Written by: Russ Nelson May 21, 2025 Students working with a 3D printer in the Industrial & Systems Engineering and Engineering Management (ISEEM) Department labs at 草榴社区 (UAH). Michael Mercier | UAH The Department of Industrial & Systems Engineering and Engineering Management (ISEEM) at 草榴社区 (UAH) has been selected as one of the initial members of the Boeing Digital & Systems Engineering (D&SE) University Partnership. UAH, a part of The University of Alabama System, will be joining a group of six universities from across the country to team with the aerospace and defense technology corporation鈥檚 D&SE Functional Office, an initiative that provides access to industry systems engineering resources and expertise, while in turn working to enhance Boeing workforce development through advanced SE academic curriculums. 鈥淲e are incredibly impressed by what鈥檚 going on at UAH and are excited to build on the initial conversations that we started last year,鈥 said Austin Renwick, senior systems engineer and model-based systems engineering training lead for the Boeing Digital & Systems Engineering Office, in making the announcement. 鈥淭his is an incredibly important part of Boeing鈥檚 workforce development to better understand critical skills and capabilities and how academia can help support the growth and advancement of those skills.鈥 Over the past year, the D&SE Functional Chief Engineer鈥檚 Office underwent extensive research to identify top universities across the U.S. that offer strong academic programs in systems engineering, with the goal of better understanding academic options to inform and guide the systems engineering workforce. The effort focuses on partnerships directly between Boeing鈥檚 D&SE Office and these SE programs in a collaboration aimed at advancing SE education to provide active and continuous engagement centered around curriculum, industry use cases and collaborative learning opportunities. 鈥淯AH鈥檚 systems engineering program stands as a strategic and capable academic partner for Boeing in the field of Digital and Systems Engineering,鈥 says Dr. Dale Thomas, director of the Alabama Space Grant Consortium at UAH as well as professor and eminent scholar of systems engineering. 鈥淲ith our history of successful industry collaborations, cutting-edge research and continuously evolving curriculum, UAH offers a dynamic platform for Boeing employees to pursue graduate education while engaging in meaningful research.鈥 Boeing鈥檚 D&SE FCE Office supports the domain of Digital & Systems Engineering and 13,000 engineers across this field. The university partnership seeks to help meet the company鈥檚 talent needs by providing clarity around industry challenges, curriculum advisement/assessment or skill development through dedicated Boeing cohorts. 鈥淲e are incredibly excited and hope to continue to grow this opportunity in the future, and plan to leverage industry resources such as the to publicize the lessons learned and continue to elevate all of systems engineering education,鈥 Renwick noted. Partnership members will be encouraged to establish learning opportunities that promote their university鈥檚 programs to Boeing employees. UAH will in turn have access to Boeing subject matter experts and provide data and feedback on courses or curriculum. 鈥淯AH's flexible part-time structure, experienced faculty and robust ties to the aerospace and defense industries ensure that UAH can meet Boeing's workforce development needs,鈥 Thomas says. 鈥淭hrough this partnership, both UAH and Boeing will be well-positioned to drive innovation and leadership in the D&SE domain.鈥 Learn More College of Engineering Department of Industrial & Systems Engineering and Engineering Management Contact Kristina Hendrix 256.824.6341 kristina.hendrix@uah.edu Julie Jansen 256.824.6926julie.jansen@uah.edu