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Nanotechnology Undergraduate Education

Broader Impact

  • This project will initially impact more than 1,000 undergraduate engineering and technology students at Texas State and UT Tyler, more than 350 of whom are underrepresented minority students. 
  • The insights gained from the development of the courses and the rigorous assessment of learning outcomes will provide the basis for the inclusion of nanotechnology social, ethical, environmental, health; and safety issues in conventional engineering, engineering technology, industrial technology; and science courses.

 

  • The experience gained from co-developing nanotechnology courses for two institutions will permit the replication of the courses at other institutions, including HBCUs and HSIs and two year community colleges, becoming a catalyst to promote nanotechnology safety education in two and four year institutions throughout the U.S.
     
  • The development effort will enhance the qualifications of undergraduates, many of them women and Hispanics, as they pursue nanoscience and nanotechnology-related careers in industry or academia.
     
  • The proposed project will help prepare a diverse workforce to supply the needs of emerging nanotechnology companies, more than 100 of which are currently based in Texas.
     
  • UT Tyler will offer these courses online. These courses will also be made available online for industry personnel, community leaders, school teachers; and the general public.
     
  • Educational materials from this project will be made available to the non-technical general public and policy-makers in accessible language.
     
  • The course material developed under this project will be contributed to the open-access National Science Digital Library-NSDL and the Education Resources Information Center-ERIC.
     
  • This project will provide employment for Hispanic graduate students who will be role models for undergraduate students; and future industry leader.
     
  • Project investigators will collaborate with other on-campus researchers representing minority groups on their NSF funded projects, targeting recruitment and retention of minority students.