Computational Science Program for Ohio Community and Technical Colleges

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The major goal of this ATE project is to complete a statewide computational science curriculum by developing associate degree programs that are the middle of a statewide 2+2+2 articulation from high school to the community colleges through university baccalaureate degree programs. The project is: 1) creating an all Ohio inter-institutional associate degree program in computational science for science majors; 2) producing new instructional modules and initiating courses in computational methods for biology, chemistry, and physics; 3) developing a model articulation agreement from high school through baccalaureate programs; 4) providing professional development for high school and community college faculty to encourage widespread adoption of the curriculum; and 5) establishing a model for a shared program that can be replicated nationally. Project partners include the Ohio Supercomputer Center, three community colleges (Owens Community College, Toledo, OH; Sinclair Community College, Dayton, OH; and Stark State College of Technology, Canton, OH), and Project Lead the Way. Intellectual Merit:Computational science and the use of modeling and simulation have been cited as keys to continued U. S. leadership in science and engineering. The project is creating shared multi-institutional educational modules and an associate degree program that interests a broader range of students in science careers, improves their retention in the calculus sequence, and provides strong linkages to high school teachers and students and baccalaureate degree programs. Broader Impacts:Professional development activities for faculty at high schools and Appalachian institutions disseminate the project benefits to underserved rural areas of the state. Faculty and students from those underserved areas are given multiple mechanisms to advance their own academic careers via access to local community colleges, online instructional materials and courses, and high school courses through the Project Lead the Way program.