Students Participate In Global Construction Competition.
The Stoughton (MA) Journal (5/29, Hall) reports that a team of seniors from Stoughton High School recently participated “in a global construction competition held in Knoxville, Tenn., last week,” and placed seventh. The Destination ImagiNation competition presented the teams with “a series of mind-boggling challenges, including devising a public relations campaign for using bio-asphalts, designing a remote control device to move pipes and other materials to direct water into specific drains, and using a remote control device to move and stack boxes, stopping at intervals to repair the device.” The students reached the competition by winning a regional event. “The purpose of the competition was to engage students in real world experiences, and to interest them in a diverse number of jobs in construction. Destination ImagiNation estimates there will be one million new construction jobs by 2012, including designers, engineers, parts coordinators, service technicians, service coordinators, technical educators, and welders.”
From ACTE
CTE a Trap?
Pressure Cooker’s Wilma Stephenson and one of her prized pupils appeared on National Public Radio’s “Tell Me More” program May 20 and were asked in closing, “Do you think this kind of practical education, culinary arts, carpentry, is valuable to students, or do these classes distract students from core subjects like English and math? Is this, what some people call as vocational education, an opportunity or a trap? Especially for kids from more disadvantaged backgrounds?” What do you think? Read more on the CTE Policy Watch blog and sign the petition to increase Perkins funds!
More Video of 2008 Convention Sessions
ACTE has posted another session from the 2008 Convention online! Learn about community college initiatives and their impact on secondary and postsecondary CTE in this presentation delivered by OVAE representatives. You can also watch other sessions: high school reform from the state perspective and case studies from comprehensive high schools using CTE in their reform efforts.
Fulbright Scholar Program for US Faculty and Professionals for 2010-2011 Is Open
The Fulbright Scholar Program offers 78 grants in lecturing, research or combined lecturing/research awards in education, including five Fulbright Distinguished Chairs, the African Regional Research Program and the Middle East and North Africa Regional Research Program.
The application deadline is August 1, 2009. American citizenship is required. For a full listing of all Fulbright programs and other eligibility requirements, please visit the Council for International Exchange of Scholars Web site or send a request for materials to scholars@cies.iie.org. For a detailed listing of Fulbright opportunities in education, please consult the CIES Web site at http://www.cies.org/award_book/award2010/discipline/EDUC19.htm.
Career and Technical Education
Partnership Brings Accredited Pipefitting Training To Mississippi.
The Hattiesburg (MS) American (5/28) reported that “Greene County has Mississippi’s only nationally-accredited pipefitting training using the Mississippi Construction Education Foundations’ national curriculum,” and it “is available through a partnership between Greene County Vo-Tech and Jones County Junior College.” The two “teamed up to provide not only new educational opportunities, but to also help re-train residents who need new careers,” and are seeking “a dedicated facility to house all of these programs” so that “new partnerships with companies like American Tank and Vessel will develop.” The dedicated facility the two organizations are seeking “will house the pipefitting, ABE and other JCJC programs that complement the county’s educational and training needs.” Pipefitting instructor Skip Holland noted, “The construction industry is in dire need of pipefitters. Six out of the nine students in the last class are working in the construction field. At ThyssenKrupp in Mobile, Ala., 600-900 pipefitters are needed.”
Eight-Week Course Teaches Basic Nursing, Personal Care Skills.
The Charleston (SC) Regional Business Journal (5/28) reported on the Community Healthcare Training Program’s recent graduates, who “completed the eight-week course teaching them basic nursing and personal care skills, including infection control, phlebotomy, blood glucose monitoring and electrocardiogram certification. The course is part of the Trident One Stop Career System and is taught at its center in North Charleston.” Following their graduation, “students take the nursing assistant certification exam given by the S.C. Department of Health and Human Services,” after which they can “enter the health care field as certified nursing assistants or patient care technicians, or they can continue training to become licensed practical nurses or registered nurses.”
Wisconsin Students Showcase Projects At PLTW Legislative Day.
The Superior (WI) Telegram (5/29) reports, “Students from Superior High School and other students and teachers from across the Badger state participating in the Project Lead the Way presented their innovative engineering projects last month in the Capitol Rotunda as part of PLTW Legislative Day.” The event was designed to showcase “how PLTW furthers the education of thousands of Wisconsin students while also addressing the state’s need for a workforce with greater technical proficiency.” The article profiles two of the building design projects that were presented, noting that “both projects included architectural drawings, 3-dimensional renderings, structural calculations, and detailed drawings.”
Milwaukee Students Show Off PLTW Projects At Lunch Celebration.
The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (5/28, Gallagher) reported on a recent “lunch celebration for the students and organizations that participated in Milwaukee Public Schools’ MPS STEM Partners,” a group “comprised of business people and academics who have come together to help strengthen schools” in terms of science, technology, engineering and math. During the event, students showed off a variety of projects including robots, “some logic circuits and…a mechanical arm they made from wood and other materials.” The article noted that “all of the projects showcased at the lunch were created by students from 16 Milwaukee public schools that offer classes in Project Lead the Way,” and that “the Kern Family Foundation in Waukesha is a key supporter of the program in the Midwest.”
Commission Calls For Career Counseling, CTE Centers At Schools.
The Fresno (CA) Bee (5/28, Correa) reported that the Commission on Workforce Readiness and Career and Technical Education, “a community task force, has created a list of 28 recommendations…designed to keep students in school and better prepare them for the work force.” Among the recommendations are “a career counseling support team working with students as early as middle school and dedicated career centers at every high school.” Also, “the commission’s idea of a workplace certificate is something industry leaders think might help students land jobs. Criteria could include having a high school diploma, a minimum GPA, good attendance, a portfolio including a résumé and workplace experience such as an internship.” The commission is composed “of business and community leaders,” and “was assembled last year…to generate ideas on how to better prepare students for careers and keep them interested in school.” However, one official added, “district leaders will be held responsible for seeing the recommendations through.”
West Virginia University At Parkersburg To Develop Energy Technology, Sustainability Career Program.
The Parkersburg (WV) News (5/29) reports, “West Virginia University at Parkersburg will develop a ‘green jobs’ career ladder of energy technology and sustainability programs thanks to” a $220,000 grant that “was awarded through the West Virginia Community and Technical College system as part of its technical program development initiatives…designed to address the increasing need for technicians in energy-related fields.” Officials said that the Energy Assessment and Management Technology program “will allow students to learn the application of the basic principles of physics and analysis techniques to measure energy efficiency in buildings with the goal of evaluating and recommending energy solutions,” and “will be developed as a model for the state’s other community and technical colleges, including a faculty development resource center for renewable and alternative energy, energy conservation and efficiency and environmental science.”
Employment Strategy
Career Coaches Seen As Not Necessary, But Worth The Investment.
In a Wall Street Journal (5/28) blog, Karina Diaz Cano considers whether using a career coach is “worth the investment.” While noting that “they can be pricey,” Cano adds that “each session has been worth the advice.” In addition to providing “insight into the workplace,” career coaches can also cover a variety of other topics and are “well-versed in advice about growing your existing career or position, input on career and job issues, discussing starting your own business, interviewing and more.” Cano also shares the advice she has received during career coaching sessions. This includes knowing one’s talents, specifically being able to provide examples of “eight skills you have that you excel at,” being diligent in one’s job search, and that a positive attitude matters in an interview. While conceding that career coaches are not necessary, Cano adds that “one can never have too much advice from an experienced professional when it comes to getting your career where you want it to be.”
Regulation
Engineers Deem Minnesota Dams “Unsafe.”
KSTP-TV Shoreview, Minnesota (5/28, 6:09 PM, Muehlhausen), an ABC affiliate, reported, “A 92-year-old dam between Minneapolis and St. Paul is now classified as a safety risk.” The Army Corps of Engineers said that “they’re worried water could be seeping under the Ford Dam’s foundation and potentially cause it to fail.” According to officials, “the concrete is crumbling and rebar has become exposed on the dam–enough of a concern to deem it ‘unsafe’ or ‘potentially unsafe.'” The Army Corps “has given the Ford Dam a level two safety ranking, on a five-point scale, with one being the highest threat.”
The Fergus Falls (MN) Daily Journal (5/28) reported, “The Orwell Dam on the Otter Tail River has received a new classification as ‘unsafe or potentially unsafe.’ The dam was one of three Minnesota dams to receive the classification as the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is reviewing its 600 dams nationwide to find those in need of repairs.” The Daily Journal noted, “The classification was due to relief wells at the Orwell Dam not working as efficiently as they have in the past,” according to Dave Rydeen, dam safety program coordinator in the Army Corps’ St. Paul (MN) office. The office is currently in the process of replacing the wells with federal stimulus funding, he said.”
Public Policy
Kentucky To Receive Adult Education, Workforce Development Grant.
The Louisville Courier-Journal (5/28, Rodriguez) reported, “Kentucky is one of 11 states that has been selected to receive a Federal Workforce Investment Act incentive grant aimed at improving adult education and workforce development,” which the state qualified for by exceeding “performance levels for Title I: Workforce Investment Act and Title II: the Adult Education and Family Literacy Act.” Officials “said the grant can be used to enhance the workforce development and adult education efforts, but not decisions have been made yet on how specifically the money will be used.” The state has seen a marked increase “in GED graduates from fiscal year 2006-07 to fiscal year 2007-08,” and “continues to make strides in increasing the number of adults who earn a high school equivalency diploma.”
Town Creates Zoning Rules To Allow For Wind Turbines.
The Boston Globe (5/29, Knox) reports that “wind power advocates in Quincy, [Massachusetts] are backing a new zoning rule they say will enable the city to climb on the wind turbine bandwagon before state and federal renewable-energy stimulus programs run out of funds.” Although “there’s no guarantee that Quincy will win any state or federal grants to support wind power, the sooner the law is on the books, the better — given the competition from other communities.” Also, a former city councilor pointed out that “federal government stimulus money for energy projects…has to be spent within strict time limits.” State funds are available for “green community” projects — up to “$10 million annually in grant funds” — and “federal funds are also available” in the form of “$1.6 billion in federally sponsored zero-interest bonds” called “Clean Renewable Energy Bonds,” which are “available to help municipalities and states finance renewable-energy projects such as wind turbines.”
Workforce
New Unemployment Claims Below Expectations.
The AP (5/29) reports, “The tally of newly laid-off people requesting jobless benefits fell last week, the government said Thursday, a sign that companies are cutting fewer workers. But the number of people continuing to receive unemployment benefits rose to 6.78 million — the largest total on records dating from 1967 and the 17th straight record week.” New claims “dropped to a seasonally adjusted 623,000, from a revised figure of 636,000 in the previous week. It was below analysts’ estimates of 635,000.”
Manpower Survey: Engineering Positions Toughest To Fill.
The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (5/28, Walker) reported, “A new survey by Milwaukee-based Manpower Inc. says engineering jobs are the toughest to fill in the United States.” In this category, “after engineers come nurses; skilled trades; teachers; sales representatives; technicians; drivers; IT staff; laborers; and machinists and machine operators.” Melanie Holmes, vice president, world of work solutions for Manpower North America, said, “While talk has slowed in the U.S. about the pending talent shortage, it is becoming more clear that there is a talent disconnect.”
Biotech Industry Sees Positive Developments.
The Wall Street Journal (5/28, Rubenstein) Health Blog reported, “Cloudy days are starting to turn brighter for the biotech industry, many of whose smaller players have been strapped for cash amid the recession.” In a “run-down of recent deals and other positive developments,” the blog cited the news that “Exelixis is licensing two experimental cancer drugs to Sanofi-Aventis, and getting an upfront payment of $140 million,” and that “MAP Pharmaceuticals reported very positive results for its experimental migraine drug in a late-stage trial.” Jim Birchenough, a biotech analyst for Barclays Capital, told the Journal that the recent “developments ‘may be the beginning of a better environment for biotech overall.'” Birchenough “recently upgraded his rating on the U.S. biotech sector to positive from neutral.”
Also in the News
Self-Contained Grease Refinery Generates Electricity, Heats Water.
Popular Science (5/28, Mone) reported on the Vegawatt, “a self-contained grease refinery and five-kilowatt generator” developed by engineer James Peret that “is the first all-in-one device that processes grease to continuously provide a building with electricity and hot water, heralding a significant change in alternative-fuel applications.” After being filtered and treated, waste deep-fryer oil “moves into a tank that feeds the modified 15-horsepower diesel generator. Heat from the Vegawatt’s engine coolant is used to warm the water in the building’s pipes, further reducing the restaurant’s energy needs.” The device “can process about 80 gallons of grease a week (standard for large restaurants) and produces five kilowatts of energy an hour, which could translate to monthly savings of $1,000, a 10 percent reduction in power costs.”
Consumers Resist Energy Efficient Light Bulbs.
The Wall Street Journal (5/29, A11, Ball) reports, “In the push for energy efficiency, changing old habits is proving more difficult than developing new technology. In the case of the light bulb, consumers see little reason to switch from energy-draining conventional models to more-efficient alternatives as long as electricity remains cheap.” Although energy efficient bulbs, such as the compact-fluorescent, which “pays for itself in about seven months,” today “about 80% of all bulbs sold to US consumers are incandescents, which often cost less than 25 cents apiece, about one-tenth the price of a compact fluorescent.” However, “the federal government is about to force their hand. A recent law will ban incandescent bulbs for most uses by 2014.” Arthur Rosenfeld, a physicist at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, explained, “If energy is dirt cheap, it gets treated like dirt. That’s been the problem.”
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