Supporting Micro and Nano Technicians through Hybrid Teaching Methods

劳动力市场数据显示，微纳米技术人员在整个美国西南部的需求量很大。 雇主们表示，他们很难找到既有经验又有行业知识的潜在雇员。 该项目在里约萨拉多学院，与亚利桑那州州立大学合作，旨在解决整个亚利桑那州和美国西南部熟练的微纳米技术人员的迫切需求。 它打算通过开发一个具有混合学习环境的技术人员教育计划来实现这一目标，使学生能够快速进入劳动力市场。 该奖项将使里约萨拉多（1）提供六门课程的证书，并在纳米技术副学士学位，（2）为学生提供一个方便和负担得起的学术课程，以获得就业技能，（3）积极招募学生代表性不足和服务不足的群体，以及（4）建立与行业和其他合作伙伴的伙伴关系，让学生准备制造和表征材料的生物，纺织，化学、光和电子应用，都在微米和纳米尺度上。 项目团队预计，灵活的课程选择和学生招聘相结合，将增加满足行业需求的高技能技术人员的数量。 该项目的核心是开发和测试混合微纳米技术学术课程，该课程将培训或重新培训学生。 该项目将通过提供关于非传统学生既可获得又负担得起的替代培训模式的见解，促进职业和技术教育。 估计有30名学生将完成证书或副学士学位，至少有8名社区大学和中学教育工作者将接受相关培训，以加强他们与行业相关的概念和技能的教学。 该项目将产生关于非传统学生如何使用灵活的途径来完成他们的教育，职业和专业目标的新知识。 里约萨拉多学院将通过国家技术教育会议和与其他学院在马奎拉县社区学院区分享这项工作的成果。 该项目由先进技术教育计划资助，该计划侧重于为推动国家经济的先进技术领域培养技术人员。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Labor market data show that Micro and Nano Technicians are in high demand throughout the American Southwest. Employers have indicated that they have trouble identifying potential hires with the right combination of experience and industry knowledge. This project at Rio Salado College, in collaboration with Arizona State University, seeks to address the critical need for skilled Micro and Nano Technicians throughout Arizona and the American Southwest. It intends to do so by developing a technician education program with a hybrid learning environment that prepares students to quickly enter the workforce. This award will enable Rio Salado to (1) offer a six-course certificate, and an associate degree in Nanotechnology, (2) provide an accessible and affordable academic program for students to gain employable skills, (3) actively recruit students from underrepresented and underserved groups, and (4) establish partnerships with industry and other partners to prepare students to fabricate and characterize materials for biological, textile, chemical, light, and electrical applications, all at the micro and nanometer scale. The project team expects that the combination of flexible course options and student recruiting will increase the number of highly skilled technicians who meet industry needs. Central to this project is the development and testing of a hybrid Micro and Nano Technology academic program that will train or reskill students. This project will advance career and technical education by providing insights about alternative training models that are both accessible and affordable for non-traditional students. An estimated 30 students will complete either a certificate or an associate degree, and at least 8 community college and secondary school educators will receive relevant training that will enhance their teaching with industry relevant concepts and skills. This project will generate new knowledge about how non-traditional students use flexible pathways to complete their educational, career, and professional goals. Rio Salado College will share the results of this work through national technical education conferences and with other colleges in the Maricopa County Community College District. This project is funded by the Advanced Technological Education program that focuses on the education of technicians for the advanced-technology fields that drive the nation's economy.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.