Priorities:CSM Strategic Priorities

Enable students by creating a collaborative spaces for creativity, design, and innovation.

Many of the most forward thinking companies provide spaces for employees that encourage innovation. Well designed spaces often serve as catalysts for enhanced collaboration and innovation. We will create collaborative spaces for students that allows for greater creativity, design and innovation on campus. By holding events and meetings in the spaces, students across all disciplines will begin to use the spaces to work with others projects.

In addition to having a few dedicated spaces, there are many common areas that would make excellent pop-up spaces. We will provide guides and resources to students to successfully create a temporary collaborative space of their own anywhere on campus.

Establish monthly design, innovation, creativity and entrepreneurship (DICE) events

By collaborating with organizations and faculty across campus, we will hold events that expose students to proven concepts and priciples that lead to truly innovative solutions. Having regular events will help foster a community of innovation and entrepreneurship that doesn't occur in traditional lecture setting.

Update design classes to incorporate design-thinking

Most students at mines are exposed to design in EPICS I, EPICS II (including department specific EPICS II) and Senior Design. Only a few of the cirriculums Most students at mines are exposed to design in EPICS I, EPICS II (including department specific EPICS II) and Senior Design. Only a few of the curriculums incorporate the following ideas/processes widely practiced in industry: design-thinking, problem focused design, rapid & low resolution prototyping, fast failure, and lean principles. Incorporating all of these practices into the curriculum would properly prepare students to develop truly innovative solutions to real problems.

These design courses can allow for more creativity and innovation by shifting from constraining projects to open-ended problem based projects. For example:

Current EPICS Project Prompt:

Design of an Implantable Artificial Lung – Consider the material of construction for the artificial tissue, immune system response, the interface point of the artificial tissue to the living tissue, transport of oxygen into the body and expulsion of carbon dioxide out of the system, necessary movement of moisture. Your design should also consider factors such as size variations along with  bdurability and longevity. Develop a cost analysis that includes a phase of initial development, and

captures extraneous cost factors outside specific organ development and medical costs.

Proposed Problem-Focused Prompt:

Thousands of people die every year while waiting for organ transplants. Develop a solution that applies your knowledge of chemical and biochemical engineering to save lives. Demonstrate the feasibility of your solution by developing a comprehensive cost analysis.

The later prompt  for greater creativity while still accomplishing the course objectives.

Links

Colorado School of Mines wiki Page

Colorado School of Mines University Innovation Fellow - Corey Brugh