Page 40 - BusinessWest March 20, 2023

Instilling an Entrepreneurial Mindset
Vedang Chauhan Named a 2022 Engineering Unleashed Fellow
“KEEN supports teaching undergraduate students with an entrepreneurial mindset (EM) so they can create personal, economic, and societal value through their work.”
VEDANG CHAUHAN
Western New England University College of Engineering Pro- fessor Vedang Chauhan has been named an Engineering Unleashed fellow, a designation that recognizes leadership in undergraduate engineering education by the Kern Entrepreneur- ial Engineering Network (KEEN), a 50-partner collaborative whose mission is to instill an entrepreneurial mindset within undergraduate engineering students.
Chauhan is part of a select group of 21 individuals from colleges and universities across the country — and only two from New Eng- land — who have been named Engineering Unleashed fellows for 2022. Engineering Unleashed is a community of 4,000 faculty mem- bers from more than 350 institutions.
“KEEN supports teaching undergraduate students with an entre- preneurial mindset (EM) so they can create personal, economic, and societal value through their work,” Chauhan said. “I believe in KEEN’s mission and incorporate EM through my teaching. I design project activities for my students that help them develop an entre- preneurial mindset.”
Chauhan is a mechanical engineering professor with a wealth of experience in the field. He received his PhD in mechanical engineer- ing from Queen’s University and has published numerou papers
in prestigious journals, demonstrating his expertise in the field. He has also received several awards and grants for his research, which focuses on areas such as mechanics, materials, and manufacturing.
The nomination and fellowship naming process began with Chauhan’s initiative to participate in the Engineering Unleashed Faculty Development National Workshop Program. These work- shops are designed and delivered by a collaborative group of sub- ject-matter experts who serve as faculty members within the nation- al network of partner institutions. The workshops attract faculty
participants from across the country focusing on the development and application of an entrepreneurial mindset, whether it be in teaching, learning, research, industry, or academic leadership. Chau- han participated in the Integrating Curriculum with Entrepreneurial Mindset (ICE) 1.0 workshop, which connects problem-based active and collaborative learning to the development of entrepreneurial mindset.
“Students enjoy working on the projects and provide positive feedback on how EM activities foster curiosity, connections, and add value to their work,” Chauhan added. “I am thankful to KEEN ICE 1.0 workshop coaches, my fellow faculty members, and my univer- sity for all their support. I am happy to be a part of a Kern Entrepre- neurial Engineering Network of like-minded educators.”
Working with the facilitators and then the coaches for up to a year, Chauhan completed the work and contributed to the Engineer- ing Unleashed community through an online publication-sharing platform known as engineeringunleashed.com. The workshop coaches nominated a number of candidates, and an independent review committee from the KEEN partner institutions made the final selections.
To amplify the work of these fellows and advance the shared mission, awards are provided to the awardee’s home institutions through the Kern Family Foundation. As an ambassador for entre- preneurial mindset, each fellow will work on a project through their institution with a grant award of $10,000. In total, the colleges received $210,000 in support to recognize efforts in engineering education by their faculty.
The other 2022 Engineering Unleased fellow from a New Eng- land institution is Gbetonmasse Somasse, associate professor of Teaching at Worcester Polytechnic Institute. BW
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