Greater Phoenix is the home for many industry sectors that utilize advanced technology processes or produce high-tech products. In order to prepare a workforce that is knowledgeable about these technologies and their applications to automation, a grant has been awarded to Maricopa Community College's Center for Workforce Development by the National Science Foundation to give faculty members teaching in high-tech related fields the opportunity to complete an externship. In an externship, faculty work on-site at a local industry office and learn hands-on about the technologies and practices that are becoming common in that field. These appointments are culminated in the creation of learning modules that the faculty member prepares for national dissemination to their colleagues, with the assistance of the Maricopa Advanced Technology Education Center (MATEC).

Examples of past externships from the last year include:

• Michael Corry, Chandler-Gilbert Community College
  Project: PLCs and Function Block Programming
  Partner: Brown and Caldwell Engineering
• Ui Luu, Glendale Community College
  Project: Solar Technology
  Partner: Salt River Project
• Bassam Matar, Chandler-Gilbert Community College
  Project: Digital Logic for Xilinx FPGAs
  Partner: Marvell, Avnet
• Clyde Perry, GateWay Community College
  Project: Servo Motors in Automated Systems
  Partner: Witron
• Tomas Uribe, Glendale Community and Phoenix Colleges
  Project: From Design to Manufacture
  Partner: Lynndale Stainless

If you are interested in this opportunity, please contact Jay Kahl in the Center for Workforce Development at jay.kahl@domail.maricopa.edu or at 480-731-8208. More information can also be found at www.azhightech.com.