An Advanced Technological Education project to prepare information technologists for the 21st century

The objective of our Advanced Technological Education (ATE) project is to help increase the pool of qualified information technology (IT) workers for the State of Ohio and nationwide. It addresses the severe national and statewide shortage for such workers, projected to persist well into the 21st century. The project will serve both traditional and returning students. If aims to provide a 2+2+2 seamless transition for students from their junior year in high school, through an associate degree at the community college level or at the University of Cincinnati (UC), to a Bachelor of Science (BS) degree in Information Engineering Technology (IET) at UC\´s OMI-College of Applied Science (OCAS). This ATE project will comprise four components: (1) articulation agreements between partner institutions, (2) course and curriculum development, (3) faculty development, and (4) industrial co-op/internship opportunities for students. Course and curriculum development at all levels will use as a guideline an IT competency profile developed by the Ohio Information Technology Task Force, as well as national skill standards and vendor-specific industrial certification. Faculty development for the project will be conducted via a series of summer institutes and workshops that support the evolutionary nature of the project: course and curriculum material will be updated on a yearly basis "vertically" across all partner institutions.