Workshops, Special Interest Groups (SIG), and Tour

MONDAY ALL DAY, July 29

MON 8:30–4:30

WORKSHOP: Incorporating Professional Skills and Teambuilding Into Your Curriculum

This workshop will provide an overview of the DISC Behavioral Model, which is taught during the professional skills portion of the NSF ATE-funded CICSTART program for high school students and Summer Teacher Workshop for educators. The DISC instrument is designed to help learners attain a greater knowledge of themselves and how they relate to others, which can lead to greater success in the classroom and workplace. Participants will complete and analyze their own DISC personality inventories and learn interactive teambuilding lessons to use in their classrooms. These lessons will help students through both their educational and career journeys.

John Birch, CEO, The Birch Group, and Executive Director & Co-PI, CICSTART Project Grant, Farmington, CT

MONDAY MORNING, July 29

MON 8:30–Noon

WORKSHOP: Using Arduino Microcontrollers in the Classroom

This workshop will provide participants with information on basic microcontroller theory and operation, a curriculum and lab guidebook review, and a series of hands-on laboratory activities with tips and tricks for classroom usage. Participants will learn how to write and modify Arduino code; interface sensors and output devices; and build, test, and troubleshoot circuits. Participants will receive a Sparkfun Inventor’s Kit ($106 value) and will perform hands-on laboratory activities. Laptops and software will be provided. The workshop is sponsored by the Micro Nano Technology Education Center (NSF DUE #2000281).

Greg Kepner, Co-Principal Investigator, Micro Nano Technology Education Center, Pasadena City College, Pasadena, CA; Mel Cossette, Co-PI, Micro Nano Technology Education Center, Edmonds College, Lynwood, WA

MON 8:30–Noon

WORKSHOP: Using Oculus Quest II VR Headset in Engineer and Technician Education

Because of its immersive nature, VR technology can greatly enhance student education. Headsets can be used to supplement training when expensive facilities are not readily available. Use of the headset can also offer an asynchronous learning modality where students can “learn by exploring” in a safe environment. With VR, time and space are no longer barriers. Students can explore destinations as diverse as today’s International Space Station and Anne Frank’s house in 1942. This workshop will introduce participants to the use of VR headsets and the software used in educational game development.

Andrew Bell, Chair, Department of Engineering, Ivy Tech Community College, Fort Wayne, IN

MON 8:30–Noon

WORKSHOP: Building Mobile Apps to Build a Pathway to STEM and Coding

Springfield Technical Community College developed a camp to share coding with the community. The initiative especially targets populations that have been historically underrepresented in STEM, such as women and persons of color. This session is an introduction to the exciting world of app development for mobile devices. Course content is for those who have no prior programming experience but want to gain the knowledge and skills necessary to develop mobile solutions in this exciting technology segment. All you need is a computer and a mobile device (phone/tablet). Participants will also learn how to develop their own camps.

Brian Candido, Professor and Department Chair, Computer Systems Engineering Tech, Springfield Technical Community College, Springfield, MA; Chase Lyon, Student Supplemental Instructor, Springfield Technical Community College, Springfield, MA

MON 8:30–Noon

SIG: ITSS Summit Alumni Workshop: Successes, Challenges, and Next Steps

Past participants of the ITSS Summit workshops are invited to attend this session to share best practices and success stories, discuss strategies for overcoming common challenges, and plan next steps in creating sustainable BILTs and skill standard development cycles. Through panel discussions, group exercises, and guest presentations, attendees will build on the expertise developed at the 2023–2024 three-day ITSS Summit events and take their work to the next level in a unique, capstone-like environment. The ITSS skill standard process is powered by the BILT (Business and Industry Leadership Team) model engine. Attendees should bring their own laptops.

Ann Beheler, Principal Investigator, Collin College, Frisco, TX

MONDAY AFTERNOON, July 29

MON 1:00-4:30

WORKSHOP: Arduino Unleashed: Explore Automation, Sensors, and More Using the Arduino Controller

This workshop will include activities from a fast-paced curriculum designed by the presenter to explore engaging projects for both beginning and advanced instructors and students. The course shows instructors how to use inexpensive sensors and actuators to create next-level student activities. Most of the activities use a simulation tool (Tinkercad) to help students visualize and test projects prior to breadboarding them. This curriculum has worked well for more than ten years and has been constantly improved. Attendees should bring their own laptops.

Dorian McIntire, Program Director Engineering Systems Technology, Tri-County Technical College, Pendleton, SC

MON 1:00-4:30

WORKSHOP: PI 101: Providing Answers to ATE Questions That You Were Afraid to Ask—or Didn’t Know to Ask

Tailored for first-time Principal Investigators (PI), this workshop covers tips and tricks for managing an ATE project, from grant administration to cultivation of partnerships. The workshop will include discussions about keeping your project aligned with industry needs, incorporating innovative strategies, and navigating compliance requirements. Guest speakers from Evalu-ATE, ATE Central, JATE, and other initiatives will share ideas for making your project more successful. The workshop will provide an opportunity for resource-sharing and networking and will help participants eliminate the anxiety that comes with being a first-time grantee.

Pamela Silvers, Co-PI, Mentor-Connect, Florence Darlington Technical College, Florence, SC; Emery DeWitt, Co-PI, Mentor-Connect, Florence Darlington Technical College, Florence, NC; Louis F. McIntyre, Sr, Director, Grants Evaluation & Compliance Consulting, McIntyre Leadership Development Group/Consultants, Fayetteville, NC

MON 1:00-4:30

WORKSHOP: Prompt Engineering: Interacting with Generative AI Tools

Generative AI tools such as Chat-GPT and Bard are now part of our daily work process. Most generative AI tools are based on language learning models (LLM). Obtaining optimum output from LLM-based generative AI tools requires skill and a knowledge of prompting. Thoughtfully engineered prompts optimize LLM output. This workshop will show participants how to engineer prompts for creating text, images, audio, and video content. Participants will also gain an understanding of generative AI’s capabilities and limitations. Ethical consideration will also be discussed. Participants must bring their laptops to work on hands-on activities.

Rajiv Malkan, Professor, Lone Star College–Montgomery, Conroe, TX; Priti Malkan, IT Consultant and Adjunct Faculty, Lone Star College, Tomball, TX

MON 1:00-4:30

SIG: Employer Engagement: Using the BILT Model and Developing Skill Standards

Do you need to improve your relationship with local business and industry leaders, strengthen your curriculum, and develop new programs to keep up with evolving workforce needs? In this interactive, hands-on workshop, attendees will learn how to develop and leverage a future-facing set of skill standards for any technical discipline by understanding elements of both the skill standards development cycle and the successful BILT (Business and Industry Leadership Team) Model “engine” that powers it. Topics covered will include employer recruitment, how to prepare and host successful employer meetings, and the use of employer feedback to develop additional resources and tools. Attendees should bring their own laptops.

Ann Beheler, Principal Investigator, Collin College, Frisco, TX

MON 1:00-4:30 • Invitation Only

SIG: Beyond the InnovATEBIO Summit: The Midwest Bio Ecosystem and InnovATEBIO Future Plans

In June 2023 InnovATEBIO hosted a Bio Summit at the National Academy of Sciences in Washington, DC. The event’s almost 300 participants consisted of academics (mainly community college faculty and staff), industry speakers, and industry trade association personnel. The purpose was to envision what is needed over the next five years to train and educate the skilled technical workforce in bioscience. In attendance were twenty-one state teams (including Kansas and Missouri) compromising participants from academia, industry, and workforce. This session will focus on the follow-up plan for InnovATEBIO and particularly the states of Kansas and Missouri. Attendees should bring their own laptops.

Linnea Fletcher, Executive Director, InnovATEBIO, Spicewood, TX; Russ Read, Co-PI, InnovATEBIO, National Center for Biotech Workforce of Forsyth Tech, Winston-Salem, NC; Angela Consani, CEO, Biosciences Core Skills Institute, Olathe, KS; Elizabeth Boedeker, District Director, Center for Plant and Life Sciences, St. Louis Community College, St. Louis, MO

TUESDAY MORNING, July 30

TUE 8:30–Noon

WORKSHOP: NSF ATE Mock Panel Review

This complimentary workshop will present an overview of NSF funding opportunities with a focus on the proposal submission timeline and the merit review process. Participants will review a proposal that was submitted to ATE. Discussion will focus on how well the proposal met the merit review criteria as well as the structure of the proposal with respect to the described need, project goals and objectives, evaluation plan, and expertise of project personnel. NSF Program Officers will facilitate the discussion and provide a general overview of reviewers’ comments and the post-panel processing steps. Bring your proposal ideas. NSF POs will provide advice and suggestions for submitting your proposal to the ATE program. Attendees should bring their own laptops.

V. Celeste Carter, Lead Program Director, NSF, Alexandria, VA; Christine Delahanty, Program Director, NSF, Alexandria, VA

TUE 8:30–Noon

WORKSHOP: Generative AI and Its Impact on Higher Education

Generative AI platforms such as ChatGPT have greatly impacted higher education for the past year or so. This presentation delves into the basics of large language models (LLM), prompt engineering, fine-tuning, retrieval augmented generation (RAG), and the impact of these technologies in the classroom. Participants with laptops can engage in hands-on activities, but this is optional. This workshop will provide the latest updates on the core features and usage of popular closed-model AI tools such as ChatGPT from OpenAI, Claude v2 from Anthropic, and Gemini from Google as well as open-source models in Hugging Face such as Mistral and Llama 2 from Meta. Attendees should bring their own laptops.

Debasis Bhattacharya, Associate Professor, University of Hawaii Maui College, Kahului, HI

TUE 8:30–Noon • Invitation Only

SIG: ATE Evaluators: Connect, Share, and Learn

ATE evaluators, come share your evaluation experiences, learn from each other, and connect with fellow ATE evaluators. Eight ATE evaluators will share successes, discuss challenges, and help participants gain insight into others’ evaluation techniques. The session will also involve networking activities designed to help ATE evaluators get to know each other and identify common points of interest and collaboration opportunities. Attending evaluators will grow their network of ATE evaluator peers, gain insight into new practices, and group problem-solve difficult situations.

Lyssa Becho, Principal Research Associate, Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI

TUE 8:30–Noon • Invitation Only

SIG: Future-Proofing Students with Employer-Driven Scenario-Based Learning

In this meeting, a TA cohort of the Preparing Technicians for the Future project will convene as a mini-conference to share the results of cross-disciplinary work at their respective colleges and will collaboratively develop real-world scenarios that will form the basis for new lessons. Attendees should bring their own laptops.

Ann-Claire Anderson, Sr VP, Center for Occupational Research and Development, Waco, TX

TUE 8:30–Noon • Invitation Only

SIG: Convergence and Standardization Across RE and EV Disciplines

In this yearly SIG, leaders in renewable energy (RE) and electric vehicles (EV) sectors will have a forum to share best practices, identify overlap, identify gaps, and develop plans to close those gaps.

Ken Walz, PI, NEVC/CREATE, Madison College, Madison, WI

TUESDAY AFTERNOON, July 30

TUE 1:00-4:30

WORKSHOP: Necessary Skills Now: Integrating Technical and Employability Skills

Join team members from the NSF-ATE Necessary Skills Now Network (NSN) in this workshop on the integration of employability skills into technical programs. NSN assists faculty members in sharing resources, exploring effective teaching methods, and collaborating with local employers to help students improve critical workplace skills such as teamwork, problem-solving, communication, and dependability. Participants will learn about employer perspectives on in-demand employability skills and strategies for embedding those skills into existing courses. The presenters will share bite-sized resources that can have a big impact on students in advanced manufacturing programs, along with a suite of classroom-ready tools that can be used immediately. Attendees should bring their own laptops.

Hope Cotner, President/CEO, CORD: Center for Occupational Research and Development, Waco, TX; Marcella Gale, Mechatronics Faculty, Central Virginia Community College, Lynchburg, VA

TUE 1:00-4:30

WORKSHOP: Understanding the Cloud: A Virtual Tour and Discussion of Data Center Operations

Attendees will take a virtual tour of a data center and participate in a discussion of the tour. Topics will include the cloud, the data center industry, and basic operations and needs within the industry. This high-wage, high-demand industry is an emerging CTE field that is relatively invisible to students and educators and lacks a clear talent pipeline. The presenter will discuss US markets, industry trends and career pathways with education, and KSAs required. Participants will learn strategies for raising awareness and engaging students in data center education, and will learn about a data center operations professional learning fellowship designed to build capacity for data center education.

Josh Labrie, Director of NOVA SySTEMic, Northern Virginia Community College, Manassas, Virginia

TUE 1:00-4:30 • Invitation Only

SIG: Working Partners Workshops

This SIG is for past participants in Working Partners workshops. Workshop alumni will share successes and challenges, participate in hands-on activities, and collaborate on strategies while strengthening and extending their peer networks.

Mary Slowinski, PI, Working Partners Project & Workshops, Bellevue College, Bellevue, WA; Rachael Bowers, Co-PI, Working Partners Project & Workshops, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI

TUE 1:00-4:30 • Invitation Only

SIG: Use of Aerial Drones for Solar Photovoltaic Site Assessment

Solar professionals invariably conduct technical onsite surveys before construction to assess the suitability of potential locations and to predict the potential for solar energy generation. Using current methods, solar companies still spend hours using ladders and hand-measuring rooftops, which slows project pipelines, reduces accuracy, and increases safety risks. Unmanned aerial vehicles (drones) combined with solar design software and 3D modeling tools can eliminate roof climbs; decrease onsite time by up to 90 percent; and increase design accuracy to avoid redesigns, change orders, and/or delays on install day. Attendees should bring their own laptops.

Ken Walz, PI, Madison College, Madison, WI; Daniel Castano, Lead Technical Trainer, Scanifly, Asheville, NC

TUE 1:30-4:30 • Invitation Only

SIG: Microelectronics and Nanofabrication Certificate Program

Microelectronics and Nanomanufacturing Certificate Program discussion. Update from each project partner on their progress in the program, things they have learned and changed, and plans for the next session for recruitment, retention, and mentoring. Includes a brainstorming session and discussion with new partners to get them up to speed on the project as they plan for their first session. Discussion on sustainability plans for the future. National Applications & Career Knowledge Resource Center (NACK), University Park, PA

TUE 1:00–4:30

SIG: Next Generation Manufacturing SIG

The 2024 Next Generation Manufacturing Special Interest Group (SIG) will focus on equipping the future advanced manufacturing workforce with the skills needed by industry. The National Center for Next Generation Manufacturing will facilitate discussion, dissemination, and networking among attendees. An industry panel will provide an overview of what the advanced manufacturing industry will look like in the future and how the field will be impacted by the incorporation of Industry 4.0 technologies such as AI. Presenters will also review strategies for addressing challenges within the national advanced manufacturing technician education community that can be implemented at participants’ institutions.

Karen Wosczyna-Birch, Executive Director & PI, CT State Community College Tunxis, Farmington, CT; Jerry Muller, Industrial Technology Coordinator Trainer, Central Community College, Columbus, NE; Tim Baber, Chair, Welding and Advanced Manufacturing Technology, College of the Canyons, Santa Clarita, CA; Chris Dennis, Assistant Professor, Columbus State Community College, Columbus, OH

TUE 1:30-5:00

TOUR: Garmin International World Headquarters

Bus boards at 1:15 and departs at 1:30. Tour participants are invited to the preconference lunch from Noon to 1:00. This delightful walking tour of Garmin International’s world headquarters campus will showcase who we are. what we do, and many of our technical career pathways. Some of them may surprise you! Garmin’s stunning Olathe campus houses the departments responsible for designing, engineering, manufacturing, shipping, dreaming up, marketing, and supporting the world’s most innovative, passion-fueling electronics. The interesting architecture, Wellness Center, Zen Garden, and creative use of active spaces truly showcase the passion that drives Garmin to be a global leader. After several interesting stops, the tour will conclude with a brief presentation at the Operations/Manufacturing/Distribution Center. Participants can explore and talk to people encountered during the tour. Participants should wear comfortable closed-toe shoes. Other than the locations given by your tour guide, taking pictures or videos is prohibited. A non-disclosure agreement (NDA) will also be required on the registration form.

TUE 6:00–9:00 • Invitation Only

SIG: JATE Dinner

The Journal of Advanced Technological Education (JATE) is a peer-reviewed journal that focuses on technician education at community and technical colleges. JATE welcomes submissions from all ATE projects and centers and community college technician education programs. The JATE Dinner SIG is for JATE Editorial Board Members, JATE Connect Writers and Coaches, JATE URE Faculty and Students, and JATE special guests.

Peter Kazarinoff, Professor, Portland Community College, Portland, OR; Karen Leung, Faculty, San Francisco City College, San Francisco, CA; Tanya Faltens, Assistant Director of Education and Community Partnership, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN; Janet Pinhorn, JATE Project Manager, Phoenix, AZ

FRIDAY MORNING, August 2

FRI 9:00–11:00

WORKSHOP: The Future Direction of ATE: A Discussion with NSF Program Officers & Community

Plan to participate in an exciting post-HI-TEC event on Friday, August 2. Lead NSF ATE Program Officer, Dr. Celeste Carter, will guide participants in an interactive conversation regarding the future of the ATE Program. In addition, she will respond to questions about the new ATE Solicitation. The session is free, but registration is required. Mentor-Connect is hosting this event, and a light breakfast will be provided.

V. Celeste Carter, Lead Program Director, NSF, Alexandria, VA; Christine Delahanty, Kalyn Owens, Program Directors, NSF, Alexandria, VA