V. Celeste Carter, Lead Program Director, ATE, National Science Foundation, VA
Kate Denniston, Deputy Director, Division of Undergraduate Education, National Science Foundation, VA
Work or Play? Opportunities in Social Data
Keynote Speaker: Hilary Mason, Chief Scientist, bitly, NY
Social media is changing the way people work and socialize, offering both challenges and opportunities. The data exhaust we generate is enabling a new kind of computational social science, allowing us to understand human behavior in a new way. At the same time, issues of identity and privacy are becoming more prominent. This keynote address will cover what we can learn, what’s next, how our relationship to our data is changing, and what the workforce will look like in this data-rich future.
9:00 – 10:15 am
21st Century Career Readiness: What Do You Need to Do to Prepare for America’s Future Workforce?
(Open to Student Attendees Only)
Congressional AB
Michael Ennis, Manufacturing Engineer, HARRIS – GCSD, FL
Lou Piazza, Project Director, Boston-area Advanced Technological Education Connections (BATEC), MA
Glenn Wintrich, Director, Chief Innovation Office, Dell, TX
Moderator: Gail Schwartz, Senior Vice President for Innovative Learning and Student Success, American Association of Community Colleges, DC
This is a special session open only to student attendees to provide them an opportunity to talk directly with industry leaders to learn about the skills needed to be successful in the 21st century workplace, as well as tips and techniques for getting the right job!
10:15 – 10:30 am
Refreshment Break
Diplomat, Ambassador, and Empire Foyers
10:30 – 11:45 am
Concurrent Sessions
Session 1: 21st Century Energy Workforce Needs – An Industry Perspective
Palladian
James Auld, College Coordinator, NextEra Energy Resources, FL
Nora Swanson, Workforce Development Coordinator, Southern Nuclear Company, GA
Hank Grimes, Quality Control Manager, Hensel Phelps Construction Company, DC
Moderator: Kevin Cooper, Director of Energy Programs, Program Manager Banner Center for
Energy, Indian River State College, FL
Thanks to emerging technologies, growth, an aging workforce, international competition, and natural attrition, the energy industry in the United States is experiencing unprecedented workforce demands. Specifically, over the next two decades, the energy workforce needs will exceed 200,000 trained personnel. These future technicians will need a strong multi-disciplinary academic background coupled with problem solving abilities. This panel, comprised of energy industry experts, will articulate their visions of the 21st century energy technician. The panel consists of representatives from NextEra Energy Resources, the nation’s largest alternative energy generator; Southern Nuclear Company, the builder of the nation’s first two nuclear power plants in the 21st Century; and Hensel Phelps Construction Company, one of the nation’s largest construction companies focused on energy efficient building.
Session 2: Game-Changing Technologies in Transportation – Effect on Technician Education
Diplomat
Mac Lister, Program Manager, Knowledge and Technology Transfer, Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS), Joint Program Office, U.S. Department of Transportation, DC
Bradley Mason, Senior Vice President, AMSEC LLC, DC
Third panelist TBA
Moderators: Lydia Mercado, Transportation Workforce Development Coordinator, Research and
Innovative Technology Administration, U.S. Department of Transportation, DC
Gerhard Salinger, Program Director, National Science Foundation, VA
This session highlights the importance of skilled technicians in the transportation sector of the economy. Although few projects and centers in the ATE program focus on transportation, many educate technicians with the skills needed by this sector. The transportation sector is undergoing a massive infusion of new technologies that will change how technicians work in the near term. These technologies include Global Positioning Systems, remote sensing, alternative fuels, high speed rail, positive train control, real-time traveler information systems, crash avoidance systems, vehicle to vehicle communications, vehicle to infrastructure communications, NextGen air traffic control system, and others. Industry leaders will identify the technologies that are transforming transportation, address how those technologies will transform the operation and maintenance of our transportation systems, and discuss the implications for educating and training a technician labor pool. Time will also be made available for audience Q/A with the panelists.
Session 3: Deeper Learning for Life and Work in the 21st Century
Empire
Judith Fredrickson, Professor, Computer Technologies, Truckee Meadows Community College, NV
Margaret Hilton, Senior Program Officer, Board on Science Education/Board on Testing and Assessment, The National Academies, DC
Lee McCollum, Coordinator, Power Careers Program, Power Generation Progress Energy, NC
Deb Newberry, Director/PI, Nano-Link: Regional Center for Nanotechnology Education, Dakota County Technical, MN
Moderator: Jane Ostrander, Director/PI, Destination Problem-Based Learning Project, Truckee Meadows Community College, NV
Presentation (PDF)
Handout 1 (Word)
Handout 2 (Word)
The needs of employers continue to evolve in response to the opportunities and challenges provided by new technologies and a competitive global economy. Decades ago computer literacy was a new requirement for employment. More recently, employers have sought employees with a broad collection of cognitive, interpersonal, and intrapersonal 21st century competencies interwoven with deep technical knowledge. For example, a biotechnology technician should understand the principles of biotechnology, have mastered biotechnology skills, and be able to communicate effectively about biotechnology with both colleagues and customers. Our challenge as educators is to provide our students with opportunities to master these competencies and skills, so that they and their employers will be successful in the years ahead. Problem-Based learning is an instructional approach that challenges students to solve industry-based technical problems and master 21st Century competencies through deep, complex learning experiences. Panelists will discuss what is needed in education from the perspective of a problem-based learning educator, a researcher of 21st Century competencies, and an employer seeking 21st Century employees.
Session 4: College Readiness – Conquering Barriers, Improving the Technician Pipeline
Ambassador
Lydia Tena, Northwest Campus Dean and Dean of Instructional Programs, AtD Leader College Liaison,
El Paso Community College, TX
Donna McKusick, Dean of Developmental Education and Special Academic Programs, Community College of Baltimore County, MD
Frances Villagran-Glover, Dean – Learning and Technology Resources (LTR), Associate Professor, Northern Virginia Community College, Alexandria Campus, VA
Moderator: Linda Rehfuss, Assistant Professor, Biology & Biotechnology, Bucks County Community
College, PA
Recent estimates indicate that more than half of the jobs in this century will require some college education, and President Obama has called upon the nation to greatly increase the number of college graduates by 2020. To achieve this goal, many of the barriers that prevent student success in college must be overcome. These challenges are numerous and include math and English skills readiness, economic factors, time constraints, family responsibilities, and self-esteem issues. This panel will address three areas for improving college readiness for technician education programs: (1) strengthening collaborations between community college and K-12 to help reduce the need for developmental education; (2) effective remediation through accelerated learning programs; and (3) assistance to veterans in their quest for education and training beyond their military careers. Panelists will share promising strategies and lessons learned from Achieving the Dream, which is working with over 200 community colleges to close achievement gaps and accelerate student success nationwide.
12:00 – 2:15 pm
Showcase II and Lunch
Exhibit Hall
2:15 – 3:00 pm
Showcase II Breakdown
Exhibit Hall
2:30 – 3:45 p.m.
Birds of a Feather Sessions
The Birds of a Feather sessions are designed to provide an environment for colleagues with similar interests to meet for informal discussion. Conference evaluations have continually indicated that participants want more opportunities to network with their colleagues around areas of common interest. These sessions feature small group discussion to provide participants the opportunity to meet with peers; share promising practices, resources, and lessons learned; collaborate on future endeavors; and establish networks. Specifically selected session and discussion leaders will share expertise and facilitate access to an interactive information exchange on some of the most timely and important issues for the ATE community. ATE project and center teams are advised to divide their attendees among the different Birds of a Feather sessions to cover more ground at the conference and to benefit from multiple contacts.
A list of online resources will be available on the conference web site for each Birds of a Feather session; and participants are encouraged to contribute any additional resources for these lists on site. The Birds of a Feather resource lists will be updated and posted to the conference web site and ATE Central.
Note: Each Birds of a Feather session will be set for 40-50 attendees. Attendance at these discussion sessions is first-come, first-served. If the session room is full, please select another session to attend. The sessions will be offered from 2:30 – 3:45 p.m. and then repeat from 4:00 – 5:15 p.m. so participants have the opportunity to attend more than one session.
Session 1: Industry Perspective and Partnerships
Diplomat
Facilitator: Kevin Cooper, Director of Energy Programs, Program Manager Banner Center for
Energy, Indian River State College, FL
This birds of a feather session offers participants an opportunity to interact with a spectrum of industry representatives to discuss their perspectives on the role of community colleges in training future technicians, best practices in building industry/college partnerships, and understanding the skills needed for a 21st century technician. Industry representatives from energy generation, building sustainability, Microsystems, and water reclamation will be in attendance. These fields have tremendous workforce needs over the next twenty years across multi-disciplinary platforms. Discussion questions include: (1) How do you build productive partnerships and collaborations with business and industry? (2) How do you keep business and industry engaged? (3) What are the skills and strengths that are necessary to make valuable technicians in the 21st century? (4) What disciplines should colleges focus on growing to meet future industry needs?
Session 2: “You’re Going to Study What?” – Strategies for Student Recruitment
Congressional A
Facilitator: Deb Newberry, Director/PI, Nano-Link: Regional Center for Nanotechnology Education, Dakota CountyTechnical, MN
Getting interested, qualified students into a two-year program is often much more than just convincing the potential student that it is a good decision. In many cases, parents, peers, and other influencers are uninformed about the field, job opportunities, and requirements for many technician programs. Hence, student recruitment requires clear, consistent information, energy, and patience. There are also a myriad of paths and approaches to reach any potential student. Discussion questions include: (1) What is the best way to get information to parents and or high school influencers? (2) How do I reach out to underrepresented populations in a culturally appropriate manner? (3)Should I use social media? How? Does it work? (4) What is the highest priority information to provide potential students? How do we not bury them with information or bore them? (5) How strict do I need to be on entrance “requirements?”
Session 3: Classroom Retention Strategies for STEM Programs That Really Work
Congressional B
Facilitator: Donna Milgram, Executive Director, National Institute for Women in Trades, Technology, and Science (IWITTS), CA
In this Birds of a Feather session, ATE conference participants will share information on retention strategies that will improve completion rates of students in their ATE programs. Discussion will focus on bridge and building block STEM strategies, designing STEM courses to increase confidence in students, helping students to be more successful in the STEM lab, and strategies to retain more female and minority students. Discussion questions include: (1) How can you help students who come with few STEM building blocks and hands-on skills develop these skills in a short time-period so they can successfully participate in your STEM program? (2) Confidence is a predictor of success for many students in STEM disciplines. How will you modify or develop your curriculum to ensure confidence in your students right from the start of the semester. Would hands-on activities or problem-solving help to accomplish this? (3) How can you help your students be more successful in the lab so that you can improve their likelihood of retention in the course? (4) How can your ATE project or center retain more minority and female students?
Session 4: Developmental Math/English – Strengthening a Continuum for STEM Learners
Ambassador
Facilitator: Debra Bragg, Director, Office of Community College Research and Leadership, University of Illinois, IL
In this Birds of a Feather session, ATE conference participants will share information on programs, practices, and strategies that are reforming developmental math and English in ways that improve student outcomes. Discussion will focus on current activities that ATE conference participants are using to assist developmental learners to advance through the curriculum in an expeditious manner that leads to competences associated with their being college and career ready. Discussion questions include:
(1) What programs, practices, and strategies are you using that facilitate student learning? (2) What strategies is your college using to assist K-12 education to better prepare students for your technical programs? (3) How are faculty involved in developmental math and English reform activities? (4) Has your college conducted any research, including action research, to investigate who the students taking developmental courses are, what they learn as a result of taking the courses, and how they perform subsequent to developmental course taking? (5) What programs, practices, and strategies has your college tried to scale up and use institution wide?
Session 5: Beyond Satisfaction and Short-Term Self-Reports: Evaluating the Impact of
Your ATE Grant
Empire
Facilitator: Lori Wingate, Assistant Director, The Evaluation Center, Western Michigan University, MI
Assessing participants’ (whether students, faculty, or others) satisfaction with an intervention and their immediate perceptions of how their learning, attitudes, or behaviors have changed is important in any evaluation. The problem is that many evaluations stop there. It is challenging to identify and collect data that are meaningful and valid indicators of change attributable to a project. In this session, participants will discuss their current evaluation practices and brainstorm alternative strategies for evaluating the impact of ATE initiatives. Discussion questions include: (1) What are your project’s (or the one you are evaluating) intended impacts/long-term outcomes? What indicators are you using to evaluate the project’s impact? (2) To what extent have you used institutional/college-level data, data from employers, and student assessment data in your evaluation? (3) To what extent does your evaluation include follow-up data from participants after their direct involvement with your project to determine mid- and long-term results?
Session 6: Problem-based Learning (PBL) as a Path to Entrepreneurship
Capitol
Facilitator: Tressa Gardner, Project Manager and Co-PI, SC ATE Center of Excellence, SC
Join colleagues in a discussion of problem-based learning (PBL) and entrepreneurship education in STEM along an entrepreneurship education spectrum. The entrepreneurial spectrum involves conceptualization (case studies, and PBL to create awareness about entrepreneurship); simulation (STEM Virtual Enterprise, gaming environments, and PBL to practice aspects of entrepreneurship);
and incubation (contract research organizations and business incubators programs). Discussion questions include: (1) What are ways to use PBL in the two-year college STEM classroom? (2) What are ways to use active and problem-based learning as a means of instilling entrepreneurial skills? (3) How can you use the question, “How do you start a business?” as a PBL problem?
Session 7: Strategies for Successful Secondary School Pathways to STEM Careers
Governors
Facilitator: Kristi Jean, Nanoscience Program Coordinator, Center for Nanoscience Technology Training,
North Dakota State College of Science, ND
The successful “2+2+2” model provides a seamless transition for secondary students to enter STEM careers. Community colleges play a critical role in this model as the middle “2” in delivering highly-skilled technical workers into the workforce pipeline. Recognizing that not all career pathway programs require a rigid “2+2+2” framework, flexibility must be allowed depending on regional industry needs. In this Birds of a Feather session, participants will share information on their strategies and current opportunities and challenges. Sharing information, resources, and lessons learned will allow participants to take their strategy and make the model a reality. Discussion questions include: (1) Have you developed a basic strategy or framework for a career pathway model? Have you clearly defined your role? (2) Have you identified the key partners and people to make it happen? (3) What challenges have you identified at the secondary level? What challenges have you identified in working the with four-year universities? Did you find a way to overcome these challenges? (4) Have you connected with local and regional industry to understand their workforce needs? How does their feedback get brought back into your strategic plan?
Session 8: Blended and Distance Learning Opportunities in STEM
Forum
Facilitators: Leanne Chun,Professor and Educational Media Center Coordinator, Leeward community College, HI and Joyce LaTulippe, President,The EdValuate Group, MA
In this Birds of a Feather session, ATE conference participants will discuss key issues in blended and distance learning in higher education such as ways to leverage online learning programs to increase the nation’s education level, creating an authentic online experience for students that builds the skills needed to succeed in the global workforce, professional development of online instructors, and issues of effectively measuring student performance online. Discussion questions include: (1) What is the greatest stigma around online degrees, and how can we combat it? (2) How do you create a community when faculty are geographically distant? (3) How do you create a student-centered, constructivist, authentic learning environment in an online/hybrid course? (4) How do you get students engaged and maintain that engagement and retention in blended and online courses?
Session 9: Two-Year and Four-Year College Partnerships and Collaborations – A Win-Win Opportunity?
Calvert
Facilitator: Matt Pleil, Principal Investigator, Southwest Center for Microsystems Education, NM
In this session, participants will share their experiences when two- and four-year institutions collaborate and form partnerships. Win-Win scenarios, which have yielded mutually beneficial results, will be discussed. Discussion questions include: (1) What kind of partnership with a university would a community college consider valuable? What’s in it for the university? (2) How can joint grant writing and management efforts leverage the strengths of each institution to yield higher success rates? (3) How can leveraging university laboratories benefit both the types of institutions? (4) Community colleges are generally faster at responding to shifts in the workforce, how can the university take advantage of this? (5) How important is articulation? How can one move a technician into a four-year program? (6) What is the potential benefit of community college/university collaborations to stakeholders such as students, tax payers, and industry?
Session 10: Effective Project Management
Cabinet
Facilitator, Kathy Alfano, Director and PI, CREATE Regional Center of Excellence, CA
In this Birds of a Feather session, ATE conference participants will share information on using resources and best practices to manage their ATE projects and centers more effectively. Discussion will focus on understanding the responsibilities of a project manager/project director, how to organize and manage projects in the most effective manner, how to deal with unexpected problems if/when they occur, and how to identify and maximize the use of existing resources. Discussion questions include: (1) What are your responsibilities as a NSF project manager? (2) How do you continuously monitor your project for effectiveness? (3) How do you create and successfully manage projects being done by faculty and others not under your direct supervision? (4) How do you maintain consistent communication throughout the project staff and stakeholders?
Session 11: Accessing and Using Data to Improve Program Outcomes and Measure Student Success
Embassy
Facilitators: Elaine Craft, Director and PI, SC ATE Center of Excellence, SC and Mindy Felbaum, CEO,
The Collaboratory, LLC, MD
In this Birds of a Feather session, ATE conference participants will share information on how to work effectively with institutional research (IR) offices to access and analyze data to make data-driven decisions; determine data needs for ATE programs including online activities to capture student progression and success; partner with state or multistate labor agencies to access employment outcomes for program graduates; determine the benefits and limits to tracking students post-program through a variety of methods (surveys, interviews, Unemployment Insurance wage records); and maximize promising practices and resources to guide program improvement and accountability efforts. Discussion questions include (1) How do you think critically about which data elements will produce the most meaningful insights to vital questions of student success? (2) What key partnerships are required to begin to access and analyze meaningful data? (3) How do you build institutional capacity for longitudinal student analysis for your programs? (4) How can data-sharing partnerships/agreements already in place at your institution be incorporated into your programs? (5) How do you use data to inform program sustainability?
Session 12: Research on Technician Education
Senate
Facilitator: Barbara Anderegg, Co-PI, Consortium for Renewable Energy Technology, Madison Area
Technical College, WI
In this Birds of a Feather session, ATE conference participants will examine the dynamic between researchers conducting targeted research on technician education, ATE center and project PIs, and other stakeholders. Researchers want to know what types of data are most meaningful to ATE PIs’ work. In the course of their grants, PIs often make discoveries that they would like to document through rigorous research. This session will offer discussion on how and where both groups can come together to share ideas and findings, as well as how to reach out to new stakeholders. Discussion questions include:
(1) How do ATE PIs see data informing the work that they do? How do they apply data and research findings to their day-to-day work? (2) What types of research do they find most useful? (3) What characteristics do ATE PIs look for in high-quality research? How do they define “quality?” (4) Who do ATE PIs see as the primary stakeholders for ATE Targeted Research projects? (5) What recommendations might ATE PIs offer to researchers regarding communicating the findings of research?
Session13: Digital Outreach and Social Media Tools
Regency
Facilitator: Gordon Snyder, Executive Director, ICT Center, Springfield Technical Community College, MA
In this Birds of a Feather session, ATE conference participants will share information on harnessing social media platforms and technologies to communicate and engage with key audiences. Discussion will focus on current information dissemination practices to determine how social media platforms may be used to streamline communication practices and maximize the use of existing resources. Discussion questions include: (1) How do you create a strategy for leveraging social media platforms for information dissemination? (2) How do you create a tiered approach to information dissemination for your center or project? (3) How can you build your social media audience? (4) How can you increase engagement through the adoption of platforms that allow for real-time interaction, such as a micro-blogging, to allow for more regular communication between centers, projects, and social media audiences?
Session 14: Developing Transferable Knowledge and Skills in the 21st Century
Palladian
Facilitator: Margaret Hilton, Senior Program Officer, Board on Science Education/Board on Testing and Assessment,The National Academies, DC
A new report from the National Research Council (2012), Education for Work and Life: Developing Transferable Knowledge and Skills in the 21st Century Skills, recommends design and delivery of instruction at all levels (from P-K through undergraduate) to foster deeper learning. Deeper learning is the process of learning for transfer—the ability to take what was learned in one situation and applying it to new situations. The product of deeper learning is transferable knowledge within a subject area, including content knowledge of the area and understanding of how, why, and when to apply this knowledge to answer questions or solve problems in that area. The report refers to this blend of closely intertwined knowledge and skills as “21st century competencies.” For example, through deeper learning of biotechnology, students would understand the general principles underlying biotechnology and also how to apply this understanding to support further learning and problem-solving in biotechnology. They would develop transferable 21st century competencies—encompassing cognitive knowledge, communications skills, and self-management skills—that would facilitate continued learning and problem-solving in biotechnology, both in college and in the workplace. Discussion questions include: (1) Are employers or trade associations asking your ATE program to develop 21st century skills? If so, which skills are they seeking? (2) How have you addressed the challenge of helping students gain deep technical knowledge and skills and also 21st century skills? (3) In your view, are skills and knowledge closely intertwined, or are they unrelated? Why do you have this view?
Session 15: Engaging Students with Disabilities / Universal Design Principles
Hampton
Facilitator: Donna Lange, Director and PI, DeafTEC NSF National Center of Excellence, National
Technical Institute for the Deaf, Rochester Institute of Technology, NY
Universal Design in education is an approach to designing course instruction, materials, and content to benefit people of all learning styles without adaptation or retrofitting. Modifications for students, especially for those with disabilities, are built into the curriculum, not merely added later on as needs arise. Universal Design provides equal access to learning, not simply equal access to information. Simply stated, Universal Design is just good teaching! In this Birds of a Feather session, participants will share information on how they have engaged students with disabilities in their classrooms and the Universal Design principles that can be used to improve teaching and access to learning. Discussion questions include: (1) What challenges have you experienced teaching students with disabilities in your classes? How have you overcome these challenges? (2) What advanced planning did you need to do to accommodate students with disabilities in your course(s)? (3) Have you used Universal Design principles to improve instruction and access to learning in your classes? How did these modifications benefit students with disabilities? How did all students benefit?
4:00 – 5:15 p.m.
Birds of a Feather Sessions
Session 1: Industry Perspective and Partnerships
Diplomat
Facilitator: Kevin Cooper, Director of Energy Programs, Program Manager Banner Center for
Energy, Indian River State College, FL
This birds of a feather session offers participants an opportunity to interact with a spectrum of industry representatives to discuss their perspectives on the role of community colleges in training future technicians, best practices in building industry/college partnerships, and understanding the skills needed for a 21st century technician. Industry representatives from energy generation, building sustainability, Microsystems, and water reclamation will be in attendance. These fields have tremendous workforce needs over the next twenty years across multi-disciplinary platforms. Discussion questions include: (1) How do you build productive partnerships and collaborations with business and industry? (2) How do you keep business and industry engaged? (3) What are the skills and strengths that are necessary to make valuable technicians in the 21st century? (4) What disciplines should colleges focus on growing to meet future industry needs?
Session 2: “You’re Going to Study What?” – Strategies for Student Recruitment
Congressional A
Facilitator: Deb Newberry, Director/PI, Nano-Link: Regional Center for Nanotechnology Education, Dakota CountyTechnical, MN
Getting interested, qualified students into a two-year program is often much more than just convincing the potential student that it is a good decision. In many cases, parents, peers, and other influencers are uninformed about the field, job opportunities, and requirements for many technician programs. Hence, student recruitment requires clear, consistent information, energy, and patience. There are also a myriad of paths and approaches to reach any potential student. Discussion questions include: (1) What is the best way to get information to parents and or high school influencers? (2) How do I reach out to underrepresented populations in a culturally appropriate manner? (3)Should I use social media? How? Does it work? (4) What is the highest priority information to provide potential students? How do we not bury them with information or bore them? (5) How strict do I need to be on entrance “requirements?”
Session 3: Classroom Retention Strategies for STEM Programs That Really Work
Congressional B
Facilitator: Donna Milgram, Executive Director, National Institute for Women in Trades, Technology, and Science (IWITTS), CA
In this Birds of a Feather session, ATE conference participants will share information on retention strategies that will improve completion rates of students in their ATE programs. Discussion will focus on bridge and building block STEM strategies, designing STEM courses to increase confidence in students, helping students to be more successful in the STEM lab, and strategies to retain more female and minority students. Discussion questions include: (1) How can you help students who come with few STEM building blocks and hands-on skills develop these skills in a short time-period so they can successfully participate in your STEM program? (2) Confidence is a predictor of success for many students in STEM disciplines. How will you modify or develop your curriculum to ensure confidence in your students right from the start of the semester. Would hands-on activities or problem-solving help to accomplish this? (3) How can you help your students be more successful in the lab so that you can improve their likelihood of retention in the course? (4) How can your ATE project or center retain more minority and female students?
Session 4: Developmental Math/English – Strengthening a Continuum for STEM Learners
Ambassador
Facilitator: Debra Bragg, Director, Office of Community College Research and Leadership, University of Illinois, IL
In this Birds of a Feather session, ATE conference participants will share information on programs, practices, and strategies that are reforming developmental math and English in ways that improve student outcomes. Discussion will focus on current activities that ATE conference participants are using to assist developmental learners to advance through the curriculum in an expeditious manner that leads to competences associated with their being college and career ready. Discussion questions include:
(1) What programs, practices, and strategies are you using that facilitate student learning? (2) What strategies is your college using to assist K-12 education to better prepare students for your technical programs? (3) How are faculty involved in developmental math and English reform activities? (4) Has your college conducted any research, including action research, to investigate who the students taking developmental courses are, what they learn as a result of taking the courses, and how they perform subsequent to developmental course taking? (5) What programs, practices, and strategies has your college tried to scale up and use institution wide?
Session 5: Beyond Satisfaction and Short-Term Self-Reports: Evaluating the Impact of
Your ATE Grant
Empire
Facilitator: Lori Wingate, Assistant Director, The Evaluation Center, Western Michigan University, MI
Assessing participants’ (whether students, faculty, or others) satisfaction with an intervention and their immediate perceptions of how their learning, attitudes, or behaviors have changed is important in any evaluation. The problem is that many evaluations stop there. It is challenging to identify and collect data that are meaningful and valid indicators of change attributable to a project. In this session, participants will discuss their current evaluation practices and brainstorm alternative strategies for evaluating the impact of ATE initiatives. Discussion questions include: (1) What are your project’s (or the one you are evaluating) intended impacts/long-term outcomes? What indicators are you using to evaluate the project’s impact? (2) To what extent have you used institutional/college-level data, data from employers, and student assessment data in your evaluation? (3) To what extent does your evaluation include follow-up data from participants after their direct involvement with your project to determine mid- and long-term results?
Session 6: Problem-based Learning (PBL) as a Path to Entrepreneurship
Capitol
Facilitator: Tressa Gardner, Project Manager and Co-PI, SC ATE Center of Excellence, SC
Join colleagues in a discussion of problem-based learning (PBL) and entrepreneurship education in STEM along an entrepreneurship education spectrum. The entrepreneurial spectrum involves conceptualization (case studies, and PBL to create awareness about entrepreneurship); simulation (STEM Virtual Enterprise, gaming environments, and PBL to practice aspects of entrepreneurship);
and incubation (contract research organizations and business incubators programs). Discussion questions include: (1) What are ways to use PBL in the two-year college STEM classroom? (2) What are ways to use active and problem-based learning as a means of instilling entrepreneurial skills? (3) How can you use the question, “How do you start a business?” as a PBL problem?
Session 7: Strategies for Successful Secondary School Pathways to STEM Careers
Governors
Facilitator: Kristi Jean, Nanoscience Program Coordinator, Center for Nanoscience Technology Training,
North Dakota State College of Science, ND
The successful “2+2+2” model provides a seamless transition for secondary students to enter STEM careers. Community colleges play a critical role in this model as the middle “2” in delivering highly-skilled technical workers into the workforce pipeline. Recognizing that not all career pathway programs require a rigid “2+2+2” framework, flexibility must be allowed depending on regional industry needs. In this Birds of a Feather session, participants will share information on their strategies and current opportunities and challenges. Sharing information, resources, and lessons learned will allow participants to take their strategy and make the model a reality. Discussion questions include: (1) Have you developed a basic strategy or framework for a career pathway model? Have you clearly defined your role? (2) Have you identified the key partners and people to make it happen? (3) What challenges have you identified at the secondary level? What challenges have you identified in working the with four-year universities? Did you find a way to overcome these challenges? (4) Have you connected with local and regional industry to understand their workforce needs? How does their feedback get brought back into your strategic plan?
Session 8: Blended and Distance Learning Opportunities in STEM
Forum
Facilitators: Leanne Chun,Professor and Educational Media Center Coordinator, Leeward community College, HI and Joyce LaTulippe, President,The EdValuate Group, MA
In this Birds of a Feather session, ATE conference participants will discuss key issues in blended and distance learning in higher education such as ways to leverage online learning programs to increase the nation’s education level, creating an authentic online experience for students that builds the skills needed to succeed in the global workforce, professional development of online instructors, and issues of effectively measuring student performance online. Discussion questions include: (1) What is the greatest stigma around online degrees, and how can we combat it? (2) How do you create a community when faculty are geographically distant? (3) How do you create a student-centered, constructivist, authentic learning environment in an online/hybrid course? (4) How do you get students engaged and maintain that engagement and retention in blended and online courses?
Session 9: Two-Year and Four-Year College Partnerships and Collaborations – A Win-Win Opportunity?
Calvert
Facilitator: Matt Pleil, Principal Investigator, Southwest Center for Microsystems Education, NM
In this session, participants will share their experiences when two- and four-year institutions collaborate and form partnerships. Win-Win scenarios, which have yielded mutually beneficial results, will be discussed. Discussion questions include: (1) What kind of partnership with a university would a community college consider valuable? What’s in it for the university? (2) How can joint grant writing and management efforts leverage the strengths of each institution to yield higher success rates? (3) How can leveraging university laboratories benefit both the types of institutions? (4) Community colleges are generally faster at responding to shifts in the workforce, how can the university take advantage of this? (5) How important is articulation? How can one move a technician into a four-year program? (6) What is the potential benefit of community college/university collaborations to stakeholders such as students, tax payers, and industry?
Session 10: Effective Project Management
Cabinet
Facilitator, Kathy Alfano, Director and PI, CREATE Regional Center of Excellence, CA
In this Birds of a Feather session, ATE conference participants will share information on using resources and best practices to manage their ATE projects and centers more effectively. Discussion will focus on understanding the responsibilities of a project manager/project director, how to organize and manage projects in the most effective manner, how to deal with unexpected problems if/when they occur, and how to identify and maximize the use of existing resources. Discussion questions include: (1) What are your responsibilities as a NSF project manager? (2) How do you continuously monitor your project for effectiveness? (3) How do you create and successfully manage projects being done by faculty and others not under your direct supervision? (4) How do you maintain consistent communication throughout the project staff and stakeholders?
Session 11: Accessing and Using Data to Improve Program Outcomes and Measure Student Success
Embassy
Facilitators: Elaine Craft, Director and PI, SC ATE Center of Excellence, SC and Mindy Felbaum, CEO,
The Collaboratory, LLC, MD
In this Birds of a Feather session, ATE conference participants will share information on how to work effectively with institutional research (IR) offices to access and analyze data to make data-driven decisions; determine data needs for ATE programs including online activities to capture student progression and success; partner with state or multistate labor agencies to access employment outcomes for program graduates; determine the benefits and limits to tracking students post-program through a variety of methods (surveys, interviews, Unemployment Insurance wage records); and maximize promising practices and resources to guide program improvement and accountability efforts. Discussion questions include (1) How do you think critically about which data elements will produce the most meaningful insights to vital questions of student success? (2) What key partnerships are required to begin to access and analyze meaningful data? (3) How do you build institutional capacity for longitudinal student analysis for your programs? (4) How can data-sharing partnerships/agreements already in place at your institution be incorporated into your programs? (5) How do you use data to inform program sustainability?
Session 12: Research on Technician Education
Senate
Facilitator: Barbara Anderegg, Co-PI, Consortium for Renewable Energy Technology, Madison Area
Technical College, WI
In this Birds of a Feather session, ATE conference participants will examine the dynamic between researchers conducting targeted research on technician education, ATE center and project PIs, and other stakeholders. Researchers want to know what types of data are most meaningful to ATE PIs’ work. In the course of their grants, PIs often make discoveries that they would like to document through rigorous research. This session will offer discussion on how and where both groups can come together to share ideas and findings, as well as how to reach out to new stakeholders. Discussion questions include:
(1) How do ATE PIs see data informing the work that they do? How do they apply data and research findings to their day-to-day work? (2) What types of research do they find most useful? (3) What characteristics do ATE PIs look for in high-quality research? How do they define “quality?” (4) Who do ATE PIs see as the primary stakeholders for ATE Targeted Research projects? (5) What recommendations might ATE PIs offer to researchers regarding communicating the findings of research?
Session13: Digital Outreach and Social Media Tools
Regency
Facilitator: Gordon Snyder, Executive Director, ICT Center, Springfield Technical Community College, MA
In this Birds of a Feather session, ATE conference participants will share information on harnessing social media platforms and technologies to communicate and engage with key audiences. Discussion will focus on current information dissemination practices to determine how social media platforms may be used to streamline communication practices and maximize the use of existing resources. Discussion questions include: (1) How do you create a strategy for leveraging social media platforms for information dissemination? (2) How do you create a tiered approach to information dissemination for your center or project? (3) How can you build your social media audience? (4) How can you increase engagement through the adoption of platforms that allow for real-time interaction, such as a micro-blogging, to allow for more regular communication between centers, projects, and social media audiences?
Session 14: Developing Transferable Knowledge and Skills in the 21st Century
Palladian
Facilitator: Margaret Hilton, Senior Program Officer, Board on Science Education/Board on Testing and Assessment,The National Academies, DC
A new report from the National Research Council (2012), Education for Work and Life: Developing Transferable Knowledge and Skills in the 21st Century Skills, recommends design and delivery of instruction at all levels (from P-K through undergraduate) to foster deeper learning. Deeper learning is the process of learning for transfer—the ability to take what was learned in one situation and applying it to new situations. The product of deeper learning is transferable knowledge within a subject area, including content knowledge of the area and understanding of how, why, and when to apply this knowledge to answer questions or solve problems in that area. The report refers to this blend of closely intertwined knowledge and skills as “21st century competencies.” For example, through deeper learning of biotechnology, students would understand the general principles underlying biotechnology and also how to apply this understanding to support further learning and problem-solving in biotechnology. They would develop transferable 21st century competencies—encompassing cognitive knowledge, communications skills, and self-management skills—that would facilitate continued learning and problem-solving in biotechnology, both in college and in the workplace. Discussion questions include: (1) Are employers or trade associations asking your ATE program to develop 21st century skills? If so, which skills are they seeking? (2) How have you addressed the challenge of helping students gain deep technical knowledge and skills and also 21st century skills? (3) In your view, are skills and knowledge closely intertwined, or are they unrelated? Why do you have this view?
Session 15: Engaging Students with Disabilities / Universal Design Principles
Hampton
Facilitator: Donna Lange, Director and PI, DeafTEC NSF National Center of Excellence, National
Technical Institute for the Deaf, Rochester Institute of Technology, NY
Universal Design in education is an approach to designing course instruction, materials, and content to benefit people of all learning styles without adaptation or retrofitting. Modifications for students, especially for those with disabilities, are built into the curriculum, not merely added later on as needs arise. Universal Design provides equal access to learning, not simply equal access to information. Simply stated, Universal Design is just good teaching! In this Birds of a Feather session, participants will share information on how they have engaged students with disabilities in their classrooms and the Universal Design principles that can be used to improve teaching and access to learning. Discussion questions include: (1) What challenges have you experienced teaching students with disabilities in your classes? How have you overcome these challenges? (2) What advanced planning did you need to do to accommodate students with disabilities in your course(s)? (3) Have you used Universal Design principles to improve instruction and access to learning in your classes? How did these modifications benefit students with disabilities? How did all students benefit?