Award Abstract # 1902369
The NSF Advanced Technological Education Resource Center for Advanced Automotive Technology

NSF Org: DUE
Division Of Undergraduate Education
Recipient: MACOMB COMMUNITY COLLEGE
Initial Amendment Date: March 13, 2019
Latest Amendment Date: July 15, 2019
Award Number: 1902369
Award Instrument: Standard Grant
Program Manager: Virginia Carter
vccarter@nsf.gov
 (703)292-4651
DUE
 Division Of Undergraduate Education
EDU
 Directorate for STEM Education
Start Date: July 1, 2019
End Date: June 30, 2023 (Estimated)
Total Intended Award Amount: $1,050,000.00
Total Awarded Amount to Date: $1,050,000.00
Funds Obligated to Date: FY 2019 = $1,050,000.00
History of Investigator:
  • Donald Hutchison (Principal Investigator)
    hutchisond@macomb.edu
  • Shannon Williams (Co-Principal Investigator)
  • Gene Liao (Co-Principal Investigator)
  • Benigno Cruz (Co-Principal Investigator)
  • Bob Feldmaier (Former Principal Investigator)
  • Joseph Petrosky (Former Principal Investigator)
  • Bob Feldmaier (Former Co-Principal Investigator)
Recipient Sponsored Research Office: Macomb Community College
14500 E 12 MILE RD
WARREN
MI  US  48088-3870
(586)445-7241
Sponsor Congressional District: 10
Primary Place of Performance: Macomb Community College
14500 East Twelve Mile Road
Warren
MI  US  48088-3896
Primary Place of Performance
Congressional District:
10
Unique Entity Identifier (UEI): CLBAN68MDKP5
Parent UEI:
NSF Program(s): Advanced Tech Education Prog
Primary Program Source: 04001920DB 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

The auto industry is changing faster today than it has in 100 years. These changes disrupt many traditional facets of this industry. For example, cybersecurity is now a major safety challenge for automakers working on automated vehicles, and current projections are that a quarter billion connected vehicles will be on the road by 2020. With these changes, the need for automotive technicians is expected to increase while the work becomes more technically complex. With support from NSF, Center for Advanced Automotive Technology (CAAT) responded to increasing employment opportunities in this employment segment, which offers sustainable wage employment. In this role, CAAT served as a communication conduit and connector between education and industry to expand the scope and availability of technicians and technologists in the automotive sector. In 2018, CAAT transitioned to become the NSF Advanced Technological Education Resource Center for Advanced Automotive Technology (RCAAT). RCAAT aims to support the ability of industry and education to keep pace with the technological advances in the automotive industry.

RCAAT's leadership team will work closely with auto manufacturers and their suppliers to determine emerging education needs, and to ensure that the materials shared through RCAAT can prepare a skilled technical workforce that meets the needs of automotive industry employers. Through meetings, conferences, and reports, RCAAT will remain an essential connection point between academia, government, and industry to provide and disseminate vital advanced automotive technology education resources. The workforce necessary for tomorrow's automotive industry needs access to appropriate and effective education today. RCAAT aims to contribute to meeting this technological education need by expanding its library of industry-reviewed and industry-approved curricula and learning resources. In addition, the center will continue to provide a collaborative network for professional development for educators in programs supporting the rapidly evolving automotive industry. This project is funded by the NSF 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.

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 NSF Advanced Technological Education Resource Center for Advanced Automotive Technology (#1902369)

Intellectual Merits of RCAAT 

The NSF Advanced Technological Education Resource Center for Advanced Automotive Technology (RCAAT) has established itself as the preeminent regional center on advanced automotive technology. RCAAT has developed strong relations with industry partners, worked effectively within Macomb Community College and connected with other educational institutions to further the education of vehicle technicians in advanced automotive technologies. RCAAT supported new automotive technology college and high school programs through its seed funding program which funded others to create, implement, and share new curricula. RCAAT also worked with industry partners identifying curriculum gaps and provided professional development for teachers to fill those gaps. RCAAT provided outreach efforts for secondary school students to learn about advanced automotive technology and STEM concepts. All major activities worked to develop and disseminate comprehensive, industry-supported curriculum delivered by well-prepared faculty.

Partnerships with Industry

RCAAT’s focus on partnership building between schools and industry helped to build the student pipeline for advanced automotive technology college attendance and careers. Partnerships with industry continued to build, providing feedback into their educational needs for employees in the new and emerging technologies.

Professional Development and Outreach

RCAAT’s professional development workshops provided educators with training to develop and refine their knowledge base. RCAAT’s research noted the lack of curriculum available for automated and connected vehicle technology curriculum and has provided free, online curriculum to help educators fill this gap. This curriculum is located on the RCAAT’s website, www.autocaat.org. To help develop curriculum and training standards for automotive technicians working on high voltage electrified vehicles, including fuel cell vehicles, RCAAT partnered with Central Oregon Community College and Rio Hondo College’s Northwest Engineering and Vehicle Technology Exchange (NEVTEX) to host a page on RCAAT’s website to disseminate the NEVTEX materials. These materials were also included in the resource library and promoted via the newsletter and social media channels.

All resources in the Resource Library were accepted for inclusion in ATE Central, and the Applied Math and Science Education Repository (AMSER), and the National Science Digital Library, (with the highest possible vitality rating), and was the first community college included in the NSDL. The website continued to see significant growth. The annual conference, which was paused during the COVID 19 pandemic but was held in 2022, provided educators, government, and industry with the latest information on automotive technology developments. RCAAT also offered workshops and meetings to secondary education institutions and their students. During the grant period, thousands of secondary students attended the Auto STEAM Days events and hundreds of students and parents attended the corresponding Explore Careers in Manufacturing and Technology events. RCAAT’s STEM Outreach Coordinator visited many classrooms and conducted STEM related labs with the students. These labs allow students to improve upon their 3-dimensional learning skills, aligned with Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS). RCAAT’s partner, Wayne State University, conducted focused two-day short courses each year, teaching educators and industry leaders.

RCAAT also conducted informative summer STEAM Camps for area students. RCAAT partnered with Bosch and the National Center for Autonomous Technology (NCAT) to present weeklong camps for students. RCAAT also partnered with the Girl Scouts of Southeastern Michigan for successful Engineers Week programs that educated area scouts. The COVID 19 pandemic posed unique challenges for RCAAT’s outreach programs. The staff shifted to virtual programs in 2020 and 2021 and were able to reach students through virtual sessions and instructional videos. In person events were restarted in 2022 and enjoyed remarkable success.

Evaluation & Collaboration

The plan for the evaluation of RCAAT was developed to ensure the goals, activities, outputs and intended outcomes align fully with the evaluation process. RCAAT has collaborated with consortiums, partnerships, other academic institutions, and several ATE centers and projects.

Broader Impacts of RCAAT

RCAAT created a resource impacting not only Michigan students, educators, and the advanced automotive workforce - it collaborated with other ATE Centers, projects and colleges nationwide, expanding its community of practice and growing the influence of products, expertise, and services.

In meetings with executives from many automotive manufacturers and suppliers, RCAAT repeatedly heard of the need for technicians with mechanical, electronic, and software skills to assist their engineers who are developing highly automated and electrified vehicles. Working with RCAAT, the Macomb Community College Curriculum Committee unanimously approved a new degree program in Automotive Technology called Vehicle Engineering Technician (VET). This is a very unique new program aimed at technicians working at auto company or supplier engineering organizations that combines mechanical, electronic and IT skills.

RCAAT takes credit for broadening the interest of students in advanced technology. An important example is its major sponsorship of Auto STEAM Days with industry partners participating in the annual event. It was a two-day program aimed at creating interest in STEM careers for middle and high school students.


Last Modified: 05/31/2023
Modified by: Donald S Hutchison

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