Tag Archive for: #advancedmanufacturingskillstrainingalliance

VGCC surpasses $6 million in grant funding with new initiative

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Vance-Granville Community College’s Grants Office has now surpassed $6 million in funding to support students, the VGCC Board of Trustees was informed on Monday night, Jan. 23, at its regular bimonthly meeting on Main Campus.

In its brief four-year history, the Grants Office has secured 37 grants totaling $6,053,883, according to Dr. Ken Lewis, Vance-Granville’s vice president of institutional research and technology.

Among the largest grants, $1,757,299 from the U.S. Department of Labor’s Trade Adjustment Assistance Community College and Career Training (TAACCCT) Grant Program is the single largest competitive grant award received in the history of the college. TAACCCT supports the development of innovative training programs for advanced manufacturing careers. The college started its Mechatronics program and expanded its Welding program through the grant.

The Advanced Manufacturing Skills Training Alliance (AMSTA) with the four public school systems in the college’s coverage area was created with a $1.2 million grant from the North Carolina Education and Workforce Innovation Fund. In addition, $460,000 has been awarded to the Training Alliance by the Golden LEAF Foundation, along with grants of $245,923 and $237,757 from the Duke Energy Foundation to purchase state-of-the-art equipment.

And, most recently, VGCC was awarded nearly $1 million from the U.S. Department of Labor to launch the North Carolina TechHire Program to train students in information technology and advanced manufacturing programs.

 

In addition to the TechHire grant, Dr. Lewis said the most recent awards include:

  • A pair of Male Mentoring Success Initiative grants over two years, totaling $34,000, to help students stay in school and on track to graduate or transfer to a four-year university;
  • A Wake Electric grant of $3,000 to fund classroom technology;
  • An NC Works Career Coach grant of $17,000 in partnership with the Granville and Warren County school systems to promote college attendance and Career & College Promise (CCP) classes in the high schools;
  • A Perkins grant, $181,000, supporting the college’s Business and Applied Technologies and Health Sciences curriculum programs;
  • A Library Services and Technology Act planning grant of $23,000 for space utilization upgrades;
  • A Cannon Foundation grant of $150,000 to complete renovation of Main Campus Building 10;
  • A National Summer Transportation Institute grant from the Federal Highway Administration, $37,000, allowing high school students in Warren County to learn more about career opportunities in transportation-related industries; and
  • A Taste of Industry grant of $10,000 from the North Carolina Community College System to support AMSTA in conjunction with Granville County Schools.

 

The grants update was included in the report of the Curriculum Committee, chaired by Barbara Cates Harris. In the committee’s reports, Dr. Angela Ballentine, the college’s vice president of academic affairs, also updated the board on the annual Continuing Education and Basic Skills visitation report.

Building Improvements

The board approved recommendations of the Building Committee, chaired by Trustee Donald Seifert, ranking in priority order the firms to design and oversee exterior masonry repairs and restoration as well as HVAC replacements and fire alarm system installations. Both Main Campus projects will be funded by the Connect NC bonds approved by state voters in March 2016.

At an estimated cost of $1 million, the college plans to restore, structurally repair and waterproof building masonry roof lines, walls and building bridges that have deteriorated over time because of the penetration of water/moisture into and through the building structures. REI Engineers of Raleigh was chosen as the highest ranked firm for the masonry project.

The primary focus of the HVAC/fire alarm project, estimated to cost $4.1 million, is to replace existing deteriorated heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems with new systems that provide greater stability, control and energy efficiency, and to replace existing fire alarm systems with new addressable systems that meet state code compliance. Engineered Designs, Inc., of Cary was selected as the highest ranked firm for the project.

VGCC is receiving $7.6 million from the $2 billion Connect NC Public Improvement Bond package. Funds may be used for the repair and renovation of facilities to meet the educational needs of students and/or the construction of new facilities to expand programs and services.

Other Action

In other action:

  • The board approved Mid-Year Amendments to the 2016-2017 Budget. The adjustments were necessary to account for $1,664,312 in carryover funds from the previous year and grant funding.
  • Trustee Sara Wester, chair of the Personnel Committee, reported on new employees and resignations.
  • Trustee Opie Frazier, chair of the Investment Committee, reported a gain on the college’s investments now being managed by First Citizens Wealth Management.
  • Dr. Stelfanie Williams, VGCC’s president, updated the trustees on activities since the board last met in November. She also announced the dates of upcoming events: a Valentine’s Day Luncheon sponsored by the college’s Culinary Arts program, Feb. 16; a North Carolina Association of Community College Trustees Law and Legislative Seminar in Raleigh, March 29-31; the fifth annual Dinner Theater, April 27-28, in the Civic Center on Main Campus; the annual VGCC Endowment Fund Golf Tournament, May 2, at the Henderson Country Club; and Commencement, May 12, at the gazebo on Main Campus.

The next meeting of the Board of Trustees is set for Monday, March 20, on the Main Campus.

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Teachers gain new skills through robotics training at VGCC

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Vance-Granville Community College and the Advanced Manufacturing Skills Training Alliance (AMSTA) recently partnered to hold a five-part “Rover-Bot” Workshop for area teachers. The series was held on Thursday evenings in October and November in the electronics lab at VGCC’s South Campus, where the Electronics Engineering Technology program is based.

In the workshop, VGCC Engineering Technologies program head Wesley Williams taught the educators about basic electronics and programming while they assembled a “rover” robot, a small, autonomous moving vehicle. The Rover-Bot has two battery-powered motors that move independently, so it is driven like a tank, Williams explained. “Over the course of the workshop, we built the rover and learned how to drive it with a platform called Arduino, which is basically a small computer,” Williams said. “We then incorporated sensors that would activate based on light and temperature and other features. The teachers really enjoyed the building process and the hands-on nature of the class. They said they want to incorporate what they learned in their own classrooms, so I gave them links to more information and ideas.”

According to AMSTA Project Manager Stephanie Ayers, “the goal of the Rover-Bot workshop was to expand teachers’ knowledge of robotics and enable them to sponsor robotics clubs in their school or implement project-based learning in their classroom.”

Among those who attended all or part of the series were: Beverly Spivey-Judkins from Franklinton High School; Kelly Dixon and Fred Reed, both from Granville Central High School; Marva Burrell-Smith from J.F. Webb High School (Granville County); Kevin W. Moran and Traci Branch, both from Mt. Energy Elementary School (Granville County); Audra Neunkirchner from Northern Granville Middle School; Penny Collins and Pamela Huff, both from Northern Vance High School; and Henry Bobbitt from Warren County High School. Each teacher received continuing education credits for attending.

AMSTA is a partnership involving VGCC and the public school systems in Vance, Granville, Franklin and Warren counties, who work together to prepare students in the region for careers in manufacturing. A grant from the North Carolina Education and Workforce Innovation Fund supported this workshop and other AMSTA projects. “By providing quality professional development activities that are relevant to manufacturing in our region, we increase our teachers’ ability prepare students to enter these careers,” Ayers said. “Also, by partnering with VGCC to provide these workshops, we have opened up lines of communication between K-12 teachers and community college instructors to share information and ideas about preparing students for advanced manufacturing careers.”

This was the first time Williams has conducted a project-based robotics course for schoolteachers; he offered a broader course in 2015 in partnership with AMSTA on various topics related to electronics and robotics.

VGCC offers both a two-year degree and a certificate in Electronics Engineering Technology (EET). The certificate is also available as a Career and College Promise (CCP) Pathway for eligible high school students. In the EET curriculum, students learn to apply basic engineering principles and technical skills to design, build, install, test, troubleshoot, repair, and modify developmental and production electronic components, equipment, and systems such as industrial/computer controls, manufacturing systems, communication systems and power electronic systems. For more information on the EET program, contact Williams at (252) 738-3541.