A Systematic Approach to Increase the Success Rates of Engineering and Technology Students at an Urban Community College

This engineering technology (ET) project model is designed to increase the success rates of ET students, especially underrepresented minorities and disadvantaged veterans. The effort is supported by Morgan State University (MSU), Capitol College, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI), Carnegie Mellon University (CMU), Juxtopia LLC, Lockheed Martin Corporation, the AMTEK Company, Baltimore Gas & Electric (BGE), Advanced Module Inc., NASA Goddard Center, National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE), Career Communication Groups (CCG), and the Maryland Center for Veterans Education and Training (MCVET). To achieve the project goals, the ET model is increasing success rates of ET students by: (1) implementing an Associate of Science in Electrical Engineering (ASE); (2) setting up a state-of-the-art electrical engineering laboratory by upgrading the existing electronics laboratory at the college; (3) developing curriculum materials using the RPI Mobile Studio for the first two years of electrical engineering and electronics technology courses; (4) revisiting the existing engineering and technology curriculum at the college to ease the transition for students moving between engineering and technology programs; (5) developing strong, mathematics centered and ET focused advising and activities; (6) creating a career pathway from ET programs to the MSU School of Engineering for an engineering related baccalaureate degree, and from the ET programs to Capitol College for a technology related baccalaureate degree; (7) providing internship and job opportunities to ET graduates; and (8) introducing ET concepts to underserved and disadvantaged 11th and 12th graders in the Baltimore City Public School System (BCPSS) and veterans, and recruiting them into ET programs.

The expected outcomes of this project are to: (1) produce a nationally ready math centered ET advising model; (2) implement a new ASE program with 50 students enrolled at the end of the project; (3) produce 10 more graduates annually with higher GPAs in Robotics/CIS/CADD programs; (4) implement a career pathway to MSU and Capitol College for at least 15 ET graduates; (5) provide internship and job opportunities to 90% of the ET graduates; (6) recruit 20% more currently enrolled students and 100% more veterans into ET programs; (7) offer ET seminars to 1000 students annually who are enrolled in underserved high schools and MCVET; (8) provide scholarships to selected ET students annually, and (9) increase the success rates in targeted ET programs by an average of 20 to 25%.

The intellectual merit of the project is the development of a nationally designed and systematic model that is increasing the success rates in ET through innovative degree programs, systematic advising, enhanced articulations, improved developmental math education, and reliable career pathways. To achieve these goals, the approach is facilitating an academic collaboration among two-year community colleges, public secondary schools, four-year colleges and universities, various organizations, and industry.

The project is demonstrating broader impacts by first improving ET education for a significant number of underserved and disadvantaged students. Secondly, the project is motivating an increased number of community college students and veterans to pursue an engineering or technology profession. Thirdly, the project is establishing a national dissemination ready bridge model between engineering and technology majors in urban community college settings.