Collaborative research: facilitating broad propagation of computation integration into the undergraduate physics curriculum using institutional change models

The National Science Foundation Division of Undergraduate Education awarded Rochester Institute of Technology $328,820 on October 15, 2026, under the STEM Education program (CFDA 47.076) to develop and disseminate products enabling broad adoption of computation-integrated undergraduate physics curriculum across U.S. institutions of higher education.

The project is a collaborative effort among eleven universities and colleges applying Kotter's 8-step change model to systematically integrate computation and artificial intelligence into undergraduate physics curricula at nine participating institutions. RIT serves as the lead recipient, with work performed in Rochester, New York. The collaboration will produce three deliverable products designed to support institutional adoption of computational thinking in physics education, informed by specialists in institutional change and assessment development, an external evaluator, and an advisory board representing industry, national laboratories, artificial intelligence in physics education, and professional societies.

The project runs through September 30, 2031, and aims to elevate undergraduate physics students' problem-solving skills through enhanced use of computers, computation, and artificial intelligence. By addressing the curricular-wide modifications and instructor training required for sustained integration, the initiative targets preparation of students for careers in research, industry, and education, strengthening the U.S. scientific and technical workforce. The Level 2 Institutional and Community Transformation project acknowledges that broad curriculum adoption requires an institutional change approach rather than isolated pedagogical innovation.

Abstract

This project aims to serve the national interest by elevating undergraduate physics students? Problem-solving skills through enhanced use of computers, computation, and artificial intelligence. Integration of computational thinking into the undergraduate physics curriculum requires an institutional change approach because of the necessary curricular-wide modifications and the need to train and align many instructors with the modified curriculum. The products from this level 2 institutional and community transformation project, which is a collaboration between eleven universities and colleges, are intended to enable broad adoption of computation-integrated physics curriculum across many more US institutions of higher education. The project?s significance stems from integrating computation and artificial intelligence into undergraduate physics education to better prepare students for careers in research, industry, and education, strengthening the US scientific and technical workforce. The project aims to provide students with the skills that are increasingly expected of them in professional settings. The research team includes specialists in institutional change and in assessment development. The team will also benefit from an external evaluator and receive advice from an advisory board representing the perspectives of industry, national laboratories, artificial intelligence in physics education, and professional societies. Each of nine institutions will apply kotter's 8-step change model to integrate computation systematically and sustainably into their undergraduate physics curriculum. As part of adapting kotter's model to conditions at local departments, and together with experts at two other institutions, the collaboration?s goals are to develop and disseminate the following three products that aim to make IT easier for additional US physics departments to embark on computation integration: (1) a consensus list of computation competencies, learning goals, and artificial intelligence skills for physics undergraduates, with a curriculum map linking these goals to common courses; (2) a validated assessment instrument to measure both student learning outcomes and the effectiveness of change efforts; and (3) case studies documenting implementation approaches across a range of institutional contexts, along with a small set of computation integration change models that physics departments could adapt to guide their own efforts. To support broader adoption the project team will work with an ambassador cohort of 30 additional physics instructors, representing a wide array of institution types, including 2-year, 4-year, and PHD-granting programs, to conduct the interactive development and dissemination phases of the project. The NSF iuse: EDU program supports research and development projects to improve the effectiveness of stem education for all students. Through the institutional and community transformation track, the program supports efforts to transform and improve stem education across institutions of higher education and disciplinary communities. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.- subawards are not planned for this award.