Advanced Technological Education ·

Welcome to the ATE Central Connection! Published the first Monday of each month, the ATE Central Connection is meant to disseminate information to and about ATE centers and projects, providing you with up-to-date ATE news, events, reminders, as well as highlighting new centers, projects, and resources. In addition, we will also highlight an educational topic with complementary resources found within ATE Central to help illustrate how ATE resources can be used in the classroom.

We want the ATE Central Connection to be a valuable tool; please e-mail info@atecentral.net with any suggestions about how to make the ATE Central Connection more useful for you or to suggest any information you would like to see in an upcoming issue.

In This Issue

3D Printing

Featured Resources in 3D Printing

From MODEL 3D:

MODEL 3D: 3D Printing Resources

www.waketech.edu/programs-courses/model-3d/3d-printing-resources

This resource from Model 3D provides information on 3D printing technology. The webpage includes a brief introduction to 3D printing, or additive manufacturing, and includes information on a variety of topics: How are objects printed in 3D?; 3D Printing Model Preparation; Orientation and Grain; Overhangs; Types of 3D Printers; Fused Filament Extrusion; Geared Extruder; Injection Moulding; Injection Spool; Binder Jet Printing, and Stereolithography Printing. Most topics are accompanied by a short video. Links to additional information about 3D printing are also included.

From T.E.A.M.: Technician Education in Additive Manufacturing:

Materials Used in Additive Manufacturing Processes

materialseducation.org/educators/matedu-modules/docs/AM_Module-Materials_and_Processes_Slides.pdf

These presentation slides, created by Gary Coykendall, provide information about materials used in additive manufacturing. Topics covered in the presentation include types of materials, properties, processes, and uses. Processes include Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM), Selective Layer Sintering (SLS), Stereolithography (SLA), Direct Metal Laser Sintering (DMLS), Selective Laser Melting (SLM), and Electron Beam Melting (EBM). A materials/processes template is also provided. These slides are available free for download.

From MatEdU: National Resource Center for Materials Technology:

3D Printing in the Classroom

www.materialseducation.org/educators/matedu-modules/docs/3D_Printing_Classroom.pdf

This learning activity introduces students to rapid prototyping and 3D printing in the classroom setting. Students use a UV sensitive monomer to make small three-dimensional objects and learn about the chemistry and physics of the process. This demonstration is intended for a high school audience. The document is available to download in PDF file format and points to further instructions, video demonstrations, and teaching materials.

NSF Screenshot

Community Connection

Women, Minorities, and Persons with Disabilities in Science and Engineering Report from NSF

Earlier this year, the National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, a division of the National Science Foundation, released the 2017 Women, Minorities, and Persons with Disabilities in Science and Engineering report. This formal report, now in the form of a digest, is issued every two years and examines the degree to which women, people with disabilities, and people who identify as black, Hispanic and American Indian or Alaska Native are underrepresented in Science and Engineering (S&E) education and employment.

The digest is best read online, where an interactive format invites readers to explore trends in greater depth through detailed data tables and graphics. Technical notes and other online resources aid in interpreting the data. Data tables are also available as both PDFs or Excel files, allowing for easy viewing, printing or downloading for further analysis.

Key findings suggest that women have reached a state of relative parity with men in academic achievement, but not as part of the S&E workforce. As the digest indicates, since the late 1990s, women have earned about half of S&E bachelor's degrees. However, their representation varies widely by field, ranging from 70% in psychology to 18% in computer sciences, for example. In addition, at every educational level, underrepresented minority women earn a higher proportion of degrees than their male counterparts. White women, however, earn fewer degrees than their male counterparts.

Findings also indicate that underrepresented minorities account for disproportionately smaller percentages in both S&E education and employment. White men constitute half of the S&E workforce today but make up only about one-third of the overall U.S. population. Blacks, Hispanics, and people with disabilities are consistently underrepresented in the S&E workforce. A similar pattern emerges in education. Despite twenty years of progress, there is still a wide gap in educational attainment between other minority groups and whites and Asians, two groups with a higher representation in S&E education than in the larger U.S. population.

This report is a valuable information resource for those of us in the ATE community working to expand access and retention of underrepresented groups. For more information, please see this press release from NSF.

Question Mark

ATE Success Tips: Social Media

Facebook, Questions, and Audience Engagement

Facebook continues to be the most popular social networking platform in the United States, with 79% of American adults using the site. This makes Facebook an invaluable tool for ATE projects and centers looking to maximize their online reach.

While there are many great ways to update your project or center’s social media strategies and increase audience engagement, one easy way is to create posts that ask questions. These types of posts may ask for tips (“How do you…?”), reference community events (“Who is going/Who attended…?”, or make use of timely news, holidays, or conferences (“Today is… so what are you…?). This approach invites a response from people in your social network and encourages direct interaction. Feedback is an important part of understanding your online audience and their interests.

Curious about how other members of the ATE community or their audiences are using Facebook? Check out the ATE Social Media Directory to find social media account information for other ATE centers and projects, or learn about how project and center audiences use social media by reading through this recent ATE Central report. We’d love to learn more about how you use Facebook or other social media as part of your work - email us your strategies at info@atecentral.net.

Graudation Hands

Did You Know?

Nearly three-quarters of college students are “non-traditional” students, meaning that they fit one of six criteria: they attend college part-time, are employed full-time, are financially independent, must provide for dependents, are a single parent, or do not have a high school diploma, according to Hunger on Campus: The Challenge of Food Insecurity for College Students. This recent study is based on the responses of nearly 3,800 students from thirty-four two- and four-year institutions across twelve states.

ATE Events

Ongoing Events
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Upcoming Events
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Info Final Tips for a Competitive Proposal Online
– Eng 97th AACC Annual Convention New Orleans, Louisiana
– Eng TARDEC Industry Days 2017 Warren, Michigan
Info Final Tips for a Competitive Proposal Follow-Up Discussion Online
Eng 2017 CAAT Conference: Driverless Cars, but What is Driving the Workforce? Warren, Michigan
Gen Preparing Forms for your NSF ATE Proposal Online
– Gen Get SMART! Impact Workshop Galveston, TX
– Eng NAWDP 2017 Annual Conference New Orleans, Louisiana
– Ag/Env 2017 VESTA National Summit Isle of Palms, South Carolina
Gen All you wanted to know about High Accuracy Data Collection Louisville, KY
Gen Automating GIS with Python Louisville, KY
Gen LiDAR Workflows in ArcGIS and QGIS Louisville, KY
Info What Geospatial Professionals Should Know About Metadata, Querying, and Data Management Louisville, KY
– Info Summer Working Connections - North Lansing, Michigan
– Mfg Weld-Ed Educator's Training: Module 2, Joining and Cutting Processes East Peoria, Illinois
– Bio/Chem 2017 Bio-Link Summer Fellows Forum Berkeley, California
Gen How to Access Imagery and Carry Out Remote Sensing Analysis Using Landsat Data Louisville, KY
Gen Integrating ArcGIS and Pictometry in the Classroom Louisville, KY
Gen Open Educational Forum Louisville, KY
– Eng TU-Automotive Detroit 2017 Novi, Michigan
Gen GeoEd 2017 Conference Louisville, Kentucky
– Eng Technology in Marine Science Dauphin Island, Alabama
– Info Colloquium for Information Systems Security Education Conference Las Vegas, Nevada
– Mfg Weld-Ed Educator's Training: Module 7, Non Distructive Testing Ogden, Utah
– Info Summer Working Connections - South Jacksonville, Florida
– Eng ASEE 124th Annual Conference 2017 Columbus, Ohio
– Gen Summer Maritime and Transportation Institute Norfolk, Virginia
– Mfg Weld-Ed Educator's Training: Module 1, Welding Metallurgy Wahpeton, North Dakota
Eng NRGY 195: Renewable Energy Technology Practicum Browning, MT
Info 3CS Pre-Summit Job Fair Largo, Maryland
– Info Community College Cyber Summit (3CS) Largo, Maryland

For more events, please visit the ATE Central Events page or, if you have any upcoming events that you would like posted on ATE Central or in the ATE Central Connection, please submit them online.

To add a continuously-updated list of ATE and STEM education events to your website, use the ATE Event Widget.

News & Reminders

AACC seeks applications for colleges and mentors ready to participate in the MentorLinks: Advancing Technological Education program.

The American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) recently announced a new Request for Proposals for MentorLinks Colleges and a Request for Applications for Mentors for the 2017-2019 cohort. The MentorLinks program is designed to help colleges develop or strengthen technician training programs in STEM fields through mentoring, professional development opportunities, and technical assistance The deadline to apply is April 28, 2017.

Would you like more copies of the ATE@20 book?

We are sending out one more round of ATE@20: Two Decades of Advancing Technological Education. Book orders and general inquiries can be emailed to info@atecentral.net.

Archiving your deliverables with ATE Central is now easier than ever!

Upload your curriculum, professional development materials, or other deliverables created with ATE funding directly to the ATE Central resource portal via the new archive submission form.

Is your project/center on Facebook, Twitter, or another social media site?

If so, please make sure we've found that site and added it to the ATE Social Media Directory. Having your social media presence linked through the directory will help ensure that interested parties can find you online. In addition, if you currently publish a newsletter, please let us know, as we will be adding links to newsletters to the information available on ATE Central.

Can CWIS software help support your project goals?

CWIS is open source software, created with NSF funding, that can help your project or center showcase resources online. It's free and very easy to use. The latest version (CWIS 3.9.1 beta) was released on and is available for download on the Scout site. Please email cwis@scout.wisc.edu if you have any questions or would like a quick tour of its features!

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