SC ATE Center of Excellence and

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• SC ATE Center of Excellence and
• National Resource Center for Expanding Excellence
  in Technician Education

Florence-Darlington Technical College 
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SC ATE Center of Excellence

• To increase the quality, quantity, and diversity
  of Engineering Technology graduates in support of
  economic development
• Partially funded by the National Science
  Foundation (NSF)

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How Do You

• Increase enrollment, retention, and graduation
  rates?
• Engage diverse learners and address multiple
  learning styles?
• Improve workplace readiness skills like
  problem-solving, teamwork, and communications?

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Planning Grant

• Identified needs
• Faculty development
• Organizational change
• New approach to ET education

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Take a different approach

• Emphasize faculty development
• Pay attention to learning vs. teaching
• Help students make connections
• Focus on what is really important
• Loosen your hold on content coverage

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Exemplary Faculty Project
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Challenges SC ATE Addressed

• General education prerequisites
• Question Why am I learning this?
• Making connections across disciplines
• Problem solving skills
• Communication skills
• Teamwork skills
• Learning styles

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• SC ATE Center of Excellence
• Six Years of Funding

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SC ATE Solution

• Interdisciplinary faculty coordinating teams
• Problem-based learning
• Mathematics, physics, communications,
  technology
• Student teamwork
• Industry-based problems
• Problems with multiple solutions
• New ways to assist the under-prepared

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SC ATE Center of Excellence Curriculum

• ET Core integrated, problem-based
• Communications, physics, mathematics,
  engineering technology
• 3 semesters/27 credit hours
• Used for all ET majors

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Is the SC ATE Curriculum good?

• SC ATE ET Core curriculum ranked 4.0 on a 0-4
  scale for "its effectiveness in helping students
  learn the knowledge and skills and/or practices
  needed to be successful in the technical
  workplace."1
• 1 Evaluation Center, Western Michigan University,
  2003.

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SC ATE Center of Excellence Technology Gateway
Industrial Curricula

• Technology Gateway (1 sem.)
• integrated (math, English, technology)
• problem-based ? design
• Industrial Core (1 sem.)
• integrated (math, English, technology)
• problem-based ? maintenance

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Technology Gateway

• Integrated, multiple-disciplined, problem-based
  curriculum comprised of workplace scenarios
• Increases the opportunity for high school
  students to become college ready

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Technology Gateway Students
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Retention Monograph

• Data was captured and analyzed by Dr. W. Douglas
  Evans of Evaluation Research Associates
• Key findings and recommendations have provided
  the basis for recruitment and retention
  strategies for SC ATE
• Recommended expanded industry involvement

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SC ATE Industry Consortium

• Supports marketing and recruitment efforts for
  Engineering Technology programs
• Grow Your Own approach to finding the best
  students
• Industry pays consortium dues and pays tuition
  and books not covered by Financial Aid

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SC ATE Scholars

• 75 Students have received tuition, books and
  wages totaling almost 400,000 since programs
  inception
• Scholar/interns are paid 10/ hour (5/1/08)
• All classes on Monday-Wednesday-Friday to allow
  students to work all day on Tuesday and Thursday

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A Win for Students, Companies and The School

• Nan Ya greatly appreciates the students
  cooperation, dependability and contribution to
  the company. The students drive for more
  knowledge and perfection has been inspiring to
  many.
• Clarence Davis, ATE Scholar Mentor, Nan Ya
  Plastics

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Fast Track to ET Project

• Reduced time to graduation
• Credit hour reduction
• New marketing and recruitment strategies
• Business Industry Liaison position created
• Visits to High School math and science classes
• ET Career Ambassadors model developed

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SC ATE Center of Excellence

• SC ATE National Resource Center for Expanding
  Excellence in Technician Education (EEITE) 2nd
  NRC
• Major partner National Dropout Prevention
  Center at Clemson University
• Partnering with two Georgia High Schools and
  three Two-year Colleges to offer the Technology
  Gateway curriculum

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Technology Gateway at the High School Level

• White County High School
• Targets students who have failed the Math or
  Science portion of the GA HS Graduation exit exam
• First semester results 80 pass rate on
  Math/Science graduation exit exams
• Stephens County High School
• Fall 2008 implementation

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Technology Gateway at the Community College Level

• Asheville-Buncombe Technical Community College,
  NC
• Ben Franklin Institute of Technology Boston, MA
• Wayne Community College, NC

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Ben Franklin Institute of Technology Boston, MA

• SC ATE Center Exploratory Partner
• Implemented Technology Gateway through their
  TechSMART program after a site visit to SC ATE in
  South Carolina
• 34 students entered the 22-week long TechSMART
  program 23 completed the program and
  matriculated to a two-year program at Ben
  Franklin Institute of Technology

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Ben Franklin Institute of Technology

• Implemented the Technology Gateway curriculum
  this fall in the Department of Academic
  Development for new BFIT students
• Applied for and has received grant funding from
  ATE through Small Grants for Institutions New to
  ATE

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• A new approach to connecting providers of faculty
  development to those seeking faculty development
• 123 events posted since launch
• 92 events currently posted
• 285 registered users to date

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SCATE Inc.

• 501(c)(3), not-for-profit corporation
• Material sales
• Project Evaluation
• Curriculum Development
• Technical and Grant writing assistance

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Future Initiatives
Future Initiatives?
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• Elaine Craft, President/CEO SCATE Inc.
  Director, SC ATE Center of Excellence
• Florence-Darlington Technical College, Florence,
  SC
• Elaine.Craft_at_fdtc.edu
• 843-676-8545
• www.TeachingTechnicians.org
• www.scate.org