution phase, I will record my reflections on each day, and how that day will affect the future days of the
program.
Once the program finishes, I will pull the main points of the project out of the website and put it into PowerPoint
format that I can use to present to school districts interested in similar programs, or professional engineering societies
such as SME, which encourage engineering education programs. I have attended SME chapter meetings in the past which
have addressed engineering education, and even if the program experiences limited success, it could be a resource for
potential future projects.
6. Dissemination
I will organize this website in such a way that it will be used as a resource for people looking into the program itself
and for parents and guardians to understand what the details of the program. It could also serve as a resource for people
considering similar programs, showing my personal research and results, assisting them in their research and improving
upon my design.
The PowerPoint will be a more active version of the website, allowing me to present directly to people considering
similar programs and actively forcing them to consider programs for introducing middle school students to engineering.
My hope is that others are inspired by the idea of teaching engineering early and design their own programs, building off
of successes and failures of the past. I plan on presenting to groups that are in a position to encourage or facilitate
engineering programs and contribute to a positive cycle.

7. Project Advisor(s)
Dan Stacey
High School
He does Project Lead the Way
Email here
Gregory Bucks
School goes here
Position goes here
Email here
A message to the grader: If this isnt okay, let me know, Im not comfortable giving other peoples info online. The names
feel like too much as it is.
8. Budget (if applicable)
The one week engineering program that I did similar to this one required about $50 total, including common
household items for instant challenges based on the instant challenges in the Destination Imagination competition, a
small amount of 3d printer plastic and scrap wood used for catapults. I would anticipate the total cost of $100 for both
weeks of the program.