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Michigan Tech, West Shore Community College (WSCC), and Gogebic Community College (GCC) collaborate on the NSF ExLENT project aims to provide experiential learning opportunities in Mechatronics for a diverse STEM workforce. The program and its impacts are aligned with the regional economic needs of the Upper Peninsula and Northern Michigan areas. The emerging technology field of Mechatronics focuses on developing and implementing advanced automation for industrial applications. Thus, Mechatronics encompasses advanced fields, including robotics, Artificial Intelligence (AI), and cybersecurity. Though the demand for mechatronics expertise is growing, experiential workforce development opportunities in mechatronics are limited. This project will provide ExLENT participants with experiential opportunities through an online Mechatronics Education Portal (MEP), experiential Mechatronics Practice initiatives at Michigan Tech, and a Mechatronics Industry Pathways Rotation organized at WSCC and GCC. The MEP and MP modules will be focused on the five Mechatronics pillars of Robotics, Mechanics, Electronics/Controls, Cybersecurity, and Artificial Intelligence. This project will leverage partnerships among three universities, three nonprofit organizations, and nine regional industry collaborators. Comprehensive program evaluation will ensure that the project meets its objectives in improving interdisciplinary Mechatronics training through experiential learning opportunities, developing a flexible and comprehensive program to promote a diverse and inclusive STEM workforce, and facilitating sustainable collaboration amongst project partners centered around Mechatronic workforce preparation and placement.
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Board 228: Building Partnerships for Advanced Manufacturing Programs
The mission of this National Science Foundation Advanced Technological Education (NSF ATE) National Center is to cultivate and nurture partnerships with advanced manufacturing stakeholders, creating a national network throughout the United States to further develop a diverse technical workforce. National Center partners include collaborators from education, industry, government, and private and public organizations. Each member of the National Center’s leadership team is experienced in developing and maintaining a program for their specific advanced manufacturing discipline and provides expertise in partnerships providing benefits to both the program and the partner. Examples of the benefits include scholarships, instructor recruitment, work and learn programs, and national dissemination. The National Center has developed resources and best practices for fostering partnerships for community college advanced manufacturing programs, including unexpected collaborators. According to a study by Deloitte and the Manufacturing Institute, “Over the next decade, 4 million manufacturing jobs will likely be needed, and 2.1 million are expected to go unfilled if we do not inspire more people to pursue modern manufacturing careers.” The National Center and its partners are working together to address the nation’s need for a pipeline of students equipped with the skills to pursue careers in advanced manufacturing with an emphasis on Industry 4.0 technologies. Building the pipeline requires many components that partnerships can help provide. This paper will provide best practices for developing and maintaining partnerships with various organizations at local, statewide, and national levels that have helped programs grow and overcome challenges to educate a diverse advanced manufacturing education workforce.
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- PAR ID:
- 10515542
- Publisher / Repository:
- ASEE Conferences
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Location:
- Baltimore , Maryland
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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