Dean Manzione Hosts Nanotechnology Curriculum Committee Meeting

On October 17, 2008, Dean Louis Manzione chaired a state-wide meeting of the Connecticut Nanotechnology Curriculum Initiative here at the University of Hartford. The meeting, held in the Harry Jack Gray Center, featured the introduction of a nanotechnology curriculum to be shared among the 48 institutions of higher education in Connecticut, including the 14 community-technical colleges. The meeting was sponsored by the Connecticut Department of Higher Education, the Office of Workplace Competitiveness, and the Connecticut Center for Advanced Technologies and funded by The Center for Advanced Manufacturing of the Connecticut College of Technology. The Curriculum Committee is part of the Advisory Council on Nanotechnology, which aims to position Connecticut as a leader in developing and applying nanotechnologies in research and industry. The meeting was attended by approximately 50 faculty members and administrators from various colleges, universities and industry.

Dean Louis Manzione welcomes participants to the Nanotechnology Curriculum Committee meeting.

There were two keynote speakers: The first, Dr. Fotios Papadimitrakopoulos, professor of chemistry at the University of Connecticut, explained the goals of the Nanotechnology Curriculum Committee:

• To attract young minds to the field of nanotechnology
• To raise industry awareness of nanotechnology
• To diversify undergraduate and graduate education
• To promote cross-disciplinary work, which is required in the field of nanotechnology
• To provide experiential learning in the field

In addition, Dr. Papadimitrakopoulos said, the committee is working with the Advisory Committee to increase the nanotechnology industry in the state by educating and attracting workers and scientists to the workforce and promote centers of excellence in the field. The hope is to address societal problems in all areas, including health and energy. He noted in particular that nanotechnology “will be a pervasive technology, and we have to promote it as education not just for STEM majors.”

The second keynote speaker was Dr. Mitch Horowitz, Vice President and Managing Director of Batelle Technology Partnership Practice. He explained that there will be no nanotechnology industry per se; rather there will be nanotechnology in everything. “The value of nanotechnology,” he said, “is in applications.” It will alter supply chains, cost structures, and servicing, in all industries.

Other speakers, including Dean Manzione, introduced the curriculum developed by the committee.

Besides the introductory course, the curriculum, which is inclusive and transportable, includes two courses each in electrical, biological, and materials applications.

With the curriculum developed, Dr. Vargos Hadjimichael, dean of engineering at Fairfield University, reported, the Committee sees the next step as procuring resources to make experiential learning possible. There are also safety and ethical issues to address since nanotechnology is such a new field and will have such a pervasive reach. From an academic point of view, procedures must be developed to achieve periodic assessment and continuous improvement in the curriculum.

Other presenters at the meeting were Dr. Jonas Zdanys, the associate commissioner for academic affairs and chief academic officer of the Department of Higher Education; Dr. Christine Broadbridge, professor of physics at Southern Connecticut State University and the education director at CRISP, an NSF MRSEC at Yale/SCSU/BNL; Christine Thatcher, State Department of Higher Education; and Deb Santy, program director of Small Business Innovation and Research (SBIR), CCAT.

The participants of a panel discussion on the future of the nanotechnology curriculum: (l to r., Dr. Hadjimichael, dr. Papadimitrakopoulos, Dr. Broadbridge, Dr. Horowitz, Dr. Zdanys, and Dr. Thatcher.

In her closing remarks, Dr. Karen Birch, the director of the Connecticut College of Technology, Connecticut Community Colleges/Regional Center for Next Generation Manufacturing reminded the committee that the National Science Foundation now demands collaboration; she congratulated the committee on its exemplary collaboration.

Dr. Karen Birch closes the meeting.

For more information on the Nanotechnology Curriculum Committee, please go to http://nanoworkforce-ct.org.