P rincipal Investigator Hannah Gourgey, PhD Director of Analysis and Allignment E3 Alliance 512-223-7243 hgourgey@e3alliance.

org

Co-P rincipal Investigators:

Dr. Richard Crawford University of Texas at Austin Cockrell School of Engineering Dr. Bahram Asiabanpour Texas State University Ingram School of Engineering

E3 Alliance Central Texas Engineering Education Collaborative

Project Abstract
The Central Texas Engineering Education Collaborative, facilitated by E3 Alliance, addresses a critical need for regional and state competitiveness. Central Texas is a recognized technology and entrepreneurial hub, but to remain competitive we must provide a skilled engineering workforce to local business and create strategies that attract and retain students traditionally underrepresented in higher education, particularly in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines. The Collaborative leverages and scales existing proven program components to strengthen the regional engineering pipeline. It will support current pre-engineering programs in local high schools that encourage many students who may not have thought of pursuing engineering careers to do so. In addition, the Collaborative will recruit new industry volunteers to serve as mentors for middle school teams participating in hands-on pre-engineering activities to attract more students into these programs. Postsecondary engineering faculty will work with local high school educators to compare curriculum and develop articulation agreements to strengthen secondary to postsecondary engineering pathways. Shortages in trained secondary STEM educators in Central Texas often limit the number of students who can access pre-engineering instruction. To address this issue, the Collaborative will provide professional development funding for instructors and the creation of industry- and problem-based applied lesson plans in core science and math courses. In addition, teachers will be sponsored in institutes through the University of Texass UTeachEngineering program to learn engineering content and effective engineering pedagogy.

Community and District Collaborators

Skillpoint Alliance Austin Independent School District (ISD) Hays Consolidated ISD Lake Travis ISD Leander ISD Manor ISD Pflugerville ISD Round Rock ISD Waco ISD Wimberley ISD

Demonstration
Highly trained Project Lead The Way (PLTW) and STEM educators will have a multiplying impact on student populations for many years Articulation agreements to higher education institutions will benefit student applicants from across the country Industry involvement will allow the partnerships to expand and endure

Research
To study how a variety of secondary and post-secondary institutions (including traditional high schools, tech-focused high schools, a community college system, a teaching college, and a top-tier research university) collaborate to improve communication and vertical alignment of STEM educational and career opportunities The research team, including engineering faculty at The University of Texas at Austin, Texas State University and Austin Community College, will work together with educators from Manor New Tech High (a Texas STEM academy) and administrators from the Texas High School Project (managing organization for the 35-academy Texas STEM projects) to identify measureable best practices for engineering at the high school level The project includes research into existing articulation models from across the country to determine the best models for a variety of different types of post-secondary institutions.

Educational Goals and Learning Outcomes

1. Bring in more students, increase student diversity in the Pipeline a. Up to 160 new students participating in FIRST Lego League 2. Strengthen and Expand the Engineering Pipeline a. 11 Project Lead the Way Programs strengthened b. 8-12 New Certified Teacher course offerings c. ~20% more students participating in PLTW courses over next 2 years d. 11 Middle school/High school faculty receive professional growth, real-world experience and provide revised lesson plans for classrooms and peers at respective schools e. Compendium of STEM practices for Manor New Tech High to be shared with other school districts including San Marcos Start Up program 3. Bridging the Disconnect a. Replicable collaboration model analysis and recommendations across institutions and fields of study. b. Improved rates of college entrance for participating students c. High school classes offering college credit in engineering d. 80 students participating in one-day Engineering Academy 4. Expand Teacher Preparation Programs a. 3 teachers participated in UTeach Summer Institute influencing up to 450 students a year in engineering instruction 5. Expand Business Partnerships to Build Pipeline a. 20 new mentors from ~5 companies mentoring and supporting infrastructure to support sustainability. b. 7-10 tech companies participating in Engineering Academy

Approach/Methods
Middle School High School College Industry

Preliminary Outcomes
1. Bring More, More Diverse Students into the Pipeline a. 117 new students participated in 16 teams with 43% were female Over 1000 people attended final competition 2. Strengthen and Expand the Engineering Pipeline a. Ongoing b. Expected Outcome Fall 2009 c. 50% increase from 2006-2007 to 2007-2008. Now over 2100 students enrolled in Gateway or Project Lead the Way Courses d. Expected Outcome Summer 2009 e. Expected Outcome Summer 2009 3. Bridging the Disconnect

Bring in more students, increase diversity

Recruit students through FIRST Robotics Teams

Strengthen & expand pipeline

- HS PLTW Program $ - SPA Educator Institutes - Promising Practices Research

Bridge & connect pipeline

- Curriculum Crosswalks - Course Articulation - Designing Your Own Future Fair

Expand teacher prep programs

DTEACh in Engineering

Expand partnerships to build pipeline

- Business Mentors - Industry Outreach

a. Expected Outcome Fall 2009 b. Expected Outcome Fall 2009 c. 3 Texas colleges offer course credit in Principles of Engineering, Intro to Engineering Design, and Digital Electronics d. 123 Students participated in Designing Your Future Engineering Fair at Texas State University 4. Expand Teacher Preparation Programs a. Expected Outcome Summer 2009 5. Expand Business Partnerships to Build Pipeline a. 21 New mentors from 6 new companies have been recruited b. 4 companies participating in Designing Your Future Engineering Fair

E3 Alliance is a regional non-profit dedicated to education change through objective research, community engagement and systemic alignment. We are a small staff that serves a collaborative of business, community organizations, public and higher education institutions focused on regional change.
Our Philosophy: Regionalism works and we cant wait for state and federal changes without losing too many kids. Collaboration builds infrastructure by optimizing the resources that are out there and aligning systems toward a clearer set of goals. To affect change in science, math, engineering and technology-- or civic education for that matter a regional collaborative must include the entire education continuum from early education through higher education into the workforce.

For more information visit:

www.e3alliance.org

Austin, TX

This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation Grant No. EEC-0835961