CE 3 - Introduction to Civil & Environmental Engineering

2 credits

Course Description	Introduction to Civil and Environmental Engineering and systems thinking concepts through laboratory exercises, group projects, and computational exercises.
Course Coordinator	Dr. N.J. Hayden, nhayden@cems.uvm.edu
Teaching Assistants	Lindsay George, Doctoral Student, Civil Engineering, lgeorge@cems.uvm.edu Magdalena Jensen mjensen@uvm.edu Charlie Farmer cffarmer@uvm.edu
Classroom & Laboratory Location and Times	Class: Thursday 11:00-12:15 Rm 105 Votey Laboratory: Thursday 2:00- 4:30, Rm 105 Votey (as well as other CE labs).
Office Hours	Hayden (215 Votey: T W (2:30-3:30), drop ins and by appointment) Lindsay 114 Votey, WTh 12-2
Required Texts	Civil and Environmental Engineering Introductory Booklet, Weekly Handouts, A Guide to Writing as an Engineer , Beer and McMurray.
Required Materials	Three-ring (~ 2 inch) binder with dividers
Grade Assessment	Attendance, participation, preparation, and attitude (APPA) and notebooks (25%) Homework, quizzes, labs, reports and presentations (50%) Final Project (25%)
Grading Assignment	A>92; A->89.5; B+>86; B>82; B->79.5; C+>76; etc.

Course Objectives:

1. Build connections and networking among first year CEE students, the faculty, and other CEE students.
2. Learn about civil and environmental engineering.
3. Introduce important concepts pertinent to civil and environmental engineers (e.g., systems thinking, sustainability, ecology and critical thinking).
4. Introduce ideas and skills needed for success in the civil and environmental engineering programs and real world (e.g. communication, teamwork, ethics).
5. Provide a hands-on experience that is interesting and enjoyable.

Attendance, Participation, Preparation, Attitude (APPA): Attendance is mandatory and will be taken at the start of each class and laboratory session. Attendance to all classes/labs is especially important for this course because of the ongoing group activities and the limited number of sessions during the semester. Missed classes cannot be made up. If you do miss because of illness or family emergency, you need to contact me or Lindsay as soon as possible. Don’t wait until the next class. Related to attendance are participation, preparedness and attitude. A professional attitude is important especially in laboratories, field trips and service-learning projects. Your first year in college is the start of your engineering career, and professionalism is a key component for success in the engineering world.

Community Building: It is important for your success in our program to get to know the other engineering students, especially in this class. Learning each other’s names is the first step. Most of the activities and laboratory work in this course, as well as the final project, will involve working in groups. This is a critical aspect of engineering work and will be emphasized in this course. Groups will generally vary for different activities thus allowing everyone to get a chance to meet the other students in the class. When we do get in groups we will follow a general protocol (Group Protocol Handout).

Course Notebook: A course notebook (3-ring binder with dividers) that includes all course handouts, notes, assignments, student work, project research and other things pertinent to the course is required of all students. These will be collected during the next to the last lab class (Nov 9) and graded for completeness, organization, and neatness. Organization is an important component for both educational and professional success. The graded notebook will be available on November 16 (our last meeting).

Group Project: This involves a service-learning project with a local Catamount Community. We will be working with two communities on transportation problems within their community that require engineering expertise. You will be researching the community and issues related to the project including the social, environmental, ecological and economical impact. Additional guidelines and details pertaining to the project and final presentation will be provided. Projects are due November 16, which is the last class for this course.

Missed Assignments: All assignments will have a required due date/time. Late assignments will not be accepted unless you have talked to the instructor or graduate assistant regarding that particular assignment prior to the deadline and have obtained an extension.

Lab Safety: We will be meeting in some Civil and Environmental Engineering labs during the semester. It is important that all students are aware of safety issues in the laboratories. Please keep hands, clothing and hair away from equipment. Do not touch glassware, equipment or other laboratory items unless you are required to do so. No eating or drinking in the various laboratories, including computer labs.

Course Website: www.emba.uvm.edu/~nhayden/ce3

University of Vermont Policy - Code of Academic Integrity http://www.uvm.edu/~uvmppg/ppg/student/acadintegrity.html

All academic work (e.g., homework assignments, written and oral reports, use of library materials, creative projects, performances, in-class and take-home exams, extra-credit projects, research, theses and dissertations) must satisfy the following four standards of academic integrity:

1.    All ideas, arguments, and phrases, submitted without attribution to other sources, must be the creative product of the student. Thus, all text passages taken from the works of other authors must be properly cited.  The same applies to paraphrased text, opinions, data, examples, illustrations, and all other creative work. Violations of this standard constitute plagiarism.

2.    All experimental data, observations, interviews, statistical surveys, and other information collected and reported as part of academic work must be authentic. Any alteration, e.g., the removal of statistical outliers must be clearly documented. Data must not be falsified in any way. Violations of this standard constitute fabrication.

3.    Students may only collaborate within the limits prescribed by their instructors.  Students may not complete any portion of an assignment, report, project, experiment or exam for another student.  Students may not claim as their own work any portion of an assignment, report, project, experiment or exam that was completed by another student, even with that other student’s knowledge and consent. Students may not provide information about an exam (or portions of an exam) to another student without the authorization of the instructor.  Students may not seek or accept information provided about an exam (or portions of an exam) from another student without the authorization of the instructor. Violations of this standard constitute collusion.

4.    Students must adhere to the guidelines provided by their instructors for completing coursework.  For example, students must only use materials approved by their instructor when completing an assignment or exam.  Students may not present the same (or substantially the same) work for more than one course without obtaining approval from the instructor of each course. Students must adhere to all library course reserves regulations and refrain from mutilating library material, which are designed to allow students access to course materials. Violations of this standard constitute cheating.