N-ETEC: National Engineering Technology Education Clearinghouse (Resource Center)

The New Jersey Center for Advanced Technological Education (NJCATE) and its partner colleges across the United States are establishing a National Engineering Technology Education Clearinghouse (N-ETEC), which serves as a resource center for broad dissemination of exemplary engineering technology education program models, materials and pedagogical strategies. Primary educational NJCATE partners in the N-ETEC are College of DuPage, San Diego City College, St. Louis Community College, and the New Jersey Institute of Technology. Industry and professional association partners include Johnson & Johnson, ITT, PSE&G, IEEE and ABET.

N-ETEC is providing:

1. On-demand, 24-7 access to (a) engineering technology education curricula, instructional materials, program models and structures, and instructional strategies; and (b) career and employment information to business and industry, engineering technology students and potential students, secondary and postsecondary educators, government and professional associations.

2. A mechanism and means by which institutions wishing to develop and/or implement curricula from existing exemplary programs can be matched with consultants and/or mentors.

3. Face to face technical assistance via institutes, workshops and seminars.

The primary N-ETEC goals are to:

1. Increase the national impact of the reform and improvement of technician education through the dissemination of model programs, educational strategies and instructional curricula and materials via an electronic clearinghouse and organized professional development

2. Broaden the involvement of the engineering technology education community in reform and improvement by linking institutions desiring to adopt or adapt successful engineering technology education innovations with appropriate consultants and/or mentors.

3. Create a technical assistance communication network of engineering technology educators nationwide.

4. Serve as a national resource on educational programs, careers and skill sets in engineering technology for students and potential students, secondary and post-secondary educators, and employers.

NJCATE and its partners are well positioned as leaders in technological education, to create, implement, and sustain N-ETEC. The Clearinghouse operates electronically with a full scale database, internet access to abstracts of papers and project information, and a fee to cover cost of reproduction of full documents. Each partner specializes in the solicitation, review and recommendation of projects, and materials in a discipline or cluster of disciplines.

An editorial board is establishing critieria for the selection of materials for inclusion in the Clearinghouse and reviewing and selecting materials and products to be disseminated by N-ETEC. The composition of the Board include members from ATE projects, professional societies, two-year and four-year college faculty, and representatives from businesses and industry. Evaluation of the effectiveness of N-ETEC is continuous, with an emphasis on the qualitative judgment of clearinghouse services by participants. The ultimate success of the project is measured by the wide use and adaptation of products and instructional strategies disseminated via N-ETEC and the contributions made by N-ETEC to the comprehensive reform of engineering technology education.