Department of Engineering and Leadership and Character Awarded $700k from Kern Family Foundation

The Wake Forest Department of Engineering sees developing character as a crucial part of “educating the whole engineer.” In partnership with the Program for Leadership and Character, the department is integrating character modules into their curriculum with the support of more than $700,000 from the Kern Family Foundation and the Kern Entrepreneurial Engineering Network.

The most recent two-year grant for $557,140 funds two postdoctoral fellows, Drs. Joe Wiinikka-Lydon and Adetoun Yeaman, to work with faculty to design and teach modules on character in essential engineering courses. They are also part of the Leadership and Character postdoctoral fellows cohort. The grant also supports the work of Drs. Olga Pierrakos, Michael Lamb, and Michael Gross to investigate the effectiveness of character education in engineering and produce resources that can aid other engineering faculty at Wake Forest and beyond. This interdisciplinary work reflects an ongoing partnership between the Department of Engineering and Program for Leadership and Character to advance character within engineering education.

For more information about this exciting project and partnership, click here.