Computer Science (31) The Rural Information Technology Education (RITE) project at Montana State University-Great Falls College of Technology (GFCOT), a two-year postsecondary technical college, is designed to increase Montanan's pool of qualified information technology (IT) workers by achieving the following program goals: (1) provision of a 2+2+2 seamless academic pathway to IT employment; (2) secondary and postsecondary faculty development focusing on the integration of educational technology into curricula and instruction; and (3) improving IT student recruitment, retention, and job placement with a special focus on attracting women, Native Americans, and place-bound rural Montanans into IT careers. GFCOT builds upon its existing relationships with the Central Montana Tech Prep Consortium, Montana State University (Bozeman and Northern), and other Montana postsecondary institutions to create a 2+2+2 seamless IT pathway for students beginning their junior year in high school, continuing through an associate degree at a two-year college and ending with a Bachelor of Science degree at a four-year college or university. Faculty development activities include a series of workshops, summer institutes, ongoing peer mentoring, and an online course teaching faculty how to employ educational technologies effectively. Recruitment activities include development of an information media package promoting IT programs at Montana's two-year colleges; increasing the number of high school students enrolling in Tech Prep, Cisco, and dual-credit IT courses; visits to high schools, reservation schools, and tribal colleges; workshops for IT teachers and counselors to address female/American Indian barriers to IT education; and provision of an online IT degree program. Retention activities include development of an IT scholarship program, implementation of a face-to-face/online mentoring program for female IT students, internships with Montana businesses, and development of a new retention program targeting IT students.
