Advanced Technological Education · April 2012

Welcome to the ATE Central Connection! Published the first Monday of each month, the ATE Central Connection is meant to disseminate information to and about ATE centers and projects, providing you with up-to-date ATE news, events, reminders, as well as highlighting new centers, projects, and resources. In addition, we will also highlight an educational topic with complementary resources found within ATE Central to help illustrate how ATE resources can be used in the classroom.

We want the ATE Central Connection to be a valuable tool; please e-mail info@atecentral.net with any suggestions about how to make the ATE Central Connection more useful for you or to suggest any information you would like to see in an upcoming issue.

Upcoming Events

April 3	Academy for College Excellence (ACE): Pathway 101: Inquiry and Action for Retention of Vulnerable and Tentative Students	Online
April 5-6	OP-TEC Workshop on Optics and Photonics Education	Tustin, CA
April 12	MEMS 202: Standard Micromachining Techniques	Online
April 13	Earning Credentials	Online
April 14	Process Oriented Guided Inquiry Learning (POGIL): 1 Day Public Workshop	Cincinnati, OH
April 15-18	2012 National Forum on Dropout Prevention for Native and Tribal Communities	Phoenix, AZ
April 16-19	Nanotechnology Course Resources I: Safety, Processing, and Materials	University Park, PA
April 19	HSPI Webinar: Activity Structure — A Closer Look at POGIL Activities	Online
April 20	Masters Series Webinar: From STEM to STEAM: Importance of Arts in STEM	Online
April 21	Academy for College Excellence (ACE): Spring Bay Area Community of Practice (CoP)	Aptos, CA
April 22-26	MAGIC 2012: Mid-America GIS Symposium	Kansas City, MO
April 25-27	2012 NGCP National Collaboration Conference: Advancing the Field through Collaboration, Capacity Building, and Equity	Alexandria, VA
April 26	Nanotechnology and Materials	Online
May 1-3	Hands-on Introduction to Nanotechnology for Educators	University Park, PA
May 3	MEMS 203: Making a MicroPressure Sensor	Online
May 7-9	Micro Nano Technology Conference 2012	State College, PA
May 11	Bridge to Technology	Online

For more events, please visit the ATE Central Events page or, if you have any upcoming events that you would like posted on ATE Central or in the ATE Central Connection, please send them to info@atecentral.net.

To add a continuously-updated list of ATE and STEM education events to your web site, use the ATE Event Widget.

Featured ATE Project

The Green Center

http://bristolcc.edu/community_education/center/greencenter/

The Green Center (GC), a project of Bristol Community College, promotes sustainable practices in the Massachusetts area through workforce training and community education. Partnering with residents, students and educators, local business leaders, and community organizations, the GC is working to make Southeastern Massachusetts a healthier and more sustainable place to live. A variety of programs give participants opportunities to expand their skills and prepare for the growing job market in green technology. The training programs include a general introduction to green energy technologies as well as specific courses in weatherization installation and business development and solar panel installation. In addition, the GC offers a Green Enterprise Certificate Program, which is designed for representatives of for-profit, non-profit, and institutional enterprises who want to reduce their energy, water, paper, and materials usage.

Because courses involve varied time commitments (from just a few days to several months) and cover several topics, they meet the needs of a large cross-section of the students interested in green technology careers. It is the Green Center's hope that through its courses and training programs, its community members will live more sustainably and become leaders in the green economy.

Featured ATE Resources

Here is a sample of the valuable resources in ATE Central that focus on Green Technology and Sustainability:

From Sustainability Training for Technical Educators:

Green Glossary [doc]

http://www.pcc.edu/about/events/sustainability-training/...

This seven page document provides a glossary of "green" terms that would be useful in any courses which cover sustainability topics. Terms touch on renewable energy, current issues relating to sustainability and environmentalism and a number of green technologies. It is a handy reference for students learning about green technology or sustainability, or instructors intending to cover these topics.

From ATETV:

Growing Green Jobs

http://www.atetv.org/watch-videos/episode.aspx?e=1543

Advanced Technological Education Television (ATETV) is an award-winning Web-based video series and interactive network designed to connect students and professionals with careers in advanced technology. In this video from the series, ATETV explores the technology of wind turbines, the demand for green technicians, and home energy audits that save money and create jobs. As usual, this video is well-filmed and edited, and would be perfect to show as part of a recruitment strategy or in an introductory green technology class.

From GreenApps:

Green Application Projects (GreenApps): Sustainability Debates [pdf]

http://www.rrcc.edu/green/pdfs/GlobalWarming.pdf

This interdisciplinary classroom exercise from GreenApps at Red Rocks Community College asks students to research questions on the topic of global warming. Part of the purpose of the project is to help students separate scientific evidence from political rhetoric. Students are asked to form small groups, select a provided topic, and choose a position on the debate. Students then research the question and prepare an argument. Instructors should allow approximately 3.5 hours of class time for the activity, and give students two weeks to perform the research and work on their arguments. The activity is appropriate for high school or lower level undergraduate students.

News & Reminders

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Want to know which ATE Projects and Centers and ATE partners and collaborators are using Social Media? Check out our ATE Social Media Directory and follow them too!

ATE Central has an Outreach Kit to help with Your Project or Center's Dissemination and Outreach Plan

Are you interested in designing a more effective dissemination and marketing plan for your project or center? If so, then check out ATE Central's Outreach Kit at atecentral.net/outreach. This online toolkit includes a Planning Guide to show you, step by step, how to build and execute a realistic and achievable outreach plan. Learn new and innovative ways to reach your audience and connect with the ATE community and beyond with the Social Media Guide. Use the Communications Guide to craft your project or center's message, discover new dissemination paths, and learn to build your own media kit. In addition, you will find a Resources section which will direct you to some best practices within NSF and ATE, other free and low-cost outreach tools, further helpful links, and some suggested reading. If you're ready to show Broader Impacts and ensure your NSF mission, then get started with the ATE Outreach Kit.

Digitally Enhancing America's Community Colleges: Strategic Opportunities for Computing Education

The National Science Foundation (NSF) and the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) recently released a report that addresses a fundamental question about community colleges: why are so many of them unable to successfully secure federal funding for computing programs? The report, Digitally Enhancing America's Community Colleges, offers recommendations designed to spur new grant proposals, inventive initiatives, and dynamic partnerships that infuse innovation into community college computing courses and programs. The full 24-page report is available online here: http://www.capspace.org/.... NSF's release about the summit, ACM, and the report is available here: http://www.nsf.gov/news/.... Printed copies of the report along with a strategic planning template are available for free via an online request form at http://www.capspace.org/contactus/.

ATEEC seeks reviewers for eERL resources

ATEEC is looking for environmental and energy specialists to vet (review) materials for the electronic Environmental and Energy Resources Library. If you are interested in participating please contact Lora at lkaisler@eicc.edu.

Can CWIS Software Help Support Your Project Goals?

CWIS is open source software, created with NSF funding, that can help your project or center showcase resources online. It's free and very easy to use. We'd be happy to provide you with more information about CWIS and give you a quick tour of its features — please e-mail cwis@scout.wisc.edu to get started!

Find Out More About ATE Central

For information about ATE Central and how your project or center can take part and benefit from ATE Central's portal and services you may want to download the ATE Central Handbook at http://atecentral.net/handbook.

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