The American Society for Engineering Education and the Morrill Act of 1862

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The American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE) has played a central role in shaping the content of American engineering education over the last 120 years. It was founded as the Society for the Promotion of Engineering Education in 1893 due to the growth in the number of American engineering schools in the late 19^th century. This growth was due in large part to the passage in 1862 of the Morrill Act, also known as the Land Grant College Act. As a result, the number of American engineering schools nearly tripled between 1860 and 1872, and enrollment continued to grow over the next several decades. Since these engineering schools were state rather than federal institutions, their offerings were highly diverse in content and method of instruction. A primary focus of the ASEE in its early years was to establish common educational standards to help unify the engineering profession. The ASEE was successful in these efforts, and the Society’ s current role in accreditation grew out of those efforts.