SAC-UTSA enhanced agreement aids engineering education
(Sept. 9, 2002)--Officials from San Antonio College and the University of
Texas at San Antonio announced new National Science Foundation engineering
grants totaling more than $732,000 Thursday at a press conference at San Antonio
College (SAC).
The event included the announcement of an enhanced articulation agreement
to help address the state and national shortage of engineering graduates.
SAC President Robert Zeigler and UTSA President Ricardo Romo
participated in the announcements, in addition to Zorica Pantic-Tanner,
dean of the UTSA College of Engineering; Dan Dimitriu, coordinator
of the SAC engineering program and Dan Wittliff, president of the Texas
Society of Professional Engineers, who commented on the crisis in engineering
education.
One of the grants is aimed at curriculum development, and will enable SAC
to establish dual-credit engineering courses in at least five area high schools,
create Web-based engineering courses, train engineering faculty in distance
education and infuse engineering curricula with the latest technology.
Pantic-Tanner assisted SAC with its grant proposals by providing letters of
support and aiding in the expansion of a new articulation agreement for 2+2
transfers. The improved transfer agreement allows engineering students
to experience a seamless transition from community college to university.
"We look forward to developing our continuing relationship with SAC and
their engineering students, and we hope this grant funding will help increase
the number of minority students pursuing engineering degrees in the area,"
said Pantic-Tanner.
Dimitriu also announced the META (Math, Engineering and Technology Award)
grant, which will be used to assist minority and disadvantaged students in
pursuing an engineering education at SAC. The grant will be used for
scholarships for students who major in computer science, engineering, math
or science.
"I'm so excited we have been given this opportunity. The grant
will help disadvantaged students get the solid foundation necessary to succeed
in these high-tech fields," said Dimitriu. "We will now be
able to give them good support and prepare them for the great employment opportunities
that await them.
The META grant designates 50 scholarships of $2,000 to be awarded every year
for four years. The grant will provide students with career counseling, faculty
mentoring, tutoring and supplemental instruction while at SAC.
To apply for META, a student must be enrolled full-time and major in computer
science, computer technology, engineering, engineering technology, math or
science at SAC. Students also must be U.S. citizens, have at least a
2.5 GPA, and demonstrate financial need.
Additional goals are to increase by 200 percent both the number of students
who earn an associate's degree in engineering at SAC and the number of engineering
majors at SAC who transfer to four-year institutions.
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SAC-UTSA enhanced agreement aids engineering education
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© The University of Texas at San Antonio, 2002