A frigid morning on December 13, 2015, carried a cold wind that could chill a memory. While the extreme temperature was of note to graduates, what left an indelible mark on Navajo Technical University’s (NTU’s) fall commencement, and more importantly on tribal college and university (TCU) history, was the conferring of NTU’s first Bachelor of Science degree in industrial engineering (IE).

Faye Clawson of Farmington, New Mexico, who had entered the IE program when it was first accredited by the Higher Learning Commission (HLC) in 2012, was the recipient. Clawson had started at NTU in 2010 and was concluding an Associate of Applied Science degree in public administration when her algebra instructor and NTU’s dean of undergraduate studies, Dr. Casmir Agbaraji, encouraged her to consider the IE program.

Dr. Casmir Agbaraji works with Faye Clawson during a design and manufacturing processes course. Clawson was the first TCU student to earn a baccalaureate degree in engineering.

Agbaraji earned his PhD in industrial engineering at the University of Oklahoma and was hired in 2011 as industrial engineering faculty to spearhead NTU’s effort in getting a four-year IE degree program off the ground. Dr. Agbaraji knew that if the program were to thrive, it would require bright students with determination to endure the program’s rigor. He also knew the program would have to attract committed students who would not only complete the coursework but set the standard for future engineering majors. Agbaraji considered Clawson a perfect fit.

Unfortunately, Clawson’s educational journey was far from perfect. In 2013, a year after entering the IE program, Clawson unexpectedly lost her son and months later became homeless when a flash flood ravaged NTU’s campus and the student housing units where Clawson and her family lived. The shock that accompanied these experiences weighed heavily on Clawson’s mind, leading her to take a break from school to deal with the grief that came with her new reality.

Sorrow engulfed Clawson’s time away from the classroom but it eventually gave her an opportunity to reflect on her educational journey and the example she wanted to set for her living children. The transition back to NTU would prove difficult but Clawson worked diligently with her instructors to make up assignments and exams. She also relied heavily on the support of her husband, classmates, and peers to help her stay motivated, which carried her through her last three semesters of coursework until she graduated.

Two years removed from the greatest tragedy one could imagine, Clawson was making history as the first TCU student to earn a four-year degree in engineering.

A NEED FOR ENGINEERS

Industrial engineering involves the design and improvement of integrated systems, such as materials, equipment, or human resources to maximize production of goods and services. In 2011, the Career Cornerstone Center (CCC) found that industrial engineering ranked third among the 17 different engineering fields in jobs filled. That same year, the U.S. Department of Labor projected that over the next 10 years, the field would grow by 14%. The industry’s positive trend, paired with a national need for filling engineering positions, prompted NTU to develop its IE program, followed one year later by the creation of a computer and electronics program that would transition into a Bachelor of Science degree in electrical engineering.

According to a 2011 National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics (NCSES) survey, of the 23,630,000 individuals employed as scientists or engineers in the United States, 98,000 were American Indians or Alaska Natives. Of the 98,000 Native scientists employed, only 7,000 were engineers, making up .03% of all scientists and engineers in the United States. The shortcoming of representation across all minority groups prompted the U.S. government to refocus its efforts on inclusion and to initiate programs and release funds to improve access to STEM careers through agencies like the NSF.

Marcie Vandever operates the FaroArm in NTU’s Center for Digital Technologies. Vandever is a dual major in industrial engineering and advanced manufacturing.

Today, the job outlook for careers in IE remains positive, with job growth expected to increase by 8% from 2018 to 2028, 3% more than the average of all engineering fields. regionally, there has been a demand for engineers in the energy sectors as well as in manufacturing industries, specifically in transportation equipment and computer and electronic products. IE is a versatile profession that provides versatile solutions, resulting in opportunities available across a plethora of professional, scientific, and consulting services.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the IE field is expected to experience growth over the next 10 years in the states that comprise the Four Corners region. Although New Mexico will see a slight decrease of 1%, expected growth in Arizona (27%), Utah (40%), and Colorado (16%) will offer job opportunities for students over the next decade. NTU’s electrical engineering degree is also expected to see growth both nationally (5%) as well as regionally in New Mexico (4%), Arizona (14%), Utah (31%), and Colorado (17%). There is a misconception that jobs are not readily available in or near the Navajo Nation for engineers, but opportunities are surfacing through the Navajo Nation’s various tribal enterprises, such as the Navajo Tribal Utility Authority and the Navajo Transitional Energy Corporation. Several large enterprises also operate within the region, including Western refinery, Arizona Public Service, and Raytheon, and each have asked NTU to help fill the void created by a retiring workforce.

NTU has also invested resources to create a new manufacturing economy that could employ students in high-skill, high-wage positions in the Navajo Nation in the near future. In 2018, NTU went into partnership with the Navajo Nation Division of Economic Development to create an emerging industry involving advanced manufacturing, materials testing, and metrology. This collaboration includes the construction of a multimillion-dollar facility known as the Center for Advanced Manufacturing, which will house the university’s recently purchased 3D metal printer and other instruments and equipment that will be used to contract work with corporations like Boeing.

Shane Tsosie operates NTU’s recently acquired 3D metal printer during a training session.

Such opportunities are available to students in the Navajo Nation, but if students are short on experience or graduate from an engineering program that is not accredited, getting a foot in the door can prove challenging.

THE PERILS OF JOB HUNTING WITH NO EXPERIENCE

If Clawson could go back and change one thing about her educational experience it would be to apply for more internships and work opportunities related to her field of study. Lack of experience was a running conversation Clawson had with regional employers, as many companies would note that there were more qualified applicants than her. As great as it was to obtain a degree after years of hard work, Clawson’s welcome to the professional world was as cold as the wind on her graduation day.

“It was frustrating,” Clawson recalls when discussing her job search after receiving her degree. “The only real experience I had was an internship with NASA. That was the only work experience aside from what we did in our labs at school.”

Clawson’s frustration was calmed after a friend suggested she check with the Navajo Nation’s Workforce Development office for employment opportunities. Workforce Development is an employment bureau with offices in each of the Navajo Nation’s five agencies. Clawson checked with her agency in Shiprock, and it turned out that a six-month position was available with the Navajo Tribal Utility Authority. Clawson was hired as an engineering technician on a part-time basis while maintaining her full-time search for a career.

Her quest eventually led Clawson to Portland, Oregon, where she accepted a job as a manufacturing technician within Intel’s semi-conductor division.

Clawson applied to Intel at about the same time her job in the Navajo Nation was coming to an end. After four rounds of interviews, she was hired. Clawson’s determination paid off and recently she celebrated her second year with the company.

Clawson is happy working a stable job that constantly challenges her mind and requires her to grow on a daily basis. She imagines staying with Intel for what she describes as “a very long time,” but she has not ruled out the possibility of one day returning to the Navajo Nation or potentially working for NTU. And if she does, her job search should not be as difficult the second time around.

PLANNING FOR STUDENT SUCCESS

Although each experience is different, a large percentage of NTU’s student population faces hardship on a daily basis. NTU has done its best to plan for such difficulties by developing work programs and paid internships, but its main success has been how it operates according to the Diné philosophy of education (DPE).

DPE is a cyclical model of learning and evaluation that involves an intimate process of thinking, planning, implementing, and reflection. DPE represents harmony and growth that results from careful thought and assessment. The philosophy is also a guide that can be used on a day-to-day, minute-by-minute basis, allowing one to live a balanced life into old age.

DPE is required on every course syllabus at NTU. It is a tool used to relate course concepts with traditional Diné thought. DPE’s use in the classroom depends on the focus of the program, and it can be applied through a variety of methodologies. In English courses, for example, DPE is most often used as a model for drafting essays. The thought process materializes through brainstorming techniques, which helps students form an outline that is used to organize and plan their main arguments. The student then implements their plan by writing the essay, going through several rounds of reflection and revision before a final draft is produced.

NTU administrators also utilize the DPE model when developing new degree programs. Such was the case when degrees in industrial and electrical engineering were developed under HLC accreditation. Data showed a need for filling positions in engineering, NTU planned for the demand, and then successfully applied for accreditation. The NTU administration was then required to reflect on the process and grow the program in a positive manner based on feedback from the HLC and those who participated in the process, including faculty and students.

It was during one of NTU’s first internal review cycles for the IE program when Dr. Agbaraji and other IE faculty witnessed how difficult it was for Clawson to find a job. They knew they had to better accommodate students’ needs if the program was to make a lasting impact. Although NTU had established partnerships with agencies such as NASA when creating the IE program, opportunities were limited because the degree was not approved by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET). Clearly, NTU had more work to do.

ABET is a nonprofit, international accreditor of college and university engineering programs. Over 4,144 applied and natural science, computing, engineering, and engineering technology programs are accredited through ABET at more than 812 colleges and universities in 32 countries. Since NTU’s engineering programs were not accredited through ABET, NTU students were at a disadvantage in the career marketplace.

ABET accreditation is a lengthy process that proved impossible for NTU’s infant IE program in 2012. Assessment is a major criterion for accreditation under ABET. However, as a new academic degree, NTU’s IE program did not have any data to assess. Therefore, the program had to graduate at least one student before it could justify a request to begin the review process.

In June 2016, Agbaraji and engineering faculty members Harry S. Whiting II, Dr. Monsuru Ramoni, and Dr. Peter Romine submitted a request for readiness review, beginning the arduous accreditation process. Two years later, on August 28, 2018, NTU received notice that its IE and electrical engineering programs were fully ABET-accredited until September 2024. Furthermore, graduates dating back to fall 2015 would receive retroactive accreditation, including students like Clawson, whose job search had been severely limited due to NTU’s lack of ABET accreditation.

NTU’s journey to obtain accreditation took time and dedication but it also required constant cycles of evaluation and reflection innately engrained in NTU’s identity through its commitment to a Diné philosophy of education. Obtaining accreditation also required the sacrifice of individuals like Clawson and her classmates who endured hardships that come with being first so that the journey from classroom to career would be more manageable for future students.

SUSTAINING NTU’S ENGINEERING PROGRAMS

When NTU first applied for accreditation with the HLC, the university recognized the need to build certificate and associate degree programs that would serve as steppingstones to four-year degree programs. This pipeline approach would allow students to work toward a baccalaureate degree by gradually building confidence in their academic abilities. Transitioning

students from one degree program to the next would also help improve retention and graduation rates as advisors and faculty members could better understand their students’ needs and capabilities as they progressed.

The degrees NTU pursued to serve as pipeline programs included certificates in electrical trades and pre-engineering; Associate of Applied Science degrees in energy systems, chemical-engineering technology, and engineering technology; and a dual credit certificate program in industrial maintenance and operations. Each program provides manageable pathways for students to approach the industrial and electrical engineering degrees. At the same time, each pathway program is positioned to provide gainful employment opportunities with regional industry partners if or when students choose to enter the workforce. NTU also extended its reach into high schools in an attempt to have a positive impact on college readiness. In 2011, approximately 80% of students entering NTU required developmental education courses, prompting NTU to build a robust dual-credit program. In 2017, NTU and the Central Consolidated School District (CCSD) opened the Bond Wilson Technical Education site, an early-college-readiness academy where students have an opportunity to earn an associate’s degree by the time they graduate high school. Today, approximately 43% of first-time enrolled students require developmental math and 57% require developmental English.

Middle school students have also been a focus of NTU’s efforts as it attempts to build interest in math and science at an early age. Every year the university hosts a 3D-printing camp for regional schools, which is incorporated into the year-long Innoventure Product Challenge competition that tasks students to design a 3D-printed toy for Navajo Head Start. Last year, NTU launched the inaugural robotics Academy in collaboration with NASA to engage students in hands-on robotic activities. It also welcomed the renowned Navajo Math Circles program, which is geared for grades 6–12 and integrates Navajo knowledge and thinking into math curriculum.

While NTU has engaged students at the front end of the pipeline, it has also worked with public and private sectors on the back end of the career pathway model. Obtaining ABET accreditation has proved to be a milestone for the university as more companies and higher education institutions have become interested in collaborating with NTU. At the Bond Wilson Technical Education site in Kirtland, New Mexico, agreements have been established with companies such as Arizona Public Services, raytheon, Bisti Fuels, North American Coal, Navajo Transitional Energy Corporation, and Navajo Agricultural Product Industry so students can receive training relevant to the needs of today’s industry.

By committing to a pipeline model to sustain its engineering programs, NTU has invested in a strategy inherently aligned with its commitment to the Diné philosophy of education. DPE has sustained the Diné since the time of creation and will sustain NTU’s engineering programs well into the future. This philosophy, along with the rigor of NTU’s engineering programs, are central to the success of students like Faye Clawson.

Daniel Vandever is the communications director at Navajo Technical University.