ATE Central includes a large collection of curricula, learning objects, websites and media created by projects and centers funded by the Advanced Technological Education program. The resources are catalogued by librarians using standards and practices developed and implemented in the digital library field using cyberlearning knowledge, practices and software created by Internet Scout over many years. ATE Central is expanded to create an extensive archiving system for ATE (including providing a web presence for the products of projects that have ended), tracking impact across projects and amplifying outreach efforts. A variety of tools are developed to help faculty better utilize the resources and direct them to new efforts such as a key concept browsing interface, a bulletin service that alerts them when new material of interest is posted and videos of real world opportunities through features like ATE Success Stories. The site documents best practice to help educators build on existing work and advances the knowledge base about cyberlearning by acting as a test bed and clearinghouse to better understand the integration of the variety of Web 2.0 technologies and increase their use in the ATE program. Quantitative measures of success are measuring the use of the resources via diverse paths and measuring the activity related to the online presence of products of individual project and centers. A handbook is developed to guide users through the tools and resources available on ATE Central. Ongoing feedback and direction is provided by the evaluation and the use of advisors and focus groups.
ATE Central, first funded in 2009 under the National Science Foundation’s Advanced Technological Education (ATE) program, acts as an information hub for the ATE community. Through its online portal and suite of community-responsive tools and services the project aims to support and amplify the work of the 300+ ATE projects and centers nationwide. The ATE program focuses on workforce and technician preparation, bringing high impact value to the education table: a diverse set of national, regional, and local projects and centers based primarily at two-year institutions; a track record of creating cutting edge curriculum, professional development, and innovations; a unique cross-disciplinary blend of fields and expertise; and a long history of industry collaborations and partnerships. Every year, ATE projects and centers develop thousands of valuable curriculum materials, professional development opportunities, and educate tens of thousands of students at over 1,200 educational institutions across the country. ATE Central arose from needs expressed by the ATE community. Much of the work being done by ATE projects and centers takes place online, with many creating or collecting digital resources and maintaining web sites that include event calendars, webinars, podcasts, and classroom-ready educational materials. To support these efforts and help build a stronger and more cohesive online presence for ATE, a coalition of ATE centers and projects joined with Internet Scout Research Group, a research center at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, to create ATE Central (atecentral.net). The resulting web portal and integrated set of tools, services, and publications are designed to support the community and showcase the depth and breadth of the ATE program. Based on usage and community feedback, the project has been a success. Five years later, ATE Central includes an expansive and comprehensive collection of ATE-created curricula, learning objects, web sites, and media brought together in one searchable interface, a comprehensive database of project and center information, and an array of services and tools that leverage and tie together all this data in various innovative ways to serve and promote the ATE community. ATE Central project has had and continues to have strong intellectual merit – creating and disseminating innovative tools, services, and solutions that respond to needs articulated by the ATE community. Dynamic mobile apps and widgets were designed to organize and disseminate information about valuable ATE resources and activities. Innovative and creative services and publications were created that showcase the work of ATE grantees and advanced the knowledge base of the community in diverse areas including best practice in outreach and dissemination, social media use in education, online collection development and data management planning. The ATE@20 Book+Blog project, a supplement to the main ATE Central project, showcases the impact of the ATE program’s first twenty years through a combination of printed and electronic text, infographics, and photographs. Community colleges educate a large percentage of our nation’s workforce, and the efforts of the ATE program impact students at community and technical colleges who are also many of tomorrow’s workers. Faculty and students who use ATE Central, and its resources created by ATE projects and centers, will learn not only about STEM resources in their field but about real-world opportunities through features like the ATE Student Success Story Videos and the ATE@20 Book+Blog. Through ATE Central’s ongoing dissemination efforts and connections to various cyberlearning and digital library efforts, ATE Central helps broaden the impact of ATE, extend the community using ATE resources, and direct a diverse set of users to the valuable ATE project and center sites themselves. The collective work of the ATE program and ATE Central continues to impact a diverse set of users, from students and faculty to community leaders and industry partners, and utilizing a variety of pathways (from conferences to social media to webinars) combined with a commitment to Universal Design, ATE Central has broadened access to valuable ATE deliverables for all users, including those with disabilities.
