HARRISBURG, PA – Harrisburg University of Science and Technology (HU) Professor of Computer and Data Science, Kevin Huggins, PhD, CISSP, represented HU at the 2024 ABET Symposium in Tampa, Florida, on April 4 and 5. The ABET Symposium is the organization’s flagship event, with a focus on cultivating connections, discovering innovative strategies, and engaging in insightful exchanges of ideas with a diverse global community.
Dr. Huggins presented an original session entitled, “Continuous Improvement Plans from Scratch.”
“The key to a quality educational program is a clear, concise, and systematic continuous improvement plan,” said Dr. Huggins. “However, sometimes it’s not clear where to start or how to use the information once the plan is implemented. In this session, attendees received pointers on how to start, structure, and implement a continuous improvement plan.”
Over the past decade, in addition to teaching computer science courses at HU, Dr. Huggins has also served as a program evaluator, team chair, and commissioner for ABET (a non-governmental organization that accredits post-secondary education programs in the fields of engineering, computing, applied sciences, and natural sciences.
Catalina Plúa was Dr. Huggins’ co-presenter. She is currently the Head of the Office of Curriculum Design & International Accreditation and Professor of the Education Program at Universidad San Francisco de Quito USFQ. She is an ABET IDEAL Scholar and an assessment leader for several higher-education institutions.
In 2024, artificial intelligence (AI) played a major role at center stage. In addition to discussions about the United Nations’ (UN’s) 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) – which include action items like ending poverty, ensuring access to clean water and energy, and engaging in responsible consumption – symposium attendees experienced relevant debates centering on AI in the classroom and how educational thought leaders can advocate for a more sustainable future for education.
As the world is marked by more rapid technological progress, digitization, and globalization, summits like ABET Symposium are essential for creating common vocabularies, strategies, and reference points as academia, industry, and regulators meet emerging challenges for the benefit of all.
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