Labor market data show that Micro and Nano Technicians are in high demand throughout the American Southwest. Employers have indicated that they have trouble identifying potential hires with the right combination of experience and industry knowledge. This project at Rio Salado College, in collaboration with Arizona State University, seeks to address the critical need for skilled Micro and Nano Technicians throughout Arizona and the American Southwest. It intends to do so by developing a technician education program with a hybrid learning environment that prepares students to quickly enter the workforce. This award will enable Rio Salado to (1) offer a six-course certificate, and an associate degree in Nanotechnology, (2) provide an accessible and affordable academic program for students to gain employable skills, (3) actively recruit students from underrepresented and underserved groups, and (4) establish partnerships with industry and other partners to prepare students to fabricate and characterize materials for biological, textile, chemical, light, and electrical applications, all at the micro and nanometer scale. The project team expects that the combination of flexible course options and student recruiting will increase the number of highly skilled technicians who meet industry needs.
Central to this project is the development and testing of a hybrid Micro and Nano Technology academic program that will train or reskill students. This project will advance career and technical education by providing insights about alternative training models that are both accessible and affordable for non-traditional students. An estimated 30 students will complete either a certificate or an associate degree, and at least 8 community college and secondary school educators will receive relevant training that will enhance their teaching with industry relevant concepts and skills. This project will generate new knowledge about how non-traditional students use flexible pathways to complete their educational, career, and professional goals. Rio Salado College will share the results of this work through national technical education conferences and with other colleges in the Maricopa County Community College District. This project is funded by the Advanced Technological Education program that focuses on the education of technicians for the advanced-technology fields that drive the nation's economy.
This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.
