You may have read last week about a couple of our PCC students who were awarded the prestigious Goldwater Scholarship. Both of them had one person in common, who was recognized earlier this month at PCC: Our own Center Director, Dr. Jared Ashcroft, received the Campus Special Recognition Award.
In a letter from the Pasadena City College Superintendent-President, Dr. Erika A. Endrijonas:
“This award is given to individuals who have made outstanding contributions to the campus community through their exceptional dedication, leadership, and service. You have consistently demonstrated these qualities throughout your service as Director for the Micro Nano Technology Education Center and as a faculty member and mentor to PCC students. You have truly made a lasting impact on the PCC campus.“
Bravo, Jared!!! We’re proud of you and grateful for all you do for MNT-EC and its community.
Huge shout-out to MNT partner, Dr. Rick Vaughn, Rio Salado College’s faculty chair for STEM Initiatives, for his work to launch a new Nanotech Career Pathway for Adult Education Students last fall.
“Rio Salado College is excited to train a new generation of diverse workforce for the semiconductor and nanomanufacturing industries,” Vaughn said. “Maricopa County is becoming a tech hub for many international companies with hiring needs for nanotechnology professionals.”
The nanotechnology career pathway for adult education students offers training for manufacturing industry jobs, and intends to help meet the demand for nanotechnology technicians in Maricopa County. Students enroll in GED® Test prep or ESL classes along with four nanotechnology classes. The certificate can be completed in 9 months and includes tutoring and advising services. Tuition for the 11-credit program is $935, with scholarships available. For more information, contact Rio Salado’s Adult Education department at 480-517-8110 or gedinfo@riosalado.edu or read the full article with links to the program.
In semiconductor news… Michigan Governor Whitmer unveiled a special partnership between industry players, a university and a community college. KLA, imec, University of Michigan, Washtenaw Community College, and General Motors to establish a global semiconductor center of excellence in Michigan, focusing on talent development, infrastructure, and advancements in autonomous mobility and electric vehicles. You can read more about it here.
Special Thanks to MNT-EC Executive Team member, Greg Kepner, for his tireless work traveling the country to attend and present and serve as an ambassador for the Micro Nano Education work. He regularly sends us updates from the road, and frankly, we cannot keep up. But this week he’s at ETOP and NISOD and we’re grateful for his travels and what he learns and shares with those of us working from the cube…
As you can (barely) see in this screenshot to the left, luxury watchmaker Tag Heuer creates hairsprings using silicone wafers and iron atoms. Several more great photos in the post, link below.
According to the piece, “For years, the academic community has been jumping up and down in excitement over how this science could be applied to numerous industries – in everything from healthcare to renewable energy…”
Tag Heuer has developed its “own hairspring based on a carbon nanotube scaffold, which is filled with amorphous carbon.”
You can read the full piece at SCMP.
Featured Image shoutout to Lukas Tennie on Unsplash. We used his photo of the watch mechanism (not the carbon nanotube-inspired hairspring from Tag Heuer).