2021’s National Visiting Committee Report Completed — On to 2022
Two weeks ago, the National Convergence Technology Center (CTC) hosted its annual grant review panel, the National Visiting Committee (NVC), online and in person. Convening an NVC is a requirement of any National Science Foundation grant to ensure that grant goals are being fulfilled. The committee consists of subject matter experts in education, IT business, and futurist.
𝗙𝗿𝗼𝗻𝘁 R𝗼𝘄 L𝗲𝗳𝘁 𝘁𝗼 R𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁: Ann Beheler, PI National CTC; Debbie Miller, CTC staff; Kim Yohannan, NVC Chair; Amy Garrison, CTC staff; Carolyn Corbin, President of Center for the 21st Century; Matt Glover, Chairman of the BILT; Michael Harsh, Professor at Collin College 𝗕𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝗥𝗼𝘄 𝗟𝗲𝗳𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗥𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁: Rajiv Malkan, Professor at Lone Star College; Kyle Jones, Chair & Associate Professor at Sinclair Community College; Mark Dempsey, CTC Staff; David Keathly, Associate Chair at University of North Texas and Angela Fernandez, Dean of Business and Public Affairs at Sinclair College
The NVC helps provide support and guidance that will assist the CTC to achieve its grant goals of…
• Improving IT programs to meet workforce needs
• Increasing the number of completers in IT programs
• Creating regional hubs of community colleges, high schools, and universities
• Expanding the reach and depth of overall dissemination
Often the NVC will make additional suggestions and recommendations on ways to improve the CTC’s pursuit of those goals.
As a result, the CTC spent 2021 following NVC’s suggested recommendations, and the beginning of 2022 preparing reports on what was accomplished. Details of their progress were presented earlier this month in the renowned read-ahead packet — a 40-page comprehensive almanac of 2021 highlights, packed full of data and metrics, plus testimonials illustrating how the grant pursued its goals. For those that participate? in CTC’s surveying and provide? CCN reports this packet sheds light on a compilation of those numbers.
As a bonus, during the meeting, the CTC hosted a panel discussion with IT students in the Convergence College Network (CCN) program — the purpose of the National CTC is to impact students in the classroom. The panel provides a forum for student questions to discuss their IT college experience and future endeavors. The NVC also has an opportunity to ask questions and give career advice to the students.
𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗡𝗩𝗖 𝗦𝘁𝘂𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗣𝗮𝗻𝗲𝗹 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗹𝗲𝗳𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁: via Zoom — Juan Mora, Lone Star College and the University of Houston; in-person — David Rowe, University of North Texas; Yevhen Prokopenko, University of North Texas; Amy Tong, Collin College; and Betsy N., Collin College.
Once the presentations are delivered and the read-ahead packet is thoroughly reviewed and discussed amongst the NVC panel, the CTC is informed verbally about how to make improvements to better attain the grant’s goals and given formal commendations on the tasks the grant did well. Eventually, the NVC submits a formal written summary of its review, which is attached to a report submitted to the National Science Foundation in the summer. And there you have it. The NVC meeting is considered one of the most important meetings the CTC holds every year.