Outreach and Community Engagement

Research meets real world at ATIC, where students and professionals connect to shape the future of civil engineering.

A growing priority for ATIC, focused on connecting civil engineering students with professional opportunities and bridging the gap between academic research and industry practice. ATIC’s outreach work is organized around three areas: industry partnerships, student networking and technology transfer.

Industry Partnership with Collins Engineers, Inc.

ATIC works closely with Collins Engineers, Inc. to provide civil engineering students with hands-on shadowing opportunities, giving them direct exposure to professional practice in the field. Current efforts are exploring ways to expand this relationship further into the educational space, with a focus on helping students better understand the professional civil engineering community and the career paths available to them.

Key highlights include:

• Established shadowing opportunities for CE students through Collins Engineers, Inc.
• Exploring expanded collaboration on professional education and career development.
• Collins Engineers, Inc. also provides real-world datasets and field documentation support for ATIC research projects.

Civil Engineering Networking Initiative

ATIC is working to build structured networking opportunities between civil engineering students and professional leaders from public and private agencies. The primary target organizations include the North Dakota Department of Transportation, the city of Grand Forks and the broader professional engineering community. Planning efforts are underway to organize a formal networking event, including outreach to firms, venue selection and student advertising.

To help students make the most of these opportunities, ATIC is developing conversation starters and guiding questions covering topics such as current projects at these agencies, what qualifications employers are looking for, how students can better prepare for these roles and what types of positions are available to civil engineering graduates.

Key highlights include:

• Targeting NDDOT, city of Grand Forks and private firms as networking partners.
• Planning includes firm outreach, event logistics and student promotion.
• Structured questions developed to help students engage confidently with professionals.

Technology Transfer

ATIC has a focused effort on transferring research findings from the institute to both private industry and public agencies. Current technology transfer activities are tied to CTIPS-funded research, with several past CTIPS reports identified as potential starting points for advancing these efforts. Dr. Sattar Dorafshan holds the relevant CTIPS reports for review.

Key highlights include:

• Technology transfer scope currently tied to CTIPS-funded initiatives.
• Two to three existing CTIPS reports to be reviewed as a foundation for transfer activities.
• Aims to connect applied research outcomes with practical deployment in public and private sectors.

Lunch and Learn Series

ATIC hosts a Lunch and Learn series designed to give civil engineering students a relaxed, accessible way to stay connected with what is happening in the field. Students are invited to attend presentations over lunch, with talks delivered by fellow students sharing their research or by industry professionals discussing current projects, career paths and developments in civil engineering.

The series serves as both a professional development opportunity and a community-building event, helping students build awareness of the broader CE landscape while connecting with peers and practitioners in an informal setting.

Key highlights include:

• Open to all civil engineering students with no formal commitment required.
• Features a mix of student research presentations and industry professional talks.
• Covers current projects, emerging technologies and career topics in civil engineering.
• Designed to complement the networking initiative by building ongoing touchpoints with the professional community.

K-12  Development

ATIC is committed to promoting STEM education and inspiring the next generation of engineers through a variety of K-12 outreach activities. By partnering with local schools, university programs and community organizations, ATIC provides students with opportunities to explore engineering research through engaging, hands-on experiences. These outreach efforts introduce students to emerging technologies such as concrete 3D printing, unmanned aerial systems (UAS), materials testing and data collection while helping them better understand the real-world applications of engineering and research.

Through events ranging from middle school STEM activities to high school recruitment and laboratory tours, ATIC strives to create interactive learning experiences that encourage curiosity, innovation and interest in engineering careers. Students are able to observe research demonstrations, interact with advanced equipment and participate in activities designed to make engineering concepts both accessible and exciting.

Key Outreach Activities

BrainSTEM Outreach Event

• Engages 7th grade students from schools throughout the Grand Forks area.
• Features hands-on demonstrations involving concrete 3D printable mortar development and testing.
• Allows students to participate in material testing and concrete extrusion activities.

Civil Engineering Summer Engineering Camp

• Two-day engineering camp hosted annually for local grade school students.
• Includes laboratory tours and interactive demonstrations across multiple civil engineering disciplines.
• May include live demonstrations of ATIC’s full-scale concrete 3D printing system.

Spring and Fall CEM Open House

• Introduces prospective high school students to engineering programs and research opportunities at UND.
• Showcases ATIC research in concrete 3D printing and UAS technologies.
• Displays research posters, 3D printed samples and drones used for data collection.

K–12 Tours and Educational Visits

• Provides tours for local K–12 students through university and student organization initiatives.
• Offers introductions to engineering research, testing equipment and laboratory processes.
• Includes demonstrations of research equipment and testing procedures when available.