New Engineering Major Brings New Opportunities

Have you found out what all of the chatter is about at Viterbo recently? Does a brand new major ring a bell? Or perhaps you are still stuck on the lost art major that Viterbo had to cut last semester.

Well, I have got news for you: it was not all for nothing. Viterbo now offers a new engineering major.

Engineering is science’s own form of art, for it turns science into reality through intervention, innovation and design.

The new major was created in response to a local need for engineers and at the request of employers in the La Crosse area.

This fall, Viterbo continues to work with local industry leaders to provide a solid foundation of engineering skills before officially beginning the new program. The goal is also to develop communication and leadership skills, while at the same time, upholding Viterbo’s core values.

The new program has several new highlights including scholarship opportunities, networking opportunities with local engineering companies and faculty-mentored research opportunities.

The program begins with a first-year project-based design course, which leads into an important internship requirement.

This new program will allow engineering majors to finish their degree in a maximum of four years. Though the program is 120 credits total, the low number of required credits for the major will allow for flexibility of students’ schedules.

In other words, at a liberal arts school, those students who want to be science majors can also be part of the arts as well and fit all of those courses into a four-year plan.

As to how this affects the rest of Viterbo, it really doesn’t. One of the major changes that has occurred to this addition of program is the number of students now coming to Viterbo and the class sizes of general science classes.

For example, where there were once twenty students in a general chemistry lab, there is now nearly twice that. This may be able to provide more diversity and group learning in this particular setting.

Regarding the new program’s benefits though, a room was built just for engineers on the second floor of Reinhart. The room includes wood floors and tables to practice building and designing skills.

The assistant professor of this new program is Emily Schiavone. She also teaches courses in physics and is located on the second floor of Reinhart.

Change isn’t all bad, right?