The following projects were worked on by members of RIME but have ended. As with the current project, many of these projects are multi-institution studies that brought together diverse groups of students and researchers.
Pathways
Understanding Engineering Pathways and their Impact on Community and Ident
ity, or the Pathways project, is exploring how the choices made in first-year engineering (FYE) programs impact the community and identity development of students who have taken different pathways (for example, transfer students, regional campus students, etc) to and through their engineering degree. This is a multi-phased project that includes a three part student survey, longitudinal interviews, and focus groups with faculty, UTAs, GTAs, etc. regarding community development during the first year. This research is being conducted in partnership with Mississippi State University. For more information regarding this project and the work related to it, click here.
Toy Adaptation Program
The Toy Adaptation Program at OSU educates undergraduate engineering students and people in the broader Columbus community on engineering and, specifically, how to adapt battery powered toys for children with disabilities. Some children may not be able to push the small button to activate the features of a toy, so TAP adds a female jack in parallel to the original switch that allows a child to play with the toy using their own, adaptive switch (perhaps a giant button or maybe a switch activated by a head tilt or a bite). Playing with toys is developmentally important for children, and all the toys that are adapted through the program are donated straight to families, hospitals, or toy lending libraries.
SPRITE
Student Perspectives on Researcher Identity and Transformation of Epistemologies (SPRITE). This research project explored undergraduate researchers’ perceptions of research and their identities as researchers using a grounded theory methodology in order to incorporate the beneficial elements of undergraduate research experiences into the classroom, where all students can receive the benefits. This project was a mixed methods grounded theory study that included surveys and interviews. This work was conducted in partnership with Clemson University and the University of Tennessee – Knoxville. For more information regarding this project and work related to it, click here.
EML’s Impact on Motivation and Identity
KEEN is a network of thousands of engineering faculty working to unleash undergraduate engineers so that they can create personal, ec
onomic, and societal value through the entrepreneurial mindset. As a KEEN partner school, the OSU College of Engineering and Department of Engineering Education have an opportunity to add multiple entrepreneurial minded learning (EML) elements to the curriculum. RIME was part of the initial four-phase pilot project focused on EML’s impact on student motivation and identity. The pilot positioned Ohio State to expand our curriculum via the application of engineering education scholarship to support our students’ development of EML. For more information about Ohio State University joining the KEEN network, click here. For information regarding the KEEN launch, click here.
BETHA Grant Award – Inspiring Future Engineers through Girl Scout Leader Training 
Inspiring Future Engineers through Girl Scout Leader Training was funded through the Battelle Engineering, Technology and Human Affairs (BETHA) Endowment. This project explored how the experience of completing a Girl Scout engineering badge or journey impacts girls’ views of themselves as future engineers. In light of the COVID 19 pandemic, these experiences were used to create resources for Cadette troop leaders to use for online or hybrid implementation of these badges. The resources can be found here