Award Abstract # 1700599
Advancing Photonics and Laser Technician Education in Michigan

NSF Org: DUE
Division Of Undergraduate Education
Recipient: BAKER OF FLINT
Initial Amendment Date: June 26, 2017
Latest Amendment Date: June 26, 2017
Award Number: 1700599
Award Instrument: Standard Grant
Program Manager: Jill Nelson
jnelson@nsf.gov
 (703)292-0000
DUE
 Division Of Undergraduate Education
EDU
 Directorate for STEM Education
Start Date: July 1, 2017
End Date: June 30, 2021 (Estimated)
Total Intended Award Amount: $511,944.00
Total Awarded Amount to Date: $511,944.00
Funds Obligated to Date: FY 2017 = $511,944.00
History of Investigator:
  • Anca Sala (Principal Investigator)
    ancasala@msn.com
Recipient Sponsored Research Office: Baker College of Flint
1020 S WASHINGTON ST
OWOSSO
MI  US  48867-8956
(810)766-4105
Sponsor Congressional District: 04
Primary Place of Performance: Baker College of Flint
1050 W Bristol Rd
Flint
MI  US  48507-5516
Primary Place of Performance
Congressional District:
08
Unique Entity Identifier (UEI): EGX1XKSKHJ59
Parent UEI:
NSF Program(s): Advanced Tech Education Prog
Primary Program Source: 04001718DB NSF Education & Human Resource
Program Reference Code(s): 1032, 9178, SMET
Program Element Code(s): 7412
Award Agency Code: 4900
Fund Agency Code: 4900
Assistance Listing Number(s): 47.076

ABSTRACT

Photonics, the science of light enabled by the invention of lasers and optical fibers, is advancing rapidly and growing in importance for the US and global economy. Photonics applications are pervasive in our society and are pertinent to engineered systems like smart phones, computers, medical devices, defense technologies, and many others. Photonics technology plays a key role in national security, health care, manufacturing, information technology, and energy. A highly skilled workforce is needed to support the growth of the industry and new technologies. Evidence suggests that a gap continues to exist between the number of well-prepared photonics technicians needed by industry and the number of graduates of photonics programs in Michigan, the Midwest region, and across the United States. This gap persists despite these jobs being in high demand and offering high wages. This ATE project will increase the number of photonics technicians in Michigan by expanding the two-year photonics program introduced four years ago at Baker College to two new campuses - Auburn Hills and Jackson. The program curriculum will be enhanced by the addition of new course modules that will focus on photonics applications in emerging areas such as autonomous driving, integrated photonics, and high power lasers in manufacturing.

The project will bring together diverse organizations and stakeholders from photonics companies, relevant NSF ATE Centers, and educational institutions from K-12 to the university level. Such partnerships will help: (1) to enhance the photonics program and curriculum, (2) to broaden outreach efforts, (3) to share new developments in the field through an annual photonics symposium at Baker College, and (4) to provide internships and employment opportunities to program graduates. As a way to strengthen the pipeline of incoming students, photonics as a field will be integrated in Career and Technical Education programs offered in the state of Michigan, and pathways from high school to two-year colleges to four-year university degrees will be established in order to showcase multiple career opportunities for students. Further, faculty will be provided opportunities to advance their knowledge of photonics through professional development workshops. Project results will be disseminated in various settings and support will be available for other colleges to add courses and programs in this growing advanced technology field.

PUBLICATIONS PRODUCED AS A RESULT OF THIS RESEARCH

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Sala, Anca L. "Photonics technician education in Michigan: an update" SPIE Proceedings Volume 10741, Optics Education and Outreach V , v.10741 , 2018 10.1117/12.2320632 Citation Details

PROJECT OUTCOMES REPORT

Disclaimer

This Project Outcomes Report for the General Public is displayed verbatim as submitted by the Principal Investigator (PI) for this award. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this Report are those of the PI and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation; NSF has not approved or endorsed its content.

The project advanced the curriculum of the AAS Photonics and Laser Technology (PLT) program and its infrastructure through the creation of new educational materials and a new experimental laboratory. The PLT program curriculum includes multiple photonics specialty courses complemented by courses in electric circuits, robotics, and computer aided design. The curriculum culminates in a photonics capstone project where students apply knowledge and skills acquired throughout the program. Students in the program have completed internships with photonics companies, and graduates have been hired full-time by photonics companies in Michigan.

A new educational module titled "Fundamentals of Lidar Technologies" was developed to describe Lidar, an advanced photonics application used in a wide variety of fields including autonomous driving, industrial automation, aerospace, defense, smart cities and many others. The module can be embedded in a variety of photonics and other advanced technology courses and is available through ATE Central to any educational institution. The project aligned the content of the Introduction to Photonics and Lasers course to the state approved standards of two Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs, Mechatronics and Engineering. This helps facilitate the introduction of photonics lessons in the curriculum of the two CTE programs in order to raise awareness of the field for high school students and teachers.

The project created a new Advanced Laser Applications Laboratory that expands the range of experiments and hands-on learning provided by the previously developed Optics and Photonics Lab. The new laboratory houses a 1 kW high power fiber laser integrated with an industrial robot to teach laser material processing methods currently used in the manufacturing industry.

The project offered several professional development opportunities. A symposium titled "Photonics - An Essential Technology For The 21st Century" brought industry and academia professionals to the campus to share recent developments in the field with high school and college students and faculty. Another event was the "Optics Education and Training in Michigan" virtual symposium where several Michigan colleges and universities presented their optics and photonics programs and participated in a panel discussion with industry representatives. Photonics presentations and hands-on demonstrations to high school and Career and Technical Education teachers took place at conference and STEM Day events.

The project provided support to several colleges offering photonics courses or interested in starting programs that include photonics. One form of support was through equipment donations that allow the receiving colleges to enhance the photonics topics and related lab experiments included in their curriculum. Another form of assistance was through participation in curriculum development sessions for a college preparing to introduce several new advanced technology programs that will include photonics.  

Outreach activities to promote photonics in middle school and high school reached a large number of students and the wider public. Six hundred middle school students across the state of Michigan participated in laser shows organized by the project and sponsored by the International Society for Optics and Photonics (SPIE). The project also provided photonics hands-on demonstrations at summer festivals in the cities of Flint and Detroit, which are attended by a large public of all ages. Other outreach activities included summer camps for middle and high school students, and presentations at high schools. 

The results of the project have been disseminated through conference presentations, proceedings publications, and others. A project showcase was presented annually in the ATE PI Conference, and papers were presented at the American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE), SPIE, and HI-TEC Conferences. Results were also presented in meetings of the Mi-Light Michigan Photonics Cluster. The project leveraged strong connections with industry, professional organizations, NSF Projects and Centers, and other colleges throughout.    

The project activities that took place created new curriculum materials and laboratory infrastructure, supported the education, training and subsequent employment of well-prepared photonics technicians, provided support to other colleges offering photonics courses and programs, and promoted photonics as an essential advanced technology in today's world.

 


Last Modified: 07/30/2021
Modified by: Anca L Sala

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