through different stations, they will witness demo of electric cars built by members of Electrathon Tampa Bay. They will also get an overview of various robotics software currently used by local/regional robotics teams that compete in VEX, FLL, FTC and FRC.  Robotics team members from Middleton and King high schools are set to bring their FTC and FRC robots to showcase some “safe” and “fun” robotics action. Visitors will get the opportunity to work through mini LEGO^® Mindstorms^® NXT challenges involving motors and ultrasonic sensors. The challenges are coordinated by FTC teams. In addition to the tours and challenges attendees will get a first-hand look at an industrial robotic arm that are used in high-tech manufacturing settings, and get a chance to enter a sweepstakes to win a free week of FLATE’s locally/regionally acclaimed summer robotics camps.

the 2014 SME Education Award. The Award falls under one of the seven SME International Honor Awards that recognizes significant contributions to the field of manufacturing engineering in the areas of manufacturing technologies, processes, technical writing, education, research, management and service to SME. The SME Education Award honors the educator most respected for the development of manufacturing-related curricula, fostering sound training methods, or inspiring students to enter the profession of manufacturing

for technical programs, cur­riculum and workforce initiatives, including the National Association of Manufacturers Educators’ Council.  As a firm advocate and leader in engineering technology education, she has more than 20 years of experience developing curricula. Most recently, Barger was instrumental in establishing the statewide A.S degree in Engineering Technology in Florida. She is a licensed engineer, a Fellow of the American Society of Engineering Education, and a charter member of the National Academy and USF’s Academy of Inventors.

working hard getting ready for our summer programs for students and faculty.  One aspect of that is how our projects and activities impact student learning. We try to get a handle on this by administering a pre and post survey for all campers about some of their experiences with science, technology, engineering and math skills, and knowledge they will encounter during the camp as well as information about career pathways in manufacturing. We also survey parents after six months asking if their children’s interests change (for instance, more interested in STEM subjects and activities). It’s certainly challenging to get this information back with all of us very busy, however, every bit that we do get back helps to piece together an impact “story” of our student camp activities. For our professional development workshop, we ask teachers how, when and where they will be able to use the materials, resources and information in their classrooms as well as what they actually learned. Surveying participants and reviewing what they say are important parts of our evaluation and continuous improvement efforts (that I talked about last month).

to work with the brand new Lego EV3 robots. The new bots are built around the Intelligent EV3 Brick with a new, more powerful processor, and have additional sensors and a lot more capabilities. To be ready for the campers, FLATE’s camp instructors will be training later this spring. In addition to our summer robotics camp we are happy to announce that FLATE will partner with St. Petersburg College in Clearwater, FL, to offer two sessions of a “3D Printing SolidWorkscamp for high school students that will focus on developing 3D modelling skills, rapid prototyping, metrology and finishing. More information about these camps will be available after March 17.  We are very excited to be adding this “additive manufacturing” opportunity to our camp portfolio. Finally, through a special partnership with the local school district, we will offer an energy focused camp to children in the local AVID program.

STEM careers” one-day workshop in conjunction with their annual conference which will be in Wesley Chapel. FLATE has arranged to bring an incredible opportunity for teachers the week of August 4-8. The Guitar Building Workshop (another great NSF ATE funded project) will be held at Erwin Technical Center, during which each teacher will build a guitar AND learn how to integrate STEM topics involved in guitars and music into their programs. (Teachers will get to keep their self-made guitars.) We are also working on setting up several one-day workshops for Programmable Logic Controllers (PLCs) at different locations around the state.  You can find out more about each of these events on the home page of our website at www.fl-ate.org, where they are listed by date.

Brown, deputy assistant secretary for manufacturing at the U.S. Department of Commerce in Washington, DC. Ms. Brown recently visited the sunshine state, in lieu of a special invitation from Roy Sweatman, president & CEO of Southern Manufacturing Technologies in Tampa. “Chandra was interested in the school tours and since I am on the Workforce Development Subcommittee, I thought taking her to see some of the schools that have manufacturing related programs would be appropriate.” Sweatman who is a champion of manufacturing in Florida represents the voice of local industry and has served as a conduit in establishing a platform for industry to engage with students as well as educators.  “It never hurts to get that kind of exposure at a national level” said Sweatman who is an appointed member of the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Manufacturing Council and a winner of the 2013 FLATE Industry Service Award.

middle and high school students, have been an effective vehicle in stimulating students’ interest in STEM and manufacturing. To date, more than 4,472 students and 533 educators and parents have toured over 87 high-tech manufacturing facilities across Florida. “Thanks for the work you do. I have been impressed by the scale of investment that has and is currently being made in some of the places that I have visited during my tour” Brown said. These investments, she notes, in terms of new machinery, new plant/equipment and tours “reflects impressive growth and expansion” which according to Brown is “where the future lies,” and in turn could inspire 10 and 12 year olds to follow educational and career pathways in high-tech manufacturing.

has taught a number of ET related classes that include manufacturing processes & materials, industrial safety as well as construction materials, methods and management in the construction management program. Like most of his colleagues, Dr. Nnaji is big on hands-on, minds-on education that centers on real-world situations. “Engineering is not only about ideas and principles, it is about translating ideas that culminate into a physical application and/or product” says Nnaji. It is this same philosophy that stirred his interest in engineering technology and led to his passion for teaching.

succeed. To ensure relevancy of the course/curriculum, Dr. Nnaji has been working closely with colleagues in devising program mapping tools that give students a better idea about the A.S.E.T degree, its outcomes and expectations. He is also excited about integrating lean and green concepts, relevant to any high-tech setting, to current curriculum. “Trying to impart knowledge to improve/expand students understanding is a rewarding aspect of my job. My particular joy lies in the realization of ideas to actual products and applications that can be used in a real-world setting” Nnaji said.

• ET grads, ET educators/program managers and industry professionals can connect with ET Degree grads, alumni and industry colleagues
• Share success stories and best practices & expand your professional network
• Learn about local/regional job opportunities, engage in vibrant discussions, and stay on top of the latest high-tech manufacturing and/or engineering technology related news

higher costs, limiting long-term growth, lost revenues, and competitive threats. To address the skills gap, out of the 115 that responded, close to 90% stated they were offering in-house training for current and new employees, with 40% of participants providing financial assistance to current employees. Approximately same percentage of manufacturers also agreed providing training to employees influenced worker retention.

workers. Given the importance vested on industry certifications, companies valued the AWS Certified Welder certificate the most followed by ASQ Certified Quality & Inspectors and OSHA 30. “If there were more people with certifications, I would require it more. What certifications do is verify competency prior to employment” commented one of the participants.