About this Collection
The pedagogical essays in this collection address pedagogical experimentation, curricular innovation, and teaching practices that highlight experiential learning. Authors reflect on intentional course design, collaboration with students and community partners, and engagement with the PIRA framework — Preparation, Immersion, Reflection, and Assessment.
About the Editor
Karen Velasquez, PhD, is director of experiential learning at the University of Dayton, where she works with experiential educators and students to support high-impact experiential learning. Her work includes the PIRA framework (Preparation, Immersion, Reflection, and Assessment) for experiential learning design (see Velasquez, 2025).
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Foreword
Karen Velasquez
Karen Velasquez, PhD, is director of experiential learning at the University of Dayton, where she works with experiential educators and students to support high-impact experiential learning. Her work includes the PIRA framework (Preparation, Immersion, Reflection, and Assessment) for experiential learning design (see Velasquez, 2025).
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Experiential Learning through Electric Vehicle Design Using Lego Technics Parts
Abdullah Amin
Abdullah Al Amin is an assistant professor in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering.
This reflection presents a Lego Technics-based electric vehicle design project that connects mechanics, materials, and fatigue analysis through hands-on prototyping and PIRA-aligned assessment.
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From Simulation to Fabrication: Integrating Fluid Power Theory and Hands-On Laboratory Design
Sean Cahill
Sean Cahill is a faculty of practice in the Department of Engineering Management, Systems, and Technology.
This report examines the integration of simulation and hands-on laboratory work in fluid power systems, showing how ELIFF-supported equipment strengthened alignment across preparation, immersion, reflection, and assessment.
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Mini Case Study: Vertically Integrated, Community-Engaged Engineering Design
Beth Hart and Allison Kinney
Beth Hart is a principal lecturer in the School of Engineering. Allison Kinney is an associate professor in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering.
This case study highlights a vertically integrated, community-engaged engineering project with United Rehabilitation Services, where students across course levels designed assistive solutions using human-centered design and the PIRA framework.
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Ethical Community Engagement and Leadership Development in a Community-Partnered Course
Joy Kadowaki
Joy Kadowaki is an associate professor in the Department of Sociology, Anthropology, and Social Work.
This essay describes a semester-long, community-partnered leadership project in which students collaborated with Five Oaks residents to co-create neighborhood storytelling tools grounded in ethical community engagement and PIRA.
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Community, Art, and Hope: Writing, Public Humanities, and Community-Engaged Learning in East Dayton
Maureen (Molly) Keane-Sexton
Maureen (Molly) Keane-Sexton is a principal lecturer in the Department of English.
This reflection documents a community-engaged partnership with the Mosaic Institute in East Dayton, where students created public art while applying writing instruction, Catholic Social Teaching, and PIRA-guided reflection.
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Service Learning, Self-Efficacy, and Participatory Community Action Research in Homeless Shelters
Roger N. Reeb
Roger Reeb is a professor in the Department of Psychology.
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Walking the Earthworks: Indigenous Literature, Place, and Embodied Learning
Tereza M. Szeghi
Tereza Szeghi is a professor in the Department of English.
This essay examines a place-based experiential learning trip to the Newark Earthworks that integrates Indigenous literature, guided immersion, student reflection, and assessment using the PIRA framework.
