NSF CONTINUES TO HELP EDUCATE HIGH-TECH WORKERS

FROM:  NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION 
Preparing high-tech workers, meeting needs of employers
NSF celebrates 20 years of advancing technological education
December 4, 2013

In the U.S., almost half of all undergraduate students are educated at community colleges. The most recent data show that about 40 percent of community-college students represent the first generation in their family to attend college. Eighteen percent are Hispanic, 15 percent are Black, and 12 percent are students with disabilities.

The community college environment reflects not only demographic changes in the population, but also changes in the economy. As less-skilled jobs are less available, there is a need for more education and training in specialized fields to build or rebuild a career path toward a secure future.

This microcosm of students is key to the National Science Foundation's (NSF) commitment to support high-quality educational experiences in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (the STEM fields) while recruiting underrepresented groups into STEM and building the STEM workforce.

The value of advanced technological education

In 1992, Congress presented NSF with its first-ever mandate for program creation, known as the Scientific and Advanced Technology Act. In response to this legislation, the NSF established the Advanced Technological Education (ATE) program, with the overall goal of increasing the knowledge and skills of technicians who are educated at associate-degree-granting colleges.

In funding community colleges, the program gives them a leadership role in strengthening the skills of STEM technicians. The community colleges work in partnership with universities, secondary schools, business and industry and government agencies to design and carry out model workforce development initiatives in fields as diverse as biotechnology, cybsersecurity and advanced manufacturing.

At the core of the program are ATE Centers, which maintain critical industry, academic, and government agency partnerships, and act as national and regional hubs for innovation in technological education. In the first year of ATE program funding, there were only three such centers. Today, there are 39 spread across the country. As of early 2013, the ATE program administered a total of 292 active grants, received by colleges and universities in 41 states, in addition to Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico.

From undergraduate achievement to careers

Like the community college system, the ATE program is far-reaching: In 2012, nearly 54,000 undergraduate students were directly impacted by ATE, in programs currently offered at thousands of educational institutions throughout the nation. This number does not capture all the programs ATE initiated or influenced during the past 20 years; many of them continue to educate students in innovative ways without NSF support.

Honoring NSF's commitment to broadening participation in STEM education, 42 percent of the students who benefited from ATE educational programs in 2012 were minorities, in numbers that are nearly commensurate with U.S. population demographics. Many students in ATE programs also are first-generation college attendees, who represent a critical sector of the American workforce.

ATE projects generally have strong relationships with local industry, and offer students opportunities beyond the classroom. Research experiences and internships not only enrich the undergraduate experience but also strengthen students' hiring potential after they earn their associate degrees. For example, Casey Kraus completed her associate degree at Indian River State College (IRSC) in 2012. Her degree program included a six-week internship at a commercial nuclear power plant, which has since led to her employment by Florida Power & Light (FPL) as a third-year apprentice.

"The IRSC and FPL's Power Plant Technology program greatly prepared me for my career at the St. Lucie Nuclear Power Plant. Although there are some things in the field that can never be completely recreated in a classroom, I believe that IRSC and the FPL subject matter experts made the program as close to real life at the plant as possible. Everything I've learned in the program I apply in some way to almost every job I go on each and every day...The possibilities are absolutely endless," said Kraus, who is one of the students featured in ATE@20: Two Decades of Advancing Technological Education, published this fall.

Meanwhile, ATE fills a critical need for employers who depend on the availability and competence of highly skilled technicians to support their manufacturing and business operations. According to Werner Eikenbusch, who leads the Manager Training and Development effort at BMW Manufacturing in Greenville, S.C., ATE has played a vital role since its inception in supporting BMW's mission.

"We are currently actively involved with two ATE centers, AMTEC and CA2VES, to advance the recruiting and development of highly skilled manufacturing and automotive technicians," said Eikenbusch. "The availability of a skilled workforce was one of the key considerations for BMW to locate our manufacturing plant in South Carolina. Twenty years later, it has been a key driver in our success."

Engaging young adults with hands-on science

The 2013 ATE Principal Investigators Conference, held in Washington, D.C., in October, brought together approximately 800 ATE educators and students for presentations and discussions of key issues in advanced technological education. ATE faculty enthusiastically shared stories of student engagement from their own ATE projects.

In one example, the Stem Cell Pipeline course, offered at the City College of San Francisco in California, introduces both high-school students and their teachers to the fundamentals of cell culture techniques and research using stem cells. In a program evaluation, one excited student stated, "It's amazing that we pretty much made our own neurons/cardiomyocytes." Additionally, the investigators highlighted a key finding of their project: exposure to hands-on stem cell science increased student interest in pursuing a STEM degree after secondary school - not just a biotechnology degree, but other STEM degrees as well.

The Marine Advanced Technology Education Center at Monterey Peninsula College in California supports a suite of underwater robotics competitions each year. In June 2013, more than 50 teams and 500 students competed in the center's 12th Annual International Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) Competition. The underwater competition, which brings students in direct contact with potential employers, requires student and ROV teams to compete in tasks designed to mimic undersea workplace challenges.

According to Jill Zande, co-principal investigator and the ROV competition coordinator, "The competition focuses on more than technical skills. It challenges students to think of themselves as entrepreneurs and transform their teams into companies to gain an understanding of how a business works. It also encourages them to think critically and creatively, solve problems, develop trouble-shooting techniques, and work as an integral part of a team--all important 21st-century workforce skills--and skills that the employers who support the competition are looking for."

Providing a career pathway

In many locations, ATE opportunities are offered to students beginning in secondary school, with participants often earning college-level credit. More importantly, these programs also provide students direct pathways into technical associate degree tracks.

As a result of the hundreds of articulation agreements that ATE programs have instigated, the curricula of advanced technology programs at two-year schools align with the expectations at local four-year institutions. This ensures that students who wish to pursue bachelor-level degrees in STEM areas can readily do so.

ATE projects are also able to customize their approach to particular populations and settings. As tribal communities expand their workforces, the need for technicians and individuals earning advanced STEM educations continues to increase. In response to the rapid expansion of tribal college STEM education, many ATE programs, such as those offered by the National Partnership for Environmental Technology Education (PETE), have developed targeted programs aimed at supporting the 37 Tribal Colleges and five colleges in the U.S. Pacific Rim territories, where incorporating the unique cultural characteristics of these communities increases educational program effectiveness.

"STEM education is more meaningful to indigenous students if it is placed within a cultural context and taught using a holistic learning pedagogy," explained Kirk J. Laflin, PETE executive director. PETE's faculty institutes provide educators from Tribal Colleges with technical and pedagogical skills to better instruct indigenous students and prepare them for new and sustainable "green jobs."

"NSF support makes it possible for PETE to provide opportunities to improve their environmental and STEM programs through school-specific program assistance, faculty development institutes--including a dedicated indigenous pedagogy session--and mini-grants to help implement the resources provided," Laflin said.

Meanwhile, more than 1 million veterans, many of whom have obtained technical backgrounds as a result of their military service, are expected to return to the U.S. within the next five years. Further technological training and credentialing can play significant roles in the success of veterans transitioning to the civilian workforce. Hence, some ATE programs, such as the National Resource Center for Aerospace Technical Education (SpaceTEC®), specifically target U.S. military veterans with career pathway opportunities. In particular, SpaceTEC® has existing partnerships with the U.S. Air Force, Navy, and Army educational portals for service members.

Other opportunities for undergraduate students include ATE program scholarships to attend industry conferences. Justin Patten, operations manager at Hysitron Inc., says that industry conferences not only expose companies like Hysitron Inc. to potential hires but also benefits students' understanding of potential employers.

Serving the priorities of the Administration

Undergraduate STEM education has been highlighted as a crucial administration priority: In February 2012, the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology submitted a report titled, "Engage to Excel," which called for the need to produce 1 million additional college graduates with STEM degrees. The current administration has prioritized several additional key areas of STEM, including advanced manufacturing technology, biotechnology, and cybersecurity technologies. ATE projects and centers are directly supporting these goals by developing new curricula and innovative educational approaches.

At the same time, professional development is a core aspect of ATE. To ensure that ATE classrooms remain populated with eager students who are prepared for college-level STEM coursework, continued investments in the strength of STEM secondary school teachers are critical. Hence, one-third of the individuals who receive professional development support through ATE projects are teachers at the secondary school level.

For example, the ATE Project for Physics Faculty, which is the result of a combined effort between Lee College of Baytown, Texas, and Estrella Mountain Community College of Avondale, Ariz., offers intensive three-day professional and curriculum development opportunities to teachers. Historically, of all the sciences taught at the high school level, physics has had the comparatively fewest teachers with subject-specific degrees. However, since 2006, nearly 500 instructors have participated in this ATE project, strengthening their content knowledge as part of a significant intervention in high school physics education.

ATE into the next decade

Growth in STEM career fields is expected to continue into the future, and the need for advanced technicians is predicted to follow. ATE projects are poised to continue meeting this need from a variety of perspectives. In 2012, ATE reported more than 8,000 project collaborations with business and industry partners, which ensure that ATE curricula remain cutting-edge and relevant to vital areas of U.S. STEM fields.

Further, by grabbing student attention in secondary school, providing robust career pathways for technology-oriented students, and supporting STEM teacher professional development, ATE projects will continue to fill a critical need.

NSF COMMUNITY COLLEGE PROGRAMS TRAIN FUTURE BIOTECH WORKERS

FROM:  NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION 

Building it big in Texas: Community college program trains biotech workforce
A multi-faceted training program funded by the National Science Foundation prepares students from a variety of backgrounds for careers in biotechnology
November 20, 2013

Biotechnology companies such as Genentech, Ambion and Life Technologies rely on specially trained workers to keep their research and development (R&D) labs and their manufacturing processes running smoothly. Biotechnicians may grow cells for use in drug development, analyze DNA or monitor biofuel production. The unique equipment and techniques used in the biotech field has often required companies to provide on-the-job training to new employees.

However, an innovative center at the City College of San Francisco in California called Bio-Link has created a network of community college partners throughout the country that tailor their biotechnician training programs to the needs of local biotech industry. Students successfully completing these two-year programs can walk into a job ready to perform essential techniques and operate state-of-the-art equipment.

This approach is key to the success of the National Science Foundation's (NSF) Advanced Technological Education (ATE) program, now in its 20th year. The program funds community colleges, giving them a leadership role in strengthening the skills of STEM technicians. The community colleges work in partnership with universities, secondary schools, business and industry and government agencies to design and carry out model workforce development initiatives in fields as diverse as cybersecurity, advanced manufacturing and aerospace, in addition to biotechnology.

Starting from scratch

Bio-Link first received funding from NSF in 1998 to create a structure to enhance and expand biotechnology technician programs throughout the nation. Principal investigator Elaine Johnson and her colleagues reached out to every community college in the country to find out whether they had a biotech program or were interested in starting one.

Although Texas's Austin Community College (ACC) didn't have a program, "We knew someone was in Austin with strong leadership skills and we could see a future in Texas for biotech," says Johnson, who sought input from her network to find the right person to develop the Texas program. That person was Linnea Fletcher.  Fletcher started the biotechnology department at ACC and in 1999 became a key partner in the Bio-Link network.

The program offers a range of degrees and certificates for students from high school to college and beyond. Through a series of strategic partnerships with local biotech companies, school districts, the Texas state government and national biotech consortia, Fletcher has built a dynamic program that addresses student and teacher development as well as industry needs.

Because the education structure in Texas encourages collaboration, "Linnea is in a state where she can make a difference both locally and nationally," says Johnson, who notes that the foundation Fletcher laid "continues to be very important for all of us."

Fletcher's task at the outset was to develop a program that would become a model biotech training program. Initially, she designed and implemented a professional development program for high school teachers. With few resources to buy equipment, Fletcher ran some of the courses out of a friend's lab at the University of Texas at night. But grants from both NSF and the Texas Education Agency allowed her to enlist the help of area teachers and expand the program.

Together this group formed an advisory committee made up of academic and industry representatives that reviewed the course curriculum and made suggestions for keeping it current. They also initiated a summer institute so that undergraduates working toward education degrees could connect with novice and veteran teachers to improve both teaching and laboratory skills.

These original program components remain integral to ACC's biotech program, which now offers an associate's degree in biotechnology, a post-baccalaureate degree for students with bachelor's or advanced degrees and a certificate in biomanufacturing. Next fall, Fletcher will add an entry-level certificate that high school students can earn. Over the past 10 years, about 225 students have graduated from the program and roughly 10,000 students have taken the high school advanced biotech course.

Strengthening the workforce

As the ACC biotech program has grown, Fletcher has cultivated her relationships with local industry representatives as well as school districts. Through these connections, she has created a vibrant internship program that complements classroom and laboratory learning.

"This is a wonderful gateway into working with a company," says Michael Douglas, executive director of the Texas Life-Sciences Collaboration Center. He notes that companies benefit, too, because the internship offers an opportunity to see the students in action. In the three years since ACC Biotech began offering internships, all 20 of the students who participated were hired.

A skilled biotech workforce also becomes a drawing card for the state as it tries to recruit businesses from other geographic areas. Douglas says that recently a company from California committed to relocating in the Austin area because of the readily available pool of trained biotechnicians.

Two years ago, to expand its role within the business community, ACC Biotech established a contract research organization (CRO). Local companies can take advantage of ACC's specialized equipment and faculty expertise to fulfill their R&D needs.

"This is a win-win situation for everyone," says Sulatha Dawarakanath who directs the effort. With increased exposure among local firms, Dawarakanath says the CRO "has taken off." The CRO also offers students an additional opportunity for hands-on experience and interaction with industry.

Expanding the network

The ever-growing community of practice spawned by the ACC program allowed Fletcher to reach out to the state's six other community colleges. All of the biotech programs now follow the same skill standards and assessments and share curricula and equipment through their own network.

The next step is to "make these community colleges hubs for mentoring high school teachers," Fletcher says. Through a Texas Higher Education Coordinating grant, Fletcher and her colleagues are developing a Biotech Mentoring Network for that purpose. The mentoring component is crucial because three years ago, the state changed the status of the introduction to biotechnology course from an elective to one of the core courses students can take for science credit.

In the ACC mentor model, new teachers are paired with two mentors: One who has just finished the professional development program and a second who is several years removed from the training program. During the three-year collaboration the teachers share equipment, approaches to teaching and ways to master biotech lab techniques.

One teacher who has worked closely with the ACC program since its start is Jennifer Lazare. Now an ACC adjunct faculty member, Lazare first connected with the biotech program through a summer institute while in graduate school. For the last decade she's taught a dual-credit, advanced biotech course at Anderson High School in Austin.

Recently, with a Texas Education Agency grant Lazare and Angela Wheeler, a former high school teacher and now adjunct in the ACC Biotech program, developed an online Advanced Biotechnology Teacher certification system. The site provides training information as well as biotech lesson plans and other resources to teachers around the state. Lazare points out that her ACC connections provide access to many resources that enhance her approach to teaching, such as workshops, conferences and curriculum development opportunities.

Making a difference

Developing a robust, local biotech workforce has helped make the ACC Biotech program a highly regarded program. But Fletcher also likes to consider how the program makes a difference in her students' lives.

"For many of them, this is more than just biotech. You see that you can make a real difference in their lives and that you're giving them more than just a job. That's what gives you energy."

-- Susan Reiss, National Science Foundation

EDUCATION DEPT. ANNOUNCES FINALISTS IN $120 MILLION RACE TO THE TOP COMPETITION

FROM:  U.S. EDUCATION DEPARTMENT
U.S. Department of Education Announces 31 Applications as Finalists for $120 Million Race To The Top – District Competition
NOVEMBER 19, 2013

The U.S. Department of Education announced today that 31 applications have been selected as finalists for the Race to the Top-District (RTTT-D) competition. The 2013 RTTT-D program will provide close to $120 million to support locally developed plans to personalize and improve student learning, directly increase student achievement and educator effectiveness, close achievement gaps, and prepare every student for success in college and careers.

The 31 finalists, representing 80 school districts across 21 states, were selected from over 200 applications the Department received in October to demonstrate how districts could personalize education for students and provide school leaders and teachers with key tools that support them in meeting students' needs.

"This year's finalists created innovative plans, to drive education reform and improve student achievement, that serve as an example for the rest of the country," U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan said. "This competition supports local efforts of diverse, trailblazing districts across the country to implement models of personalized learning so that every child graduates college and career ready. No matter who wins, children across the country will benefit from the clear vision and track records of success demonstrated by these finalists."

Race to the Top-District applications were randomly assigned to three-person panels that independently read and scored each application, with independent reviewers' scores averaged to determine an applicant's score. The Department arranged the applications in rank order from high to low scores, and determined which the strongest competitors to invite back were based on "natural breaks" – i.e. scoring gaps in the lineup. The top 31 applications were then selected as finalists.

Consistent with the Department's plan to select high-quality proposals from applications across a variety of districts, the finalists represent a range of districts, both rural and non-rural, from both Race to the Top states and non-Race to the Top states.

The Department expects to select 5-10 winning applications from the 2013 Race to the Top-District competition for four-year awards, which will range from $4 million to $30 million, depending on the population of students served through the plan. Awards will be announced no later than Dec. 31, 2013.

Grantees will be selected based on their vision and capacity for reform as well as a strong plan that provides educators with resources to accelerate student achievement and prepare students for college and their careers. Plans will focus on transforming the learning environment so that it meets all students' learning abilities, making equity and access to high-quality education a priority. Teachers will receive real-time feedback that helps them adapt to their students' needs, allowing them to create opportunities for students to pursue areas of personal academic interest that prepare them for success in their future.

The program also offers competitive preference to applicants that form partnerships with public and private organizations to offer services that help meet students' academic, social, and emotional needs, outside of the classroom.

EDUCATION DEPARTMENT ANNOUNCES RESULTS FOR 4TH ROUND OF INVESTING IN INNOVATION COMPETITION

FROM:  U.S. EDUCATION DEPARTMENT 
U.S. Department of Education Announces Highest-Rated Applications for Investing in Innovation 2013 Competition

The U.S. Department of Education today announced results for the fourth round of the Investing in Innovation (i3) competition, which will award the 25 highest-rated applications (HRAs) more than $135 million to expand innovative practices designed to improve student achievement. These 25 potential grantees, selected from 618 applications and representing 13 states and the District of Columbia, must secure matching funds by Dec. 11, 2013, in order to receive federal funding.

"In this era of rapid change, we must make sure that our students are keeping pace with the rigor, relevance and changing demands of the global job market," U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan said. "I am encouraged by the innovative ideas to accelerate student achievement demonstrated in these applications."

Of the 25 HRAs, 18 are in the "Development" category and seven are in the "Validation" category (see list of applicants below). This year, the Department did not identify any potential grantees for the "Scale-up" category, instead choosing to invest in promising projects in the other two categories. The Development category attracted the greatest participation similar to the past three years of the competition. With the 18 Development HRAs from this competition, there will potentially be a total of 77 Development i3 grantees nationwide implementing new, promising practices to improve outcomes for students.

As in the past, the HRAs this year address a variety of issues, including programs that develop and implement initiatives for training parents and families in the skills and strategies that support their children's educational growth, and redesigning Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) course content and instructional practices to engage students and increase their academic achievement.

This year's i3 competition used newly revised evidence standards and definitions that were established in the i3 Notice of Final Priorities, published in March 2013. Validation applicants had to meet the moderate evidence of effectiveness standard, and Development applicants had to choose to apply under evidence of promise or strong theory in order to be eligible for a grant. The Department is encouraged by the number of high-quality applications that were able to apply and meet these more rigorous evidence standards, and excited about the new evidence all i3-funded projects are expected to produce.

"The fourth round of the i3 competition continues to demonstrate that there are organizations across the country that are eager to implement a wide range of innovative and effective practices to improve educational outcomes for students," said Acting Assistant Deputy Secretary for Innovation and Improvement Nadya Chinoy Dabby. "Each year, we are able to grow the portfolio of solutions and the body of evidence that supports these practices."

The i3 competition requires all grantees to secure private-sector matching funds. This year, each HRA must submit evidence of 50 percent of the required private-sector match prior to the awarding of an i3 grant. The i3 grantees must then provide evidence of the remaining 50 percent of the required private-sector match no later than six months after the project start date. As part of its efforts to support potential grantees as they secure private matching funds, the Department has been encouraging applicants over the past few months to reach out to potential private-sector donors. In addition, the Department has provided resources on its website to help potential i3 grantees in their efforts to secure a private-sector match. If these 2013 highest-rated applicants secure matching funds, in total the i3 program will encompass 117 grantees that are utilizing more than $1 billion in federal funds to address some of the most important challenges in education.

The 2013 i3 grant awards will be announced no later than Dec. 31, 2013. A list of the 2013 highest-rated applicants is below. More information about the i3 program can be found on the i3 website: http://www2.ed.gov/programs/innovation/index.html. More information about the 2013 highest-rated applications can be found at http://www.data.gov/education.

Highest-Rated 2013 Applicants for Development and Validation Grants

Validation
Expeditionary Learning Outward Bound, Inc. (NY)
Jacksonville State University (AL)
Teachers College, Columbia University (NY)
The Regents of the University of California (CA)
Spurwink Services, Inc. (ME)
SRI International (CA)
Waterford Institute (UT)

Development
Cabarrus County Schools (NC)
Carroll County Schools (GA)
CASA de Maryland, Inc. (MD)
Center for Applied Linguistics (DC)
Challenger Center for Space Education (DC)
ConnectED: The California Center for College and Career (CA)
Maricopa County Education Service Agency (AZ)
National Forum to Accelerate Middle-Grades Reform (IL)
NYC Leadership Academy, Inc. (NY)
Pennsylvania State University (PA)
Regents of the University of California, Los Angeles (CA)
Seneca Family of Agencies (CA)
Sonoma State University (CA)
The Children's Aid Society (NY)
The Providence Plan (RI)
United Way of Greater Atlanta (GA)
University of Massachusetts Boston (MA)
University Public Schools, Inc. (AZ)