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Failure-Is-Fun, an initiative developed by Christopher Carr, associate dean for Outreach, Student Success, and Engagement (OSSE) in the College of Engineering and Computing (CEC), and Christi Wilcox, OSSE’s Director of Research and Programs, won the 2026 Global Engineering Deans Council (GEDC) Transformative Engineering Award. The international award recognizes programs demonstrating measurable results in helping students from a broad range of backgrounds to study and succeed in engineering.
The award comes with a $2,000 prize and was presented at the World Engineering Education Forum and GEDC meeting in September in Cartagena, Colombia, where engineering education leaders from around the world gathered.
“Engineering is a learning-from-failure discipline,” Carr said. “Iteration is the method, but engineering education treats failure as deficiency.” The pressure can be particularly acute for first-generation students and students from groups historically underrepresented in engineering, who may feel that a mistake reflects not only on themselves but on the communities they represent.
Failure-Is-Fun introduces failure as a normal and productive part of engineering before students struggle. Its “failure-positive” practices encourage students to take risks, reflect on setbacks, and use what went wrong to inform what they try next. The initiative is built around the KEEN entrepreneurial mindset framework of curiosity, connections, and creating value.
Since launching in spring 2025, Failure-Is-Fun has reached 1,480 students across five program touch points. According to data submitted for the award, pre- and post-program surveys showed a 62-point reduction in students' fear of failure and a 77-point shift in students connecting failure with their identity as engineers.
Carr and Wilcox are developing a toolkit and open-access facilitation guide in hopes to expand the program beyond George Mason.
“I don't believe in gatekeeping good knowledge,” Carr said. “The biggest win for us about this award is that this is hopefully getting out there and it can be used across the world in engineering education.”