BTC Receives Grant
May 11, 2018
BTC RECEIVES $650,000 NSF GRANT TO STRENGTHEN STEM PROGRAMS THROUGH MAKER-BASED LEARNING
May, 2018 — Bellingham Technical College has been awarded a National Science Foundation (NSF) Scholarships in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (S-STEM) grant for $649,480 to support the college’s new Building Inclusive Maker Communities for Engineering Technology Students (MakerCETS) project.
The MakerCETS project will provide scholarships for three cohorts of 12 low-income, academically talented students over the course of five years, and will focus on connecting these 36 students to their peers and regional engineering technology communities. By partnering with organizations such as the Bellingham Makerspace, Western Washington University, and the Port of Bellingham, this project will build community connections through the development of multi-year maker-based learning (MBL) opportunities and integration of student mentoring opportunities. Maker-based student learning experiences are similar to traditional project-based learning experiences, but extend beyond the classroom, increasing the length of the projects and adding direct community connections.
“One of the most exciting parts of this grant is being able to provide students with the opportunity to work collaboratively on maker-based projects with support from BTC faculty, WWU peer mentors, and the Bellingham Makerspace. Students will investigate the local, regional, and global impact of service-learning as it applies to engineering technology in education and the workforce. Our hope is that through the maker-based projects experience, we will be able to positively affect students’ sense of belonging in the program and the greater engineering community, which will, in turn, increase their success rates,” said Jill Davishahl, Mechanical Engineering Instructor at Bellingham Technical College and Principal Investigator (PI) for the grant.
This five-year MakerCETS project will increase student access to STEM programs by providing financial assistance, mentoring and academic support for Engineering Technology program students. BTC offers six Engineering Technology specializations: Civil Engineering Technology, Clean Energy, Composites, Electronics, Geomatics and Mechanical Design, as well as a new Bachelor of Applied Science in Engineering Technology.
“The joint work in the NSF S-STEM grant between BTC and WWU's IDEA Institute is important in terms of setting an example of inter-institutional collaboration for student impact,” said Art Sherwood, Ph.D., Director of WWU's IDEA Institute and the Cole Professor of Entrepreneurship in the College of Business and Economics. “We get the opportunity to join forces to support students in their development through scholarships and peer mentoring, leveraging a modified version of our IDEA Changemaker Fellows model. In addition, I have the opportunity to lead the pedagogical research so we can see what is working so we can improve our efforts and share our successes. A win all around for everyone.”
About Bellingham Technical College
Bellingham Technical College is accredited by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities, and offers seven direct transfer degrees such as pre-engineering, pre-nursing and business. BTC offers 37 associate degrees, 51 certificates and two Bachelor of Applied Science degrees, providing professional technical education to support local and regional industry workforce needs. For more information, go to www.btc.edu.
May, 2018 — Bellingham Technical College has been awarded a National Science Foundation (NSF) Scholarships in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (S-STEM) grant for $649,480 to support the college’s new Building Inclusive Maker Communities for Engineering Technology Students (MakerCETS) project.
The MakerCETS project will provide scholarships for three cohorts of 12 low-income, academically talented students over the course of five years, and will focus on connecting these 36 students to their peers and regional engineering technology communities. By partnering with organizations such as the Bellingham Makerspace, Western Washington University, and the Port of Bellingham, this project will build community connections through the development of multi-year maker-based learning (MBL) opportunities and integration of student mentoring opportunities. Maker-based student learning experiences are similar to traditional project-based learning experiences, but extend beyond the classroom, increasing the length of the projects and adding direct community connections.
“One of the most exciting parts of this grant is being able to provide students with the opportunity to work collaboratively on maker-based projects with support from BTC faculty, WWU peer mentors, and the Bellingham Makerspace. Students will investigate the local, regional, and global impact of service-learning as it applies to engineering technology in education and the workforce. Our hope is that through the maker-based projects experience, we will be able to positively affect students’ sense of belonging in the program and the greater engineering community, which will, in turn, increase their success rates,” said Jill Davishahl, Mechanical Engineering Instructor at Bellingham Technical College and Principal Investigator (PI) for the grant.
This five-year MakerCETS project will increase student access to STEM programs by providing financial assistance, mentoring and academic support for Engineering Technology program students. BTC offers six Engineering Technology specializations: Civil Engineering Technology, Clean Energy, Composites, Electronics, Geomatics and Mechanical Design, as well as a new Bachelor of Applied Science in Engineering Technology.
“The joint work in the NSF S-STEM grant between BTC and WWU's IDEA Institute is important in terms of setting an example of inter-institutional collaboration for student impact,” said Art Sherwood, Ph.D., Director of WWU's IDEA Institute and the Cole Professor of Entrepreneurship in the College of Business and Economics. “We get the opportunity to join forces to support students in their development through scholarships and peer mentoring, leveraging a modified version of our IDEA Changemaker Fellows model. In addition, I have the opportunity to lead the pedagogical research so we can see what is working so we can improve our efforts and share our successes. A win all around for everyone.”
About Bellingham Technical College
Bellingham Technical College is accredited by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities, and offers seven direct transfer degrees such as pre-engineering, pre-nursing and business. BTC offers 37 associate degrees, 51 certificates and two Bachelor of Applied Science degrees, providing professional technical education to support local and regional industry workforce needs. For more information, go to www.btc.edu.
