Expanding Remote Delivery of Information Technologies Education in a Rural Environment

2019年至2023年间，阿肯色州西北部的信息技术（IT）工作岗位预计将增长10%。阿肯色州对IT专业人员的需求已经超过了毕业生的数量。该项目旨在通过远程向阿肯色州中北部六个县地区的农村学生提供信息技术课程来满足这一需求。远程访问实验室的使用将为这些学生提供最先进的实践课程，从而为他们在阿肯色州西北部担任IT技术人员做好准备。这个项目有可能改变那些无法离开当地接受IT教育或工作的学生的生活。该学院将扩大远程内容的提供，包括信息技术副学士学位，并将通过增加云技术、虚拟化和物联网等新内容来改进课程。学生将在顶点课程中获得解决现实问题和团队合作的机会，以及实习机会。这些变化将建立就业技能纳入课程，以便学生毕业后立即就业。该计划将提供全年的多个入口，为完成计划提供更灵活的机会。该项目有可能通过为低收入学生提供获得高科技工作的机会，帮助实现劳动力多样化，促进农村地区经济增长。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。

Between 2019 and 2023, Information Technology (IT) jobs are expected to grow 10% in northwest Arkansas. The demand for IT professionals in Arkansas is already outpacing the number of graduates being produced. This project aims to address this need by remotely delivering IT courses to rural students in a six-county area in north-central Arkansas. The use of remote-access labs will provide state of the art, hands-on coursework to these students, thus preparing them for employment as IT technicians in northwest Arkansas. This project has the potential to change the lives of students who are unable to move outside of their local area for IT education or work.The college will expand delivery of remote content to include the associate degree in Information Technology, and will improve the curriculum by adding new content, including cloud technologies, virtualization, and Internet of Things. The students will have access to real-world problem solving and teamwork in the capstone course, as well as internship opportunities. Such changes will build employability skills into the program so that students are ready for immediate employment after graduation. This program will offer year-round access with multiple entry points, providing more flexible opportunities for program completion. The project has the potential to help diversify the workforce and grow the economy in rural areas by providing access to high-tech jobs for low-income students. 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.