Miami University Middletown, in partnership with the major chemical industries in Ohio and a regional consortium of two-year and four-year colleges and high schools, is establishing a regional consortium for Chemical Technology Education. By bringing academic courses into closer touch with today's industrial chemistry, the project is attracting additional students to careers in chemistry and improving the quality of education of chemical technicians. Four categories of activities are envisioned for the project: 1) Curriculum Development; 2) Instructional Materials Development; 3) Faculty and Teacher Enhancement; and 4) Student Enhancement and Outreach. High school and college faculty are eligible for a Teacher Industrial Internship Program in which participants spend a summer or part of an academic year working in partner industries. Similarly, master high school teachers and two-year college faculty are working in collaboration with industrial chemists in developing curriculum and instructional materials. Symposia and special topic seminars are also being organized on a regular basis. The project is being built upon the nationally known eight-year old Partners for Terrific Science industrial/academic partnership and programs housed in the Center for Chemical Education at Miami University Middletown, as well as existing collaborative efforts of the consortium members. This project is serving as a model for regional and national development of improved chemical technician education.
