Stark State College of Technology leads a regional partnership dedicated to fuel cell technology education. The mission of the Great Lakes Fuel Cell Education Partnership is to provide leadership in creating innovative fuel cell-related education and training programs through curriculum development and enhancement; professional development; and partnerships with high schools, institutions of higher education, businesses and government entities.
The main objective is to meet the future workforce needs of the fuel cell industry in the region, including (but not limited to) Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, Michigan and Indiana. The Partnership's goals are to: 1) aggregate and evaluate innovative solutions for advancing fuel cell education and training in collaboration with high schools and undergraduate education entities, top research universities, business and industry, government agencies and professional societies; 2) research and define essential technical skills to advance workforce development in fuel cell-related technologies and promote the creation of additional jobs; and 3) serve as a clearinghouse to share proven curriculum materials and foster public understanding of fuel cell technologies, the hydrogen-related economy and the importance of developing alternative energy sources.
Stark State College is joined in this effort by education institutions in Ohio, New York, Michigan, Indiana and Pennsylvania. Partners include the Ohio Department of Education, Hocking College, Case Western Reserve University, Kent State University, University of Akron and University of Toledo (Ohio); Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (New York); Lansing Community College and Kettering University (Michigan); Vincennes University (a two-year college) and Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology (Indiana); and Penn State University (Pennsylvania). Fuel cell industry, business and government organizations include Plug Power Inc. and ENrG Inc. (New York); and GM-Powertrain, Lockheed Martin, Rolls-Royce Fuel Cell Systems (US) and Graftech (Ohio).
In 2008, Stark State College, and its academic and industry partners, created a National Science Foundation-supported regional partnership dedicated to fuel cell technology education. The mission of the Great Lakes Fuel Cell Education Partnership was to provide leadership in creating innovative fuel cell-related education and training programs through curriculum development and enhancement; professional development; and partnerships with high schools, institutions of higher education, businesses and government entities. Stark State College was joined by education institutions in Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, New York, Pennsylvania and Tennessee, including the following: Ohio – the Ohio Department of Education, Hocking College and Kent State University; Indiana – Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology and Vincennes University; Michigan – Lansing Community College and Kettering University; New York – Hudson Valley Community College and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute; Pennsylvania – Penn State University; and Tennessee – University of Tennessee Knoxville. Fuel cell industry, business and government organizations participating include, but are not limited to, Plug Power Inc., General Motors. ENrG Inc., Lockheed Martin, TMI, LG Fuel Cell Systems Inc., the Center for Energy Workforce Development, Oakridge National Labs, Toyota, Honda and Graftech. The Partnership’s goals were to: 1. Aggregate and evaluate innovative solutions for advancing fuel cell education and training in collaboration with high schools and undergraduate education entities, top research universities, business and industry, government agencies and professional societies; 2. Research and define essential technical skills to advance workforce development in fuel cell-related technologies and promote the creation of additional jobs; and 3. Serve as a clearinghouse to share proven curriculum materials and foster public understanding of fuel cell technologies, the hydrogen-related economy and the importance of developing alternative energy sources. The intellectual merit of the Partnership was the advancement of workforce development, curriculum enhancement, information dissemination and public understanding of emerging fuel cell power technologies. Broader Impacts: The Partnership was designed to be industry-driven through participation of employers on the Partnership’s Advisory Board. The dissemination of the results and products has taken place through a website, as well as print and electronic materials distributed at conferences and workshops presented, including other national and regional conferences related to fuel cell technology. The Partnership’s website www.fuelcelleducation.org has a searchable database to facilitate access to materials as well as links to other websites. In order to increase dissemination capabilities, links have been be made to other NSF centers and projects that have fuel cell information or learning objects. The Partnership’s activities have focused on the Great Lakes region where minorities overall represent 20% of the population (U.S. Census Data) but is much higher in industrial urban areas. Ohio, the lead state for the regional collaboration, is located within 600 miles of two-thirds of the U.S. population. The region has suffered tremendous losses in traditional manufacturing jobs; thus, providing training and career transition education opportunities is critical to promoting diversity in the technical workforce. The project has focused efforts on population segments having low employment and education in sciences, including women, disadvantaged minorities and the economically disadvantaged. During the grant Stark State trained 299 fuel cell technicians with the following demographics 10 African American, 8 American Indian, 6 Asian, 2 Hispanic, and 39 female. Grant highlights of the project by state: Ohio Provided leadership and management of the grant, created partnership website, developed and update fuel cell curriculum, developed two web based fuel cell courses that included lab experiments. SSC has placed 20 fuel cell students in internships at LG Fuel Cell Systems and Lockheed Martin; seven are now employed full time; two of the interns have completed BS degrees, and three are pursuing BS degrees. Indiana At Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology, the focus has been on presenting information about fuel cells to local middle school teachers and college faculty in the area, as well as teachers attending state and national science teachers’ meetings. Michigan/Co-PI Dr. Joel Berry, replaced by Dr. Ahmad Pourmovahed Kettering developed a Sustainable Energy Workshop for Science and Technology Teachers in 2012 and 2013 in collaboration with the Partnership. Kettering established the Michigan Energy Education Network, prompting stronger working relationships with Macomb, Mott and Oakland community colleges. New York/Co-PI Dr. Daniel Lewis Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) Dan Lewis and Rensselaer students developed technical content in fuel cells and electrochemistry for ASM’s City of Materials game, where middle school students can explore the wonders of materials science and engineering. Hudson Valley Community College Since joining the Partnership in 2011, HVCC has completed its primary goal of developing a credit course on the fundamentals of fuel cell operation and applications. Pennsylvania/Co-PI Dr. Matthew Mench, replaced by Dr. Jay Regan Under Matt Mench’s leadership, Penn State University began collecting data on all postsecondary fuel cell education programs in the U.S. Tennessee/Co-PI Dr. Matthew Mench
