Worcester Polytechnic Institute

WPI is committed to developing curricula, projects and research, and activities that enhance interdisciplinary and cross-disciplinary education of students that are well prepared to use technology to address the most pressing societal problems. We also commit to providing favorable environments for all tenured and untenured faculty members to engage in activities in the area of technology for the public interest.

Robert Krueger, Associate Professor, Geography

Faculty and Institution Building

From Visibility to Institutionalization: Integrating PIT through JUST-T Collab

The newly established Just-T Collab (Technology for Transformative Justice Collaborative) will lead the institutionalization of a PIT culture with a regularized, anticipated series of annual activities and an expansion of collaborations with Quinsigamond Community College and other local partners. Building on the momentum created by WPI’s 2021 PIT Signature Projects Program, this project establishes Just-T Collab to advance the visibility of PIT ideas to the institutionalization of a PIT culture.

The project aims to foster a PIT culture by developing and implementing a regularized, anticipated series of annual activities, such as a grants competition for faculty, a summer institute, workshops, a design competition for students and more. This PIT activities calendar will embed expectation and tradition, as faculty and students look forward to engaging with opportunities on campus and in Worcester. In conjunction with that, we will strengthen the partnership with Quinsigamond Community College to expand PIT opportunities for underserved local communities and take steps toward building Worcester’s PIT coalition.

Principal Investigators

Yunus Doğan Telliel, Assistant Professor of Anthropology and Rhetoric, and Laureen Elgert, Assistant Professor of Environmental Policy Studies

Career Pipeline/Placement; Faculty and Institution Building

Supporting and Showcasing PIT: Building Community through Signature Projects

PIT is a fundamental part of WPI’s project based learning program, yet it is not known by name, nor fully recognized as a field in its own right, nor widely considered as a robust career path. The proposed program will promote the visibility and legitimacy of research, pedagogy, and careers in PIT for WPI faculty, staff, and students by supporting 7 ‘signature projects’. The work undertaken in these individual projects will (a) create a PIT community on WPI campus and (b) initiate a PIT coalition with local partners in Worcester. The project is bookended by 2 major public-facing events designed to bring greater excitement, engagement, and collaboration around PIT: ‘PIT-Fest’ in April, and ‘Social Justice Week’ in November.

Principal Investigators

Yunus Doğan Telliel, Assistant Professor of Anthropology and Rhetoric, and Laureen Elgert, Assistant Professor of Environmental Policy Studies