Sinclair Community College
Dayton, OH
- Serves manufacturing and engineering technology educators with high-quality resources in emerging technologies and innovative classroom strategies via METEC (Manufacturing and Engineering Technologies Education Clearinghouse).
- Participates in a wide range of professional and educational initiatives to improve K-12 student preparedness in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields.
- Provides faculty an opportunity to disseminate their innovative materials nationally.
- Offers customized curriculum and professional development services.
- Partners with manufacturing and engineering technologies-related grants to provide website and curriculum support.
NCME Interactive Web Site, Social Networking Site Reach Students
NCME engages in a wide range of activities all targeted at improving manufacturing and engineering technology education, as well as increasing the pipeline of skilled workers for the in-demand advanced technology jobs that are the backbone of the U.S. economy.
The center’s interactive Web site www.careerME.org helps high school and college students explore the lucrative and exciting careers in a variety of advanced manufacturing fields. In 2010, NCME launched www.mycareerME.org, a social networking Web site that connects students with other students, companies, and mentors.
The center also provides Web site and curriculum support to other Advanced Technological Education projects. One current project teaches auto repair technician educators about hybrid automobiles. Another develops curriculum on diesel-cycle airplane engines.
NCME Prepares Teachers To Teach New Generation of Technicians
By using www.meteconline.org, NCME’s searchable database of materials, educators have easy access to high-quality, innovative resources, and exemplary practices in manufacturing and engineering technology education. The number of unique visitors to METEC has increased dramatically since 2009 when the center’s previous online service MERC (Manufacturing Education Resource Center) merged with the NETEC (National Engineering Technology Education Clearinghouse). NCME also hosts webinars that address both content and pedagogy in emerging technology fields.
The center also partners with such outstanding STEM initiatives as Project Lead the Way (PLTW), a nationally recognized pre-engineering program for high school students, through which they can earn college credit. NCME, based at Sinclair Community College, is proud to be the Ohio affiliate institution for PLTW. It serves as the teacher professional development facility for the state and region.
Guitar-Building Course Boosts STEM Know-How
In 2009, NCME partnered with Purdue University, Butler County Community College, Mott Community College, and Fox Valley Community College to develop a guitar-building course for 2-year colleges. It is an offshoot of a National Science Foundation Advanced Technological Education grant for product lifecycle management (PLM). Originally part of the design-and-build component of the PLM grant, the guitar-building class integrates math and science with manufacturing and supply chain competencies. The class draws a variety of students of all ages, both men and women, from a wide range of majors. In the process of producing their own guitars, students learn the physics of tension and compression, the mathematical logarithms of the musical scale, and the electronics of connecting to an amplifier. Students become so engrossed in the class that they often wish to work extra hours. See it at www.guitarbuilding.org.
