The Three Pillars of Teaching Excellence

At the start of each semester, Brandon Grainger, associate professor and Eaton Faculty Fellow of electrical and computer engineering at the University of Pittsburgh Swanson School of Engineering, makes clear his expectations of students as well as his determination in succeeding theirs. 

For the last ten years, Grainger has used three pillars to shape his teaching: a service-minded mentality, organization and preparation, and classroom adaptation in real-time.

For his dedication to teaching excellence and impacting over 500 students in the classroom alone, Grainger was awarded the Outstanding Engineering Educator Award from the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) for Region 2, covering Pennsylvania, Ohio, West Virginia, Delaware and Maryland. 

“By firmly instilling an environment of transparency and accountability in the classroom, a mutual respect forms between my students and me,” Grainger said.  

For all courses, Grainger redesigns lecture material and imbues it with modern material, including government funded research.  

“When designing curriculum, I want to make sure that what is taught is grounded in practicality and remembered 10 years from when a student took the course or just requires a little review with my notes,” he said.

Grainger has taught ten different courses at the Swanson School, with four at the undergraduate level and five at the graduate level. Grainger has seen diverse audiences and has faced many scenarios from teaching PhD level graduate classes to teaching the core electric power engineering lab using the Eaton facility in Benedum Hall.  His students enjoy how he brings industry flavor into the classroom.

“He took every opportunity to relate the course material to what actually happens in industry,” one student noted in the nomination letter. “I couldn't be more appreciative of that. His industry experience was invaluable in allowing him to bridge the gap between college and workforce expectations.”  

Others appreciate how he breaks down complex topics and stated, “Thank you for empowering me to feel like a good student. Your teaching style allowed me to believe that I am capable of learning difficult concepts and one day become a successful engineer.”

Grainger spends a considerable amount of time with students outside the classroom as well, including one-on-one mentoring, providing seminars to undergraduate students about graduate-level education, and talking to students about the transition to graduate school or into industry. As of this month, Grainger has 21 fully funded, thesis-based graduate students and nine PhD dissertations awarded in his young academic career. 

“Teaching is not about distributing grades,” Grainger said. “It is about influencing and tapping the potential of the generations to come which requires relationship building often initiated by the instructor.” 

Grainger received a plaque and $150 for the award.