About

About MNT-EC

The Micro Nano Technology Education Center was founded on the idea that working together to accomplish a greater goal will enhance the quality of education for our students who then become higher quality technicians for our industry.

Goals & Objectives

The overarching goal of The Micro Nano Technology Education Center (MNT-EC) is to:

Grow the MNT technician workforce by fostering academic and industry mentorship between existing MNT partners and educators developing prospective community college MNT programs.

MNT-EC is working on the following objectives to achieve this goal:

Developing a coordinated national approach to advance MNT education. This objective is being accomplished by:
- Strengthening and fostering creation of new MNT programs across the United States.
- Developing a single curated online repository and distance education opportunities.
- Engaging industry to identify educational needs in technical education.
Delivering professional development to enhance knowledge, skills, and abilities. This objective is being accomplished by:
- Facilitating workshops and professional conferences on emerging MNT technologies.
- Delivering hands-on laboratory education.
- Producing industry and education podcasts.
Conducting strategic outreach, recruitment and retention of traditional and underrepresented faculty/students. This objective is being accomplished by:
- Coordinating effort to recruit African American, Latin/x, and women faculty and students.
- Providing support and outreach to active-duty military and veterans.
- Communicating MNT career benefits to increase awareness among students and parents.
Creating deep Industry/Education Alliance that supports student success. This objective is being accomplished by:
- Providing work-based learning opportunities to students through industry connections.
- Creating internships and employment database.
- Organizing a national Business and Industry Leadership Team (BILT).
- Defining and correlating student outcomes with industry skill requirements.

About PCC

Since 1924, Pasadena City College has provided the San Gabriel Valley with a high-quality, innovative learning environment that inspires student success.

Each semester PCC serves 29,200+ students, including international students from 76 different countries. Our academic programs encompass a variety of degrees, transfer programs, certificates of achievement, and occupational skills certificates that challenge students and support progress toward their goals.

PCC is home to the Micro Nano Technology Education Center (MNT-EC), a National Science Foundation Advanced Technical Education Center that aims to increase technical education programs in Micro- and Nanotechnology. The MNT-EC provides cross-disciplinary programs in nanotech, photonics, nanobio, materials science, semiconductor fabrication, and much more. PCC offers an Associate’s in Science Degree and offers certificates of achievement in Biotechnology and Laser Technology. A Certificate of Achievement in Nanotechnology will be available in Fall 2022.

Academics at PCC

PCC offers 141 Associate degree programs, 99 Certificate of Achievement programs, and 43 Noncredit certificate programs.*

*Program numbers based on the 2020-2021 College Catalog.

About NSF ATE Program

With an emphasis on two-year Institutions of Higher Education (IHEs), the Advanced Technological Education (ATE) program focuses on the education of technicians for the high-technology fields that drive our nation's economy. The program involves partnerships between academic institutions (grades 7-12, IHEs) and industry to promote improvement in the education of science and engineering technicians at the undergraduate and secondary institution school levels. The ATE program supports curriculum development; professional development of college faculty and secondary school teachers; career pathways; and other activities. The program invites research proposals that advance the knowledge base related to technician education. It is expected that projects will be faculty-driven and that courses and programs credit-bearing, although materials developed may also be used for incumbent worker education.

The ATE program encourages partnerships with other entities that may impact technician education. For example, with

the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Manufacturing Extension Partnerships (MEPs) (http://www.nist.gov/mep/index.cfm) as applicable to support technician education programs and the industries they serve;
Manufacturing USA Institutes (https://manufacturing.gov/) and Investing in Manufacturing Communities of Practice (IMCPs) (https://www.eda.gov/imcp/) addressing workforce development issues (also see DCL NSF 16-007); and
NSF Industry University Cooperative Research Centers Program (I/UCRC) awardees (http://www.nsf.gov/eng/iip/iucrc/).

The ATE program encourages proposals from Minority Serving Institutions and other institutions that support the recruitment, retention, and completion (certificate, degree, program) of students underrepresented in STEM in technician education programs that award associate degrees. NSF is particularly interested in proposals from all types of Minority Serving Institutions (including Hispanic Serving Institutions, Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Tribal Colleges and Universities, and Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions) where the proportion of underrepresented students interested in advanced technology careers is growing.