National Academy of Engineering

Engineering branch of the United States National Academies
the United States institution

The National Academy of Engineering (NAE) is an American nonprofit, non governmental organization. The National Academy of Engineering is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy of Sciences (NAS), the National Academy of Medicine, and the National Research Council (now the program units of NASEM). The NAE operates engineering programs aimed at meeting national needs, encourages education and research, and recognizes the superior achievements of engineers. New members are annually elected by current members, based on their distinguished and continuing achievements in original research. The NAE is autonomous in its administration and in the selection of its members, sharing with the rest of the National Academies the role of advising the federal government.

The National Academy of Sciences was created by an Act of Incorporation dated March 3, 1863, which was signed by then President of the United States Abraham Lincoln with the purpose to " investigate, examine, experiment, and report upon any subject of science or art " The proposed creation of sections of medicine and engineering was protested by one member because those professions were "mainly followed for pecuniary gain". During this period of 1915 1916 activity by engineering societies, the National Academy of Sciences complained that there was a lack of scientists and the predominance of engineers on the Federal government's wartime technical committee, the Naval Consulting Board. Wilson's order declared the function of the NRC to be in general:
"(T)o stimulate research in the mathematical. physical, and biological sciences. and in the application of these sciences to engineering, agriculture. medicine. and other useful arts. with the object of increasing knowledge, of strengthening the national defense, and of contributing in other ways to the public welfare." to make plans to establish a new National Academy of Engineering that's independent, with a congressional charter of its own. In 1971, the National Academy of Engineering advised the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey not to construct additional runways at JFK airport as part of a $350,000 study commissioned by the Port Authority. The Port Authority accepted the recommendations of the NAE and NAS. In 1975, the NAE added eighty six new engineer members including noted civil engineer and businessman Stephen Davison Bechtel Jr. In 1986, the NAE issued a report encouraging foreign investment, calling for stronger Federal action. That same year, NAE member Robert W. Rummel (1915 2009), space expert and aerospace engineer, served on The Presidential Commission on the Space Shuttle Challenger Accident. In 1989, the National Academy of Engineering in conjunction with the National Academy of Science advised the Department of Energy on a site location for the then proposed Superconducting Super Collider (SSC) from a number of States proposals. In 1995, the NAE along with the NAS and the National Academy of Medicine reported that the American system of doctoral education in science and engineering, while " long a world model, should be reshaped to produce more 'versatile scientists,' rather than narrowly specialized researchers". Again in 2000, NAE returned to this education theme with its detailed studies of engineering education as part of its "Engineer of 2020 Studies" project. The reports concluded that engineering education must be reformed or American engineers will be poorly prepared for engineering practice. Soon after, the American Society of Civil Engineers adopted a policy advocating for the reconstruction of the academic foundation of the professional practice of civil engineering.

In 2010, NAE developed a plan for preparing engineering students at the undergraduate academic degree level to practice in career fields that emerged as a result of the effort to answer the Grand Challenges. One response was to align STEM program theories of learning and International Technology and Engineering Educators Association (ITEEA, formerly ITEA) Technological Literacy Standards with the National Academy of Engineering's Grand Challenges in order to guide current and pending curriculum development.

As a result of NAE's Grand Challenge efforts, three national engineering academies–The National Academy of Engineering of the United States, The Royal Academy of Engineering of the United Kingdom, and the Chinese Academy of Engineering–organized a joint Global Grand Challenges Summit, held in London on March 12–13, 2013. In September 2015 a second Global Grand Challenges Summit was held in Beijing, with more than 800 attendees invited by the three academies. The third Global Grand Challenges Summit was hosted by the NAE in the United States in 2017.

The goal of the diversity office is to participate in studies addressing the issue of increasing and broadening a domestic talent pool. Through this effort the NAE convenes workshops, coordinators with other organizations, and identifies program needs and opportunities for improvement. As part of this effort the NAE has launched both the EngineerGirl! and Engineer Your Life webpages.

This program area studies connections between engineering, technology, and the economic performance of the United States. Efforts aim to advance the understanding of engineering's contribution to the sectors of the domestic economy and to learn where engineering may enhance economic performance. The project also aims to investigate the best ways to determine levels of technological literacy in the United States among three distinct populations in the United States: K 12 students, K 12 teachers, and out of school adults. A report (and associated website), Technically Speaking, explains what "technological literacy" is, why it is important, and what is being done in the U. S. to improve it.

This program, recognizing that the engineering profession has often been associated with causing environmental harm, looks to recognize and publicize that the profession is now at the forefront of mitigating negative environmental impacts. The program will provide policy guidance to government, the private sector, and the public on ways to create a more environmentally sustainable future.

The Center for the Advancement of Scholarship on Engineering Education. was established to advance engineering education in the United States, aiming for curriculum changes that address the needs of new generations of engineering students and the unique problems they will face with the challenges of the 21st century. The Center worked closely with the Committee on Engineering Education, which works to improve the quality of engineering education by providing advice to policymakers, administrators, employers, and other stakeholders. The Center is no longer active within the National Academy of Engineering.

The Center for Engineering, Ethics, and Society seeks to engage engineers and the engineering profession in identifying and resolving ethical issues associated with engineering research and practice. The Center works is closely linked with the Online Ethics Center.

To publicize the work of both the profession and the NAE, the institution puts considerable efforts into outreach activities. A weekly radio spot produced by the NAE is broadcast on WTOP radio in the Washington, D. C., area and the file and text of the spot can be found on the NAE site. The NAE also distributes a biweekly newsletter focusing on engineering issues and advancements. In addition, NAE has held a series of workshops titled News and Terrorism: Communicating in a Crisis, in which experts from the National Academies and elsewhere provide reporters, state and local public information officers, emergency managers, and representatives from the public sector with important information about weapons of mass destruction and their impact. This project is conducted in collaboration with the Department of Homeland Security and the Radio and Television News Directors Foundation. In addition to these efforts, the NAE fosters good relationships with members of the media to ensure coverage of the work of the institution and to serve as a resource for the media to use when they have technical questions or would like to speak to an NAE member on a particular matter. The NAE is also active in "social media," both to reach new and younger audiences and to reach traditional audiences in new ways.

The Academy awards several prizes, with each recipient receiving $500,000. The prizes include the Bernard M. Gordon Prize, the Fritz J. and Dolores H. Russ Prize, and the Charles Stark Draper Prize. They are sometimes referred to collectively as the American version of a Nobel Prize for engineering. Each year, the Gordon Prize awards $500,000 to the grantee, of which the recipient may personally use $250,000, and his or her institution receives $250,000 for the ongoing support of academic development.

The NAE annually awards the Charles Stark Draper Prize, which is given for the advancement of engineering and the education of the public about engineering. The recipient receives $500,000. The prize is named for Charles S. Draper, the "father of inertial navigation", an MIT professor and founder of the Draper Laboratory.