MIT Professor Wins $500K Prize for Engineering Education

T. Alan Hatton spent nearly four decades proving that the best classroom for engineers might not be a classroom at all.

The MIT chemical engineering professor just received the 2026 Bernard M. Gordon Prize, one of engineering education's highest honors, along with $500,000 to continue his work. The National Academy of Engineering recognized him for leading the MIT Chemical Engineering Practice School, where students don't just study problems. They solve them.

When Hatton took over as director in 1989, the Practice School sent students to a handful of traditional chemical plants. By the time he retired in 2025, students were tackling challenges in pharmaceuticals, energy, food production, advanced materials, and even finance across multiple continents.

The program embeds student teams directly inside companies, often at manufacturing plants or research centers. There, they work on real technical problems with real consequences, presenting their findings to executives and engineers who depend on their insights.

Sponsors report measurable results: improved processes, reduced costs, and new technical directions informed by MIT-level analysis. For students, the experience builds something harder to teach in lectures: the confidence to tackle complex work from their first day as professional engineers.

Hatton's strategy centered on constant evolution. He recruited new host companies regularly, keeping the program aligned with emerging technologies and industry needs. He also launched an intensive project management course during MIT's Independent Activities Period, giving students crucial team-based skills before they enter industrial settings.

The Ripple Effect

The Practice School has now trained thousands of engineering leaders over its 110-year history. Alumni credit the experience with shaping not just their technical skills but their ability to work across disciplines, cultures, and organizational structures.

Current director Fikile Brushett says Hatton built a program designed to adapt. "Alan consistently positioned the Practice School to respond to change, whether in technology, industry expectations, or educational practice," Brushett explains.

MIT Dean Paula Hammond believes the model offers a blueprint for modern engineering education. "As engineering challenges become more complex and interdisciplinary, education must evolve alongside them," she says. "The Practice School demonstrates how rigorous academics, real industrial problems, and student responsibility can be woven together."

In recognition of Hatton's work, MIT alumni established the T. Alan Hatton Fund in fall 2025. The fund helps launch new Practice School stations, ensuring future students can access the same transformative experience.

Half of the Gordon Prize money goes directly to Hatton, while MIT receives the other half to support continued innovation in engineering education—a fitting tribute to a professor who spent 36 years preparing students not just to enter their field, but to lead it.