CITE Wins
LAAP Grant
The Consortium
for ITS Training and Education (CITE) has received an award for
a three-year Learning Anytime Anywhere Partnerships (LAAP) grant
through the U.S. Department of Education Office of Post Secondary
Education. The grant begins on October 1, 2001 and continues
through September 30, 2004.
It was a tribute
to the CITE organization that its proposal was ranked third in
a highly competitive environment that included 394 pre-qualification
submissions and 89 proposals. Due to uncertain LAAP funding for
FY 2002, only six contracts will be awarded.
The entire
ITS community will benefit from the activities that will be implemented
as a result of this grant to CITE. John Baniak, Executive Director
of the I-95 Corridor Coalition stated, "Our members from
Maine to Virginia are excited by the expansion opportunities
for CITE's program that this grant will support. The Coalition
originally provided the seed funding to initiate CITE recognizing
that CITE could provide our members a convenient way to provide
ITS training to current employees and facilitate graduate level
ITS education for potential new employees."
Many of CITE's university partners provided match toward the project
and their support is greatly appreciated. All of CITE's university
partners will be asked to participate in implementing the many activities
funded under the grant.
What is
LAAP?
LAAP is a highly competitive grant program for distance education
projects that are asynchronous, innovative, scalable, and have national
significance. The program was authorized by the 1998 Amendments
to the Higher Education Act of 1965. The LAAP program supports partnerships
among colleges and universities, employers, technology companies,
and other relevant organizations to create postsecondary programs
that deliver distance education "anytime and anywhere."
For more information on LAAP, visit their web site at: http://www.ed.gov/offices/OPE/FIPSE/LAAP/
CITE's Proposal
One of the
primary factors leading to the formation of CITE was the national
requirement for effective ITS training and education. CITE has
endeavored to fulfill this need, and is having a significant
impact on the technical education of the ITS workforce. This
impact will be significantly increased when CITE carries out
the program enhancements that were outlined in the LAAP proposal.
Below is an excerpt from the proposal that summarizes its goals
and objectives.
CITE's ultimate
goal of contributing to the expansion of the ITS professional
community and increasing the quality of its work, can be attained
by:
-
Increasing
the number of CITE partnerships, particularly with minority
institutions, to ensure increased student enrollment; a number
of strategies have been outlined in the proposal, including
an aggressive outreach program, a course on the benefits of
career in ITS, and a Spanish version of the Fundamentals course
as an additional means to reach the Hispanic community.
-
Increasing
the available ITS course offerings and incentives, through
expansion of the existing curriculum and the creation of a
Certificate Program. These strategies will ensure that CITE
offerings retain their high quality, and will reinforce their
attractiveness to potential students.
-
Further
adding to the effectiveness of CITE's distance-learning techniques
through the addition of varied interactive capabilities and
improved course development software; these strategies will
assist students in many respects, from helping the inexperienced
with internet-based distance learning to hands-on (and more
participatory) education.
Below is a
table of the goals and objectives included in the proposal that
will be carried out by CITE over the next three years.
| Objective 1. Increase the number
of college students receiving ITS training, with emphasis on
underserved students |
Increase CITE college and university
partners by 25% annually Increase participation by minority
colleges/universities to 25% of total CITE membership Increase
number of students taking CITE courses by 50% annually |
Innovative partnerships Education
for diverse groups Continuation and expansion |
| Objective 2. Increase number of
college students choosing ITS as a career |
Develop a two-hour course for students
on "Careers in ITS" by Jan. 2003 Expand evaluation to track
influence of CITE curriculum on career choices |
Innovative partnerships Education
for diverse groups |
| Objective 3. Translate one-semester
Fundamentals course into Spanish |
Complete translation of one-semester
Fundamentals course by Jan 2003. A total of 5% of CITE's students
will be taking the fundamentals course in Spanish annually |
Innovative partnerships Education
for diverse groups |
| Objective 4. Expand the CITE Curriculum |
Complete 2nd one-semester course by Sept. 2002
Complete 3 additional short courses by June 2003 Complete 3rd
one-semester course by June 2004 |
Innovative partnerships Continuation and expansion |
| Objective 5. Implement a Certificate Program |
Implement a certificate series for ITS professionals by Jan.
2002 A total of 15% of CITE students will receive certificates
annually |
Quality and accountability |
| Objective 6. Addition of interactive
capabilities |
Develop an interactive course on
transportation management techniques by June 2002 Incorporate
a spread sheet model in the transportation project management
course by Dec. 2002 Incorporate simulation-based training in
the Traffic Signal Systems Fundamentals course by Sept. 2003 |
Quality and accountability |
| Objective 7. Enhance course development
software |
Develop and test an enhanced version
of the CITE development software by Sept. 2004 |
Quality and accountability |
View a copy of
the entire proposal.
Grant Partners
Lead Partner: University of Maryland
Private Sector Partners: Elemx Group, LLC, Interactive
Instruction Inc., Solutions in Motion
University Partners: George Mason University,
Michigan Technological University, Morgan State University, New
York Polytechnic University, North Carolina A&T University,
Texas Southern University, University of Vermont, University of
Virginia, Virginia Tech.
|
