The American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE) Conference hosted by Fairfield's School of Engineering and Computing drew a record number of faculty, staff, and students from Northeast regional universities.
This spring, Fairfield University’s School of Engineering and Computing hosted the American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE) Northeast Section Conference, drawing a record-breaking attendance of more than 300 faculty, staff, and students from over 25 universities across the region.
“It was impressive to witness the thriving engineering research community in the Northeast in action and get exposed to the latest and greatest technological and scientific advances taking place in our region – all right here at Fairfield. My highlight was to see students from so many universities exchanging research ideas on the floor,” said Dean Andres Leonardo Carrano, PhD.
The two-day conference offered a variety of presentation sessions, ranging from engineering education, to ethics in engineering, to artificial intelligence. Participants attended a keynote address from Julie Zimmerman, PhD, vice provost for planetary solutions and professor of green engineering at Yale University, entitled "Designing a Sustainable Future," as well as the ASEE plenary talk from Grant Crawford, PE, PhD, FASEE. Dr. Crawford is president-elect of the American Society for Engineering Education, retired colonel of the U.S. Army, and a professor at Quinnipiac University.
On the second day, engineering students from Fairfield as well as other universities participated in two sessions where they presented over 120 research posters and networked with industry professionals.
During this session, engineering students Maeve O’Connell ’25, Ryan Jaworski ’25, Matthew Manduca ’25, and Emma Crowley ’24, alongside biomedical engineering professor Susan Freudzon, PhD, demonstrated their project to design and 3D print a model using Solidworks software to mimic the neck and trachea for the nurse anesthesia students to practice cricothyrotomies. Additional research ranged from biomechanics to artificial intelligence.
“The School of Engineering and Computing became the epicenter of engineering research in the Northeast for that weekend,” said Dr. Carrano. “Our scientific and logistic sub-committees knew the stakes were high and worked hard for over a year to ensure the event was impeccable and sure delivered.”
Learn more about the School of Engineering and Computing at fairfield.edu/engineering.
