There will be an official announcement next week, but I can't keep this to myself any longer:

One of my roles in the Rice Center for Engineering Leadership is that I and a colleague are coaches of the student team that represents Rice in the national Ethics in Engineering Case Competition, which is sponsored by Lockheed Martin and takes place at their world headquarters in Bethesda, Maryland. This year’s event was February 26-28, and I'm pleased as punch to report that WE WON THE COMPETITION!

Of the 75 teams from around the country who took part, our team of two RCEL students (a Mech E senior and a Computer Science junior) finished on top in the NCAA tournament-style competition.

The Ethics in Engineering Case Competition (https://www.lockheedmartin.com/en-us/who...reach.html) challenges students to analyze a hypothetical case involving interrelated technical, ethical, and business issues. This year’s case concerned contracts for hardware and software components of a satellite for tracking potentially earth-threatening asteroids, as an interim measure in advance of the launch of NASA’s Near-Earth Object (NEO) Surveyor in 2028. Executives, engineers, and professional ethicists from Lockheed serve as judges.

I entered Rice in the EIE Case Competition for the first time in 2023. With no prior knowledge of the event, our 2023 team advanced to the round of 16, making a strong impression on competitors and judges alike. For the 2024 team, we selected the students via an application process with input from other faculty. (Only undergraduates are eligible, and each student is eligible for just one year.)

This year’s case problem was released in late January, giving teams just five weeks to prepare for the competition. During that time we enlisted the help of several Rice faculty and alumni who provided invaluable technical expertise. These individuals eagerly gave up their time to give our team crash courses in orbital mechanics, infrared imaging, and asteroid detection. We also held multiple brainstorming sessions and practices with the 2023 team, whose first-hand experience and selfless willingness to help were decisive in making this year’s team so well-prepared for success.

Our team defeated seven schools en route to the championship. And I'm proud to say that as our team advanced, more and more of the other teams seemed to pulling for Rice – a testament to the enthusiasm, friendliness, and grace with which our students represented the school.

At the awards ceremony, Lockheed’s Corporate Vice President of Ethics and Business Conduct congratulated the team and presented each student a nice monetary prize (afterward they were also given standing job offers at Lockheed).

I was quite proud of Rice's performance last year, and my pride in this year’s team is beyond measure. A lot was asked of them, and they rose to the challenge in every way. And of course we are all immensely grateful for the faculty, alumni, and fellow students who helped them achieve this milestone accomplishment. As one of our Engineering professors put it, “what an excellent teamwork from the Rice community.”

Go Owls!

Congratulations to the team and to you as well!