Beginnings: Sensor Technology as a Vehicle to Cultivate Experiential Learning for Emerging and Novel Technologies

该项目旨在通过培训熟练的劳动力来满足2022年《芯片和科学法案》中所描述的日益增长的技术挑战，从而为国家利益服务。传感器技术是现代技术中发展最快的分支之一，对工业应用的各个方面都有贡献。微型、智能和复杂传感器系统的转变将使国防、空间、民用、卫生和环境技术领域的科学和工程创新成为可能。为了迎接这样的转变，伊利诺伊理工大学的ExLENT项目通过国际传感器科学与工程中心（ICSSE）组建了一个专家团队，在先进制造、人工智能、生物技术、环境控制、半导体和微电子等综合领域提供跨学科的经验培训。该项目的目标是为服务不足的群体，特别是退伍军人和STEM中代表性不足的人群提供技术能力，以应对传感器技术领域的多方面挑战。该项目包括在学术环境中进行传感器技术的教育和指导研究，然后是相关的工业实习培训。具体来说，通过9个学分的证书项目，伊利诺伊理工大学的ExLENT项目通过教师导师、工业合作伙伴和退伍军人管理局（VA）相关组织提供专门的指导、实践培训和一对一的协作职业支持。值得注意的是，该项目将为退伍军人提供重新培训/提高技能和重新融入平民社会的独特机会，为新兴技术劳动力创造一条强大的职业道路。该项目与NSF ExLENT计划保持一致，该计划由NSF TIP和EDU董事会资助，旨在为来自不同专业和教育背景的个人提供体验式学习机会，以增加他们对新兴技术领域职业道路的兴趣和机会。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

This project aims to serve the national interest by training a skillful workforce to meet the growing technology challenges delineated in the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022. Sensor technology is among the fastest-developing branches in modern technology and contributes to all aspects of industrial applications. The transformation in miniature, intelligent and convoluted sensor systems will enable scientific and engineering innovations in the defense, space, civil, health, and environmental technology sectors. To embrace such a transformation, Illinois Tech’s ExLENT project, through the International Center for Sensor Science and Engineering (ICSSE), assembled a team of experts to provide cross-disciplinary, experiential training in combined areas of advanced manufacturing, artificial intelligence, biotechnology, environmental control, semiconductor and microelectronics.The goal of the project is to prepare underserved groups, particularly veterans, and underrepresented populations in STEM with the technical capability to tackle the multifaceted challenges in the sensor technology sector. The project consists of education and mentored research in sensor technology in an academic setting, followed by related industrial internship training. Specifically, through a 9-credit certificate program, Illinois Tech’s ExLENT project offers dedicated mentorship, hands-on training, and one-on-one collaborative career support through faculty mentors, industrial partners, and Veterans Administration (VA) associated organizations. Of note, the project will afford veterans unique opportunities for reskilling/upskilling and reintegrating into civilian society, creating a strong career path into the emerging technology workforce. This project aligns with the NSF ExLENT program, funded by the NSF TIP and EDU Directorates, as it seeks to support experiential learning opportunities for individuals from diverse professional and educational backgrounds to increase their interest in, and their access to, career pathways in emerging technology fields.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.