Advanced Technological Education .

Welcome to the ATE Central Connection! Published the first Tuesday of each month, the ATE Central Connection is meant to disseminate information to and about ATE centers and projects, providing you with up-to-date ATE news, events, reminders, as well as highlighting new centers, projects, and resources. In addition, we will also highlight an educational topic with complementary resources found within ATE Central to help illustrate how ATE resources can be used in the classroom.

We want the ATE Central Connection to be a valuable tool; please e-mail [email protected] with any suggestions about how to make the ATE Central Connection more useful for you or to suggest any information you would like to see in an upcoming issue.

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In This Issue

Featured Resources: Advanced Manufacturing Technologies

From the Florida Advanced Technological Education Center for Manufacturing:

Overview of AI in Manufacturing

www.youtube.com/watch?v=1f7u_hoHj6Q

Created by the Florida Advanced Technological Education Center for Manufacturing (FLATE), this 57-minute webinar offers an introduction to artificial intelligence (AI) and its applications for manufacturing fields. It discusses key concepts surrounding machine learning and AI, the spectrum of current uses in industry, and future considerations for the manufacturing sector.

From Weld-Ed: National Center for Welding Education :

Careers in Welding

www.aws.org/Career-Resources

Developed in partnership with the American Welding Society and Weld-Ed, this portal provides relevant welding information for faculty, learners, prospective technicians, and those in industry. Highlighted content includes curricular materials, professional development opportunities, upcoming events, teaching resources, available scholarships for students, resume guidance, and “Welding Fast Facts.”

From ATE 2.0: Preparing Technicians for the Future of Work:

Episode 45: Navigating Autonomous Technologies: A Conversation with Zackary Nicklin

www.preparingtechnicians.org/integrating-emerging-and-cross-cutting-technologies-autonomous-with-zackary-nicklin

This 25-minute podcast episode features Zachary Nicklin from the National Center of Autonomous Technologies (NCAT), who discusses converging technologies in the context of the core autonomous systems technician pathway. Nicklin introduces viewers to the concept of convergence, various industry fields connected to this topic, core courses available in NCAT’s program, and the process of creating similar pathways to educate future skilled autonomous systems technicians.

Community Connection

STEMLink Q&A with Edward Almasy

ATE Central’s STEMLink service offers academic institutions free access to a growing library of educational materials created through NSF’s ATE program. The platform links with existing campus learning management systems to promote the streamlined use of applied STEM resources by educators. In this Q&A on the ATE Impacts blog, ATE Central Director Edward Almasy discusses the core features of STEMLink, its advantages compared to other interfaces, applications for the educational community, and next steps for the service.

Read the full Q&A on ATE Impacts.

ATE Success Tips: Outreach

The Power of Video

By blending visuals, sound, and narrative, video provides a dynamic platform to communicate with large audiences. It captures the attention of viewers, facilitating a space to convey complex or pivotal information. Video serves as a valuable tool for increasing public engagement with your project or center, including presenting recent developments, featuring resources, highlighting staff or student accomplishments, and demonstrating the broader impact of your work within and outside the ATE community.

Getting started with video can be both fast and easy, without requiring a substantial budget or professional expertise. Today, many devices include built-in editing software, like Apple iMovie for Mac or Windows Video Editor for PC users. Several free tools are available to facilitate video production and editing, including:

  • Lightworks. A beginner-friendly tool tailored to social media content creation and short videos.
  • DaVinci Resolve. A robust, feature-rich editor available on multiple platforms, with comprehensive options for color correction, audio transcription, and more.
  • Canva. A web-based design tool that supports video creation and editing, with templates available for social media platforms.

For those searching for a starting point, our ATE Student Success Stories provide high-quality, ready-to-use content that spotlights the positive impact of ATE initiatives in the lives of community college students. These videos can be integrated into your outreach efforts to enhance visibility and communicate the value of your project or center while also promoting the overarching mission of ATE.

Consider incorporating video content into your outreach strategy. ATE Central’s Outreach Kit offers guidance and templates to assist in the outreach planning process.

Did You Know?

New Fall 2024 numbers from the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center show that transfers into community colleges have grown beyond Fall 2020 levels, while transfer rates from two-year to four-year academic institutions still have not recovered to pre-pandemic heights.

Learn more about the National Student Clearinghouse’s report, available here.

Select STEM Education Resources

A few online STEM resources from outside of ATE, that you may find of interest:

A Scientist’s Guide to Social Media

pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acscentsci.9b01273

Published by the American Chemical Society in ACS Central Science, this PDF guide offers an overview on how social media can be leveraged to connect academics and educators across disciplines, disseminate research, brainstorm creative ideas, and form a virtual community of support. It dives into the different available platforms and how to engage with social media to facilitate connection and knowledge sharing.

Do you have some great STEM resources you'd like to share with ATE Central? Email us with your ideas at [email protected].

ATE Events

Upcoming Events
– Info 2025 NICE Conference & Expo Denver, CO
– Bio/Chem Summer of Nanopore Sequencing 2025 - Kennedy-King College Chicago, IL
– Eng BEST Building Automation Systems (BAS) XIV Workshop Milwaukee, WI
– Info Amazon Web Services (AWS) Cloud Practitioner Workshop Online
– Gen Mentor Up Virtual Workshop Online
Mfg Manufacturing Your Future : Through Technology, Sustainability and Workforce Worcester, MA
– Info Arduino Certification Workshop Online
– Bio/Chem Summer of Nanopore Sequencing 2025 - Pima Community College and Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum Tucson, AZ
– Nano TechConnect World 2025 Austin, TX
– Bio/Chem 12th Annual Regenerative Medicine Essentials Course Winston-Salem, NC
– Ag/Env 2025 EARTh Center Institute at Beaver Island Beaver Island, MI
– Info NERC CIP Bootcamp at Ameren Missouri St. Louis, MO
– Info CompTIA Security+ Workshop Online
– Mfg AMTEC Institute for Industry 4.0 Innovation (AI3) Owensboro, KY
– Mfg Module 4: Weld Quality and Inspection, Welding Codes, Specifications and Safety Wahpeton, ND
Info Cyber Civil Defense Summit Washington, DC
– Info Implications of Artificial Intelligence for Educators Largo, MD
– Bio/Chem Biotechnology Instructor Academy: Insights into Industry Certification Austin, TX
– Eng Energy Drone & Robotics Summit The Woodlands, TX
– Gen Summer 2025 Bootcamp: The Convergence of AI & XR – Leveraging emerging technologies in the classroom St. Cloud, MN
– Bio/Chem Using Cell-free Systems to Synthesize and Express Bacteriophage Genomes: Practical Biomanufacturing Woodland Hills, CA
– Eng ROV And Sonar Workshop Traverse City, MI
– Info ISACA CISA: Certified Information Systems Auditor Workshop Online
– Gen Power of Us Camp Durham, NC
– Info GeoEd'25 Gettysburg, PA
– Eng 2025 MATE ROV Competition World Championship Alpena, MI
Info NCyTE Monthly Meeting: The Impact of AI on the Current and Future Cybersecurity Workforce Online
– Gen 2025 ASEE Annual Conference Montreal,
– Bio/Chem Summer of Nanopore Sequencing 2025 - Forsyth Tech Community College Winston-Salem, NC
– Ag/Env EARTh Center Colorado River Fellows Program Boulder, CO
– Mfg Manufacturing Science and Engineering Conference Greenville, SC
– Info NSA GenCyber Virtual Teacher Intermediate Camp Online
– Info CyAD Summit: Cybersecurity Across Disciplines Palos Hills, IL
– Mfg Module 1: Welding Metallurgy Ogden, UT
Eng Michigan Mass Timber Community of Practice Online
Info OpenAI Academy Information Session Online
– Bio/Chem Community College Instructor Workshop on Bioindustrial Manufacturing New Orleans, LA
– Eng Summer Teachers Virtual Workshop Online
– Info Implications of Artificial Intelligence for Educators Palos Hills, IL
Eng Mass Timber Webinar Series – Leading with Lumber: The DNR’s Mass Timber Center and Michigan Red Pine Online
– Bio/Chem Summer of Nanopore Sequencing 2025 - Dolan DNA Learning Center Cold Spring Harbor, NY
– Info Faculty Development Workshop: IoT Cloud Workshop Online
– Info Implications of Artificial Intelligence for Educators Huntsville, AL
– Ag/Env 2025 STEM Educator Solar Institute at Madison College Madison, WI
– Mfg AMTEC Institute for Industry 4.0 Innovation (AI3) Owensboro, KY
– Info Faculty Development Academy: Case Study Workshop IT/OT Online
– Info Implications of Artificial Intelligence for Educators Lawrenceville, NJ
– Info Implications of Artificial Intelligence for Educators Online
– Gen 2025 Equity & Excellence: Access in Higher Education Conference Denver, CO
– Bio/Chem Biotechnology Instructor Academy: Insights into Industry Houston, TX
– Info Esri User Conference San Diego, CA
– Ag/Env 2025 STEM Educator Energy Institute at Central Carolina College Pittsboro, NC
– Eng Battery Electric Vehicle Summer Institute Dayton, OH
– Gen HI-TEC 2025 Minneapolis, MN
Eng Mass Timber Webinar Series – Waterfront Transformation: Michigan’s First Mass Timber Condos at Muske Online
– Info ISACA CISM: Certified Information Security Manager Workshop Online
– Ag/Env 2025 STEM Educator Solar + Storage Institute at Madison College Madison, WI

For more events, please visit the ATE Central Events page or, if you have any upcoming events that you would like posted on ATE Central or in the ATE Central Connection, please submit them online.

News & Reminders

Biotechnology Instructor Academy: Insights into Industry

The Biotechnology Instructor Academy will be held from July 14 to July 18, 2025, at the San Jacinto College Generation Park in Houston, Texas. Tailored to educators, this event will dive into industry insights and information supporting the delivery of robust, high-quality biotechnology education. Academy participants will choose one of two specialty tracks to dive into during the event: Introduction to Biomanufacturing or Advanced Techniques. All attendees will have the opportunity to create a biotechnology career pathway, explore resources surrounding external certifications and the Biotechnology Aptitude and Competency Exam, and gain more insight into laboratory automation. Learn more about the event and register here.

2025 NICE Conference & Expo

The 2025 NICE Conference & Expo will occur June 1-4, 2025, in Denver, Colorado. Hosted by Florida International University and New America, this National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)-sponsored event will dive into the theme "Climbing Higher: Educating & Sustaining a Resilient Cybersecurity Workforce." Each year, the conference brings together leaders in academia, industry, and government to explore how to best support skilled workforce development in the adaptive, dynamic field of cybersecurity.

Attendees at the 2025 NICE Conference & Expo will complete a half-day of focused workshops followed by two days of valuable presentations, insights, and networking opportunities with innovators in cybersecurity education and training. Registration is open through May 26, with employers, managers, educators, advisors, policymakers, and students encouraged to attend. Learn more about the event on the NICE Conference & Expo website.

AMTEC's Institute for Industry 4.0 Innovation

AMTEC invites secondary and post-secondary educators to participate in an immersive two-day training program focused on Industry 4.0 skills on May 20-21 and June 10-11, 2025, in Owensboro, Kentucky. Highlights include essential industry 4.0 concepts and interactive training, competency-based education practices, virtual reality applications, and guidance on funding and available resources.

Participants will benefit from ongoing virtual community-of-practice sessions each month, connecting with industry experts, sharing best practices, and building collaborative peer networks. Eligible attendees who complete the training requirements will receive travel assistance and stipends. Contact Cadie Underwood at [email protected] to register or learn more on the AMTEC website.

ATE Central Outreach Kit

The ATE Central Outreach Kit was developed as a tool to assist ATE Principal Investigators (PIs) and staff in effectively planning, monitoring, and executing outreach activities.

ATE Central has given the Outreach Kit a refresh with a new design and content, accompanied by a downloadable Template. The new kit is designed to guide you through a step-by-step process and helps you explore how to identify your primary audiences and stakeholders, determine the partners and resources that can support your efforts, and start considering aspects such as branding and messaging.

By utilizing the kit and template, you will make significant progress towards developing a comprehensive plan that enables you to achieve the objectives of your grant, effectively communicate your outcomes and impacts, and showcase the valuable work of your project or center to a diverse range of stakeholders.

The Outreach Kit can be found on ATE Central's website, under the Resources tab.

Check out ATE Central's Calendar Feed

The ATE Central Calendar Feed is an easy to customize tool that enables calendar feeds from the ATE Central Events Calendar to quickly be added to either the Outlook or the Mac Calendar app, and will then automatically display upcoming events of interest based on the keywords you include. You can use the feed to populate your personal calendar or to add lists of upcoming events to your ATE center or project website. For WordPress-based sites, free plugins like ICS Calendar will allow you to use a calendar feed to display a list of upcoming events on your WordPress site. You'll need to sign in to your ATE Central account to create a feed - and it's easy to change your selection of keywords to add or subtract areas of interest over time. We look forward to hearing from you as you utilize this new service and as always, we'd love to get your feedback or comments. Don't hesitate to reach out to the team with any questions at [email protected].

Follow ATE Central on Facebook and Twitter to keep up with all things new at ATE Central and in the ATE Community as well as in the world of STEM Education.


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