WORKFORCE CENTRAL FLORIDA Awarded for Science, Technology, Engineering & Math Initiatives

July 23, 2010 - PRLog -- WORKFORCE CENTRAL FLORIDA (WCF), has been selected by STEMflorida to receive the 2010 Business–Education Partnership Award, a program designed to recognize the best programs in Florida that produce a STEM- (science, technology, engineering and math) proficient workforce needed by the state’s employers.

WCF’s received the award based on the following STEM projects:

•   WCF Industry Days, a program also in partnership with Junior Achievement, that took 180 students and 20 teachers to visit a STEM organization for a half-day tour at venues such as Electronic Arts, Lockheed Martin and AT&T.

•   STEM Summer Camps, which offered six two-day camps for 150 fifth through eighth graders, where they learned about STEM careers from industry veterans, UCF graduate students and student athletes with a STEM major, and visited a STEM-related company to work on projects with industry experts.

•   STEM-in-School Work Experience program, which provided paid work experience in STEM research for students during their first two years of college study, an experience that typically only occurs at the graduate level.

“We are honored to receive this award for our work preparing the Central Florida region’s future STEM leaders,” said Gary Earl, president and chief executive officer for WORKFORCE CENTRAL FLORIDA.  “To diversify Central Florida’s industries, it’s crucial that we provide a highly-educated workforce in science, technology, engineering and math. The first step to improving our workforce is to increase our local youth’s interest in STEM careers and to inspire them to pursue education in these subjects.”

Other 2009-2010 STEM projects include:

•   A WCF STEM College Shadow Day that allowed 500 fifth graders to participate in a Junior Achievement Our County curriculum about STEM careers in Central Florida.  At the end of this five-week curriculum, students visited the University of Central Florida to tour laboratories and the university and to receive insider knowledge from industry professionals.

•   $15,000 grants to low-income schools including Evans High, Lockhart Middle and Leesburg Elementary schools to purchase materials that foster inquiry math and science learning.  

•   $1,000 sponsorship grants to 45 schools to introduce clubs or curriculum-enhancing enrichment programs, such as Science Olympiad.

•   $2,500 college scholarships to 10 high school seniors who are pursuing STEM-related degrees.

•   Girl Scout troop sponsorships where participants competed in FIRST Robotics challenges, to overcome the stigma that STEM careers are male dominated.

•   Leader Academies in Math and Science program, which provided 160 middle school teachers with 15 hours of in-depth content on chemistry, life and earth space sciences.  

•   Teach Me Workshop series that assisted 25 math and science middle school teachers with content delivery and classroom management.  

•   UCF’s EXCEL Persistence and Recruitment Program, which offered 200 freshmen and sophomore STEM majoring students with tutoring in calculus, the topic that is the barrier to entry for STEM major completion, and provided incentives to students who participate in tutoring activities.

•   $300,000 for curriculum development, tuition support and hiring of staff for a digital media program at Seminole State College, a patient simulation technician program at Orlando Tech and a photonics technician program at the UCF.  

Through these efforts, WCF’s goal is to align strategies with the region’s expected economic growth.  “STEM and green jobs are not a just a trend,” said Earl.  “These careers are the future of our region, and unless we act with an all-around approach to train our future innovators and problem solvers, we chance losing high-paying jobs to other areas.”

WCF will be presented the award on July 26, 2010 at 1:15 p.m. at the 2010 STEM Business & Education Conference, Lake Buena Vista Palace Hotel in Lake Buena Vista, Florida.

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WORKFORCE CENTRAL FLORIDA is the Orlando area's workforce expert, an authority on workforce planning, programs and the labor market for the Florida counties of Lake, Orange, Osceola, Seminole and Sumter counties.