On the Road
On the Frontline, Education Seeds the Ground - Science, Technology Meet Light Spectrum - PHOTON2
By Chris Brunson
Judy Donnelly, program coordinator, Photonics Programs, Three
Rivers Community College, with Greg Tondreau of Plainfield, a first-year
TRCC student, and Heather Wade, TRCC student, who graduates with two
associate degrees - Photonics Engineering Technology and Electrical
Engineering Technology. Protective safety glasses are worn
during active procedures. CCM photo.
Sparking an interest is a first step for learning in any field. Curiosity and passion can work together to fuel a thirst for discovery.
Steps exist for students, even as early as elementary school, to learn science and explore pathways that can bloom into potential careers.
New England Board of Higher Education (NEBHE) is physically located in Boston, Mass., but its network of learning spans the nation, with outreach to the globe.
Learning what industry leaders do in business every day helps educators and guidance counselors “tell the story” to students looking for potential careers. NEBHE stepped up the process by applying for and getting grants from the National Science Foundation (NSF).
International Distribution of CompaniesClick Here for a larger Map. Reprinted from the The Photonics Corporate Guide, ©2006, Laurin Publishing, Pittsfield, Mass., www.photonics.com. Used with permission.
NEBHE received a three-year grant, PHOTON2, from NSF’s Advanced Technological Education (ATE) program in 2003. The goal? Take the instructional materials developed in Project PHOTON (2000-2003) and use them to develop a one-semester professional development distance learning course, “Introduction to Photonics.”
“The course was designed specifically for adult learners and had the challenge of putting a lab-based course online,” said Fenna Hanes, NEBHE senior director, office of programs. “The audience was high school, community college and some four-year college faculty from both science and technology disciplines including physics, chemistry, math, electronics, telecommunications and engineering technologies.”
The University of Connecticut’s Neag School of Education is a project partner, integrating adult learning strategies into this lab-based course offered on the Web.
“We have also added new teachers and faculty from the region. As in project PHOTON we also provide technical assistance for career counselors,” said Hanes.
Project PHOTON was an outgrowth of earlier NEBHE projects, including FOTEP (Fiber Optic Technology Education Project), a three-year project, headed by Dr. Nicholas Massa, professor of laser electro-optics technology at Springfield Technical Community College (STCC; Springfield, Mass).
TRCC student Heather Wade. CCM photo.
Over the three years of the PHOTON grant from NSF, project team members created the materials for a one-semester course in optics along with a textbook and teacher manual, a lab manual, and equipment dubbed “the PHOTON kit.” A key factor was including guidance/career counselors so they could then help students explore technical careers in optics.
This work goes back years, and that work is bearing fruit.
Region Lights Up
Look at Connecticut as part of an economic region (New England and the Northeast corridor stretches from Washington, D.C., to Boston, encompassing the New York metro area). The region is developing and building out photonics/fiber optics curriculum from primary education to Ph.D. levels.
Two education/industry centers of interest in the spectrum: Boston University Photonics Center fosters the “growth of photonics-enabled industries by bringing together ideas and resources from the private sector with the expertise and facilities of the university.” The MIT Center for Integrated Photonic Systems offers a CIPS Gateway Consortium of leading companies in photonic materials, devices and systems.
Before commencing the distance learning course, workshops brought participants up to speed and created a new way to exchange information, creating new collaborations.
“Not only did we work with New England schools, but also schools across the country, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Alabama, Arizona, Hawaii and California,” said Hanes.
Four professional development workshops cross-pollinated learning. Participants in the spring 2004 workshops included: Springfield Technical Community College (Springfield, Mass.); Indiana University of Pennsylvania (Kittanning, Penn.); Collin County Community College District (Frisco, Tex.); and Pima Community College (Tucson, Ariz.). Four additional workshops were held fall 2004 and January 2005 at Nashville State Community College (Nashville, Tenn.); New Hampshire Community College (Portsmouth, N.H.); California State Polytechnic University (at Pomona, Calif.); Kauai Community College (Hawaii).
“As a group, they had a face-to-face time,” said Hanes. “We also have a Listserv, for participants, industry representatives mentors and other interested parties. It’s very active and important.”
Hanes and Massa were onsite in Hawaii to observe and see connections being quickly created as participants saw the opportunity to grow education as a partner with economic development.
“Hawaii is just going forward tremendously,” she said. “A participant from the community college has a relationship with Boeing, and the corporation immediately got the concept and put together a three-day workshop. There are a lot of military activities on these islands and there is a tremendous economic interest. They will be hosting a segment again this summer, it’s really growing.”
In the summer of 2005, while some were basking in leisure time outdoors or in, participants were soaking up knowledge and observing firsthand how industry and education can work together.
“After the distance learning course, PHOTON2 supported summer internships for the teachers, faculty and counselors that proved to be very effective,” said Hanes. “Instructors need to see how the technology is applied in the workplace and research institutions so they can relay that to students. New England internship hosts included Trumpf, Inc., the University of Connecticut’s Photonics Lab and Three Rivers Community College. Massachusetts’ hosts included IPG Photonics, Inc., Northeastern University’s School of Engineering Technology, OFS Fitel LLL, and Rofin-Baasel. In New Hampshire Noyes Fiber Systems and PhotoMachining hosted instructors and counselors and The Jackson Laboratory in Maine and ADC Communications in Vermont welcomed the PHOTON2 educator interns.
In addition to providing photonics technology training to traditional community college students Three Rivers Community College (TRCC) has provided incumbent workers training to mechanical or electronic assemblers at Coherent, Trumpf and Joining Technologies. The training was a combination of on-site as well as on-line education.
“The distance learning aspect in a sense makes it easier to offer our curriculum. We have had requests from others in the U.S. as well as overseas to use our materials.”
Dr. Nick Massa
TRCC and STCC, Hubs of Innovative Learning
Companies in the region regularly call Judy Donnelly, program coordinator of photonics programs, Three Rivers Community College in Norwich, and Nicholas Massa, professor of laser electro-optics technology at Springfield Technical Community College (STCC).
Both get similar calls, quite regularly from companies, with the query: “I need people, I want to hire techs, do you have any students I can hire?” Even on company field trips, the almost-grads of both colleges are asked if they want to come to work for the corporations, that are growing and need skilled, educated people.
How did these education leaders get into this field?
Massa got hooked into his track while an undergraduate electrical engineering student in an electro-optics course where he first made a hologram. He earned his master’s at Western New England College concentrating in electro optics, worked at United Technology Corporation (UTC) and Hughes Danbury Optical Systems, then started teaching at STCC in 1986. The program started in 1976 at STCC and they were looking for an infusion of equipment and energy.
“My background is very general in physics,” said Donnelly at TRCC, who worked with GE in jet engines for a few years, and didn’t like it, so went back to school. “At the time I had a two-year-old child, and I was working at Three Rivers where I taught classical physics. They were trying to change the lab offerings, and I like to do something different.”
The course of life crossroad happened when in 1995, Donnelly participated in the NSF-funded and NEBHE-sponsored Project FOTEP workshops in fiber optics and was captivated. “All the way home, I thought, ‘how can I teach this?’”
By 1997 she had developed a new associate degree in Photonics Engineering Technology and she is still innovating the degree offerings in response to market changes. A board of advisors steers the process.
“Recently I presented a paper at a really interesting conference sponsored by the American Technical Education Association. I also attended a presentation given by Ken Gray from Penn State,” said Donnelly. “He gave a talk on the current quiet crisis, that basically that there are not enough two year tech graduates.”
So, how to get the students on the road?
Pathfinders
Across the state and region, corporations are flexing their might, growing and innovating sometimes so quickly that educators and guidance counselors at the high school level haven’t a clue on how to link up willing students to higher education.
If students are to become interested in a career that is not well understood (unlike pilot-fireman-teacher-nurse careers), guidance counselors need to know about a technical-scientific program and what it is about.
Students from both STCC and TRCC are in demand. Donnelly points out colleagues who are helping create pathways to spark interest in optics and science.
“Donna Goyette at Ellis Tech (H.H. Ellis Technical High School, in Danielson) is creating a full-year optics course for her seniors,” said Donnelly. “She is doing a fantastic job. Since they are not far from IPG Photonics in Mass., it also works out to be a good collaboration.” IPG Photonics, incidentally, has hired a number of graduates and student interns from the laser electro-optics and photonics programs at STCC and TRCC over the past several years.
Goyette and Donnelly recently received funding from SPIE (the International Society of Optical Engineering) to run an optics camp for high school juniors.
Mark Kondracky, Plainfield High School science teacher
Donnelly also notes that at Plainfield High science teacher Mark Kondracky has a Tech Prep relationship with TRCC. Lyman Memorial in Lebanon is also bringing optics into the physical science course. Donnelly recently presented a workshop for EastConn, one of Connecticut’s six Regional Educational Service Centers (RESC) that provides educational services to school systems and individuals to develop an optics course for fifth graders.
Think of Judy Donnelly as a live wire for the world of photonics. Her students remember her. Her colleagues think highly of her. She creates ideas and networks of people as she educates. In 2004, Donnelly received the SPIE Educator of the Year award. In 2006, she was a Connecticut Women of Innovation nominee.
Be glad she did not stay in a field that did not challenge and excite her. The education campus that hosted the NEBHE FOTEP workshop helped generate the idea for her enthusiasm is right over the Connecticut state line in Springfield, Mass.
STCC As a Hub, Connector
Springfield Technical Community College (STCC, say “stick”) - let’s quote from their Web site, which tells the story pretty well, “The National Science Foundation, which awards very few grants to community colleges, has awarded 20 grants to STCC for projects such as building specialized labs, and has named STCC as the National Center for Telecommunications Technologies (NCTT).”
Nicholas Massa, professor laser electro-optics technology and co-founder of NCTT, a NSF Center of Excellence, gives a snapshot of his department studies as encompassing “the science of light, properties of light that makes things work. We study things that generate light. Detect light. Materials to manipulate light, bend and focus light. What happens when light interacts with small particles.”
Where STCC is located is pretty interesting too. The 55-acre Springfield Armory National Historic Site was selected by none other than George Washington. The campus is on a bluff overlooking the Connecticut River and contains the nation’s first arsenal as well as a business incubator, a tech center and the college offices, computer labs, studios and other modern facilities.
What’s going on today reflects the spirit of innovation and excellence born when the United States needed an armory that called forth budding and innovation industries.
“Our niche is recognized around the country,” said Massa. “Our program overlaps with hot spots in the region such as Three Rivers. We’ve been doing this for three decades (since 1976), and I’m hard pressed to find a year when our graduating class has not all been placed.”
This year has been particularly demanding.
“There are lots of jobs out there and companies call me that need people now,” Massa said.
About half of STCC graduates eventually go on to four-year engineering degrees, at such places as Western New England College, University of Hartford or University of Connecticut, for example. Graduates also diversify and study law (to become patent lawyers, because they understand the process of innovation and commercialization of the science) or pursue MBAs, so they can work the business side of the fence for the industry. Since they can speak science and understand the field, they have an edge over generalists.
“University of Hartford is developing a master’s degree in Photonics Engineering,” said Massa. “Right now there’s something missing in the middle, there’s no bachelor’s degree yet. We’re working with Western New England College on that. We need a creative pipeline of people educated at all levels. While UConn and UMass do not offer a doctorate in optics, they do have photonics concentrations in their electrical and mechanical engineering programs. It’s an important topic because a pipeline of talent is needed to get this field where it needs to be.”
But people cannot pursue a career when they have no awareness of that pathway, where it can lead, or what interesting fields are intertwined with sciences.
“We still need to connect with high schools to get people into our program,” said Massa. “There is a void between the associate’s and bachelor’s degrees - and until University of Hartford proposed their program there was nothing at the master’s degree level - so either you have an associate degree or a Ph.D. It does present opportunities for students to work alongside world-class scientists right now.”
Massa believes in state-of-the-art equipment and hands-on learning to apply theory. He talks to corporations, listens to their needs as an educator, but has worked in various roles in his career, so understands the real-life needs for workers who can perform. He and his colleagues are always on the lookout for ways to develop and deliver more learning to more people and create bridges and linkages in the region. Massa maintains close ties with programs throughout the country, along with regular visits to companies, his ear to the ground to stay agile and current with education offerings.
“We can adapt to changes in the industry, rapidly retool and stay flexible,” he said.
Hot Spot for a Region
STCC students include Connecticut and even Vermont commuters.
“Because STCC’s and TRCC’s associate degrees in photonics are unique in the region or because of across state line proximity for students, they can enroll under NEBHE’s New England Regional Student (RSP) exchange program. They get discounted rates even though they are out-of-state students,” said Massa.
“Judy Donnelly’s program at TRCC is in southeastern Connecticut and her RSP students from Rhode Island and Massachusetts benefit from the out-of-state tuition reduction as well.”
The range is all ages - from seasoned tool-and-die workers with solid skill sets who want to reposition their careers to students fresh out of high school and transfer students from private schools who want to pursue photonics.
STCC and TRCC students also get out into the world of business with field trips to companies such as OFS in Avon, Trumpf in Farmington, Zygo, in Middlefield, Conn., IPG Photonics, Oxford, Mass., to see what happens in the real world. Most get scooped up for internships and also may earn credit for those internships.
“We walk a fine line between the tech skills, hands-on and the academic course work so they don’t have to start over when transferring,” Massa said. “Our programs (at STCC) are not calculus-based, we do provide the math and English placement tests; that is part of what we do as a community college. Even when we teach algebra and trigonometry, we work with students to hone needed skills.”
Hot spots across the USA for the photonics field include New England, Rochester, N.Y., California, Florida and Arizona.
“If you are good, people know you, the industry is a small circle,” he said. “We send a lot of students to Florida, to Northrop Grumman. We are right at the forefront now to see some major breakthroughs to transform technology. When people talk about the ‘new’ area of nanotech, I think - my students have been working with that for years - laser tweezers are used to move atoms - literally they are light tweezers.”
Massa gives a nod to Judy Donnelly’s strategy of “marketing photonics as a career pathway in physics - rather than just teaching it as laser technology - it really hits parents’ interests. Students can either get out after two years or go to work or can continue their education. TRCC has an agreement with Southern Connecticut University to go there for their physics program - so it opens the door to more science.”
He turns to his colleague and co-instructor, Peter Vangel, professor of laser electro-optics technology.
“Peter graduated from the program and went on for a BS degree at UMass in physics then went on to an MS degree in electrical engineering after that. There are a variety of different options to latch on to - people graduate and then go on to law school.”
He speaks as a former defense contactor employee, and believes that certain things should not be outsourced and “defense technology is one of them.”
He invites prospective students and their families to make an appointment to visit the STCC campus and look around at what is offered.
“Anyone with a rudimentary understanding of optics, photonics, fiber optics or lasers is valuable because at the very least they can talk the technical jargon to business. They are valuable to companies. This is a growing field of industry, science and technology.”
Teaching at the Frontline
Mark Kondracky, a science teacher at Plainfield High School, teaches physics and helped create a course in photonics. But what he loves is sparking an interest in science and learning.
Inside his classroom is a preserved slice of brain, cartoon-like drawings, jars full of items that provoke questions - a key ingredient in science, that asking of questions.
Kondracky was captivated years ago by a workshop at STCC.
“People would come to the NCTT week-long workshops at STCC and enroll in courses in fiber optics, wireless technology and computer networking,” Kondracky explains. “I went to all of them; started in 1995. The goal was to expose teachers and guidance counselors to the technology. We’d have classes in the morning and in the afternoons we would go to labs and see what companies were doing - say, JDS Uniphase in Bloomfield, or Zygo in Middlefield. The thought was, ‘Gee, all this stuff is happening and business doesn’t have people trained for this, we need to make a connection with the high schools, middle schools.’ Partners is what we were.”
Fenna Hanes, New England Board of Higher Education
“To listen to Jim Masi (now retired, from STCC) and NEBHE’s Fenna Hanes, they are so committed and devoted and they wanted to hear from people if students would respond to this learning. I remember later that year that I had a student who went on to Rutgers for photonics. It was kind of unbelievable. This is a piece of a puzzle and is worth doing.”
Kondracky teaches anatomy and physiology, forensics, photonics and physics, hands-on and real-world applications. He’s been teaching for 27 years.
“I can expose students to ideas,” said Kondracky. “One minute they want to be an engineer, others want to work with computers, the next is to be a fireman. My mission is to show them industry careers and possibilities.”
“During the school year, Judy Donnelly at TRCC extends an invitation, ‘C’mon down, we’re splicing fiber,’ to see that was interesting.”
Kondracky made the trip with students in tow, wanting them to see the principles in action and meet people from fiber cable manufacturing.
“Judy also does holograms and will say, ‘come over to see pinhole cameras,’ that sort of thing. Occasionally her students come to Plainfield High and make presentations.”
“I think it is important to expose them to science in action. To expose them to technology and see what they want to do with it.”
He also took a class to Photonics East in Boston, a SPIE regional photonics conference with an exhibition area.
“Students were excited and got to see photonics companies, but here’s the thing - they saw it as a fun day. I explained that the companies are looking to sell systems, it’s not to entertain students - you have to make of it what you can. They researched companies and saw the use of optics in all sorts of things - and came back with a great experience. We had another opportunity in the spring and this symposium was more of a trade show. I was expecting boredom, but the students said this was better than the first one, since they knew more about photonics now and it made more sense, that surprised me.”
STCC students
Kondracky participated in a PHOTON2 teaching internship with Trumpf, a high-tech manufacturer in Farmington, over in the summer of 2005, and had experience with lasers. He helped align a CO2 laser for a test burn and brought home a sample of the alignment test that he shows students. This fall, he took his physics students to Trumpf so they could see the lasers in action.
“As a training tool, for me to show how the laser cuts and talk about the scientific method used to do that - there is a known and an unknown to calibrate a laser. To talk from experience about lasers instead of the hypothetical, it was a valuable step.”
STCC students
As a high school teacher, Kondracky also visits area elementary schools to do optical demonstrations or related science demonstrations.
“I like to do science so younger students’ minds are open and interested.”
For example, he recalls the time he visited a fourth grade class, that had recently finished CMT tests and Kondracky was visiting to confer with their teacher.
“I went to the cafeteria because she had lunch duty and we started talking about future visits. I got the ultimate compliment. The that students created a ruckus, they were talking about the fun of doing experiments - and they got so loud, the teachers had to turn off the lights. Why? The students were excited about doing science. And that’s the whole point, isn’t it. Their curiosity, to ignite that and get them excited about science.”
His hoped-for end result is more far-reaching.
Judy Donnelly, TRC
“When I first started teaching, we were in a cold war,” he explains. “The United States had to be as good or better than the Russians. That may be over, but we still are in a global economic war. When I see an article that says we are really bad in science compared to the rest of the world. I work the hardest I can so our students get as much out of science as possible. This is an example of one of those opportunities they have.”
“I am trying to do my part to keep the United States scientifically literate.”
Global/Regional Photonics Resources
SPIE, The International Society for Optical Engineering
SPIE, also known as The International Society for Optical Engineering, is a not-for-profit international society dedicated to advancing optics and
photonics.
Each year the organization publishes a "Women in Optics" calendar, and this year scientist and professor Judy Donnelly of Three Rivers Community College in Connecticut is featured.
For information e-mail spie@spie.org or visit www.spie.org to learn more about conferences, events and education or programs. Mailing address is P.O. Box 10, Bellingham, WA 98227-0010 USA; telephone is (888) 504-8171; (360) 676-3290.
Other professional organizations of interest are:
The Optical Society of America (OSA)
The mission of OSA is to “promote the generation, application and archiving of knowledge in optics and photonics and to disseminate this knowledge worldwide.” TOSA is dedicated to providing its members and the scientific community with educational resources that support technical and professional development. OSA publications, events and services help to advance the science of light by addressing the ongoing need for shared knowledge and innovation. The society’s commitment to excellence and long-term learning is the driving force behind all its initiatives.
For information:
OSA
2010 Massachusetts Ave., N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20036-1023
(202) 223-8130l fax: 202.223.1096
info@osa.org; www.osa.org
The New England Fiberoptic Council (NEFC)
The council is committed to the promotion of the regional fiberoptic industry and the dissemination of information about fiber optics to the general public.
For information:
New England FiberOptic Council
P.O. Box 67228
Chestnut Hill, MA 02467-0002
(617) 548-NEFC; fax: (617) 507-6397
www.nefc.com
New England Board of Higher Education
For further information about Project PHOTON2 and the NEBHE Regional Student Program (RSP) visit www.nebhe.org.
