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Serves Washington, D.C. area students, educators, business and community leaders, and other collaborators

  • Outreach targeted to Title I schools, but all inquiries are explored
  • Emphasis on technical career exploration and technical college majors
  • Hands-on experiences in electronics and programming
  • Supporting foundations of IOT and Smart Cities sensors, actuators, and data collection and analysis
  • Preparing our future technical workforce and our increasingly diverse, technology-driven community for jobs that may not yet exist
  • Working with like-minded teams, organizations and individuals interested in promoting curiosity, innovation, creativity, and students’ self-actualization and self-determination

And now expanding our Inspired by Qualcomm® Thinkabit Labs™ throughout Virginia and the Mid-Atlantic.

�These slides: www.goo.gl/KVDXey

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Lab Activity Participation since first beta testing in August 9, 2016

  • Title I school groups scheduled 3 days per week, allowing for other special groups
  • Average 4.8 visiting groups per week
  • Over 90% of visiting school groups had 25% or greater free and reduced lunch rates
  • Over 78% were over the 40% Title I threshold

Lab outreach as of August 9, 2018:

  • Total days since opening on August 9, 2016: 724
  • School days since opening: 360
  • Total days of Lab activity: 481
  • Total Lab events: 1892
  • Student visits: 9230
  • Teacher and Administrator visits: 1937
  • Audiences (schools or partnering organizations): 348
  • Estimated number of partnering schools: 174
  • Community Collaborators: 344

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Virginia Tech Thinkabit Lab - Typical Visit

(3-4 hours, 20-30 students)

  • Technical College and Career Exploration
  • Circuits and Schematics
  • Microcontrollers
  • Programming LEDs, Servos
  • Engineering Design Processes
  • Robotic Crafts
  • Student Presentations

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2. Inspired by Qualcomm Thinkabit Labs

Summer 2017 Lab Implementation

  • Arlington Public Schools
  • Fairfax County Public Schools (4)
  • Harrisonburg City Public Schools (2)
  • Prince William Public Schools
  • Perquimans County Schools (NC)
  • Radford City Public Schools

2018 - Implementation (to date)

  • Arlington Public Schools (2)
  • Fairfax County Public Schools (4)�

2018 - Ongoing Planning (for Fall 2018)

  • Hampshire County Public Schools (2)
  • DC Area universities (2)
  • Prince William County (2)
  • Loudoun County (multiple)
  • Roanoke City and County
  • 17 additional schools, libraries, community colleges and universities in planning

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3. Outreach Programs

4. Graduate Programs

  • Technical Career and College Exploration
  • Electronic Circuits and Programming
  • Introduction to IOT/Smart Cities
  • Introduction to Robotics
  • Introduction to Programming
  • Introduction to Principles of Design (and Engineering)
  • Distance Learning (teachers and other faculty)
  • Facilitating STEM Learners (PTA’s, parent groups, educators)
  • Ecology and Environmental Monitoring
  • Nova Labs partnership

  • Project-Based and Problem-Based Teaching and Learning
  • Makerspace Skills, Lab and Program Design
  • Integration with other courses and programs
  • CNRE / CLiGS courses
  • Engineering Education Courses
  • Continuing and Professional Education

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5. Current Teacher Professional Development

  • Lab experiences for VT doctoral students (school leaders);
  • Lab experiences for VT Master’s students (aspiring school leaders);
  • Full engagement of visiting teachers in all Lab activities;
  • Specific programs for STEM/STEAM teachers, instructional technology teachers, technology and engineering education teachers, and college and career counselors;
  • Ongoing phone and email support for Inspired by Qualcomm® Thinkabit Lab™ Lab leaders;
  • Job shadowing for Inspired by Qualcomm® Thinkabit Lab™ Lab leaders;
  • On-site (school-based) support for the groups listed above;
  • Individual educator support for all of the above.

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Professional Development Next Steps

  • Maker Certification for Educators �(including Librarians, Tech Shop, NoVA Labs)�
  • Teaching and Learning Education Internships�(addressing regional teacher shortages)�
  • Internet of Things (IOT) and Natural Resources Monitoring (Sensors and Data Collection)�
  • Job-embedded teacher graduate certificates and advanced degrees (M.Ed., Ed.S., Ph.D and Ed.D.)�
  • International teacher programs�

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6. Special Events

  1. Maker Faires - annually
  2. Alumni Events
  3. Community Groups
  4. IREX World Smarts �(odd-numbered years)

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Collaborations Supporting Special Audiences

  • Project YES (Title I schools, at-risk students)
  • Young Scholars - Title I schools, gifted/talented
  • Lifelong Learning Institutes - George Mason University
  • Rosie Riveters and Girls Cyberjutsu camps
  • IB Environmental Science classes
  • IB/AP Computer Science classes
  • Creative Robotics Groups
  • Private Schools
  • Home School Groups

  • Girl Scouts
  • Boy Scouts and Cub Scouts
  • IREX WorldSmarts STEM Challenge
  • Friends of Urban Agriculture
  • NOVA Outside
  • NOVA Labs (and Tech Shop DC)
  • BEST Workforce (DoDEA)
  • VT Language and Culture Institute

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7. Saturday Camps

  • Girls Cyberjutsu (October to June, 2nd Saturday per month)
  • Girls Capture the Flag Cybersecurity (May through August, 4th Saturdays)
  • Rosie Riveters (each semester)
  • Proposed Open Lab days for kids with parents
  • STEM Impressionists Girls Leadership
  • Arlington MS Girls STEM Camps

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8. Master’s, Doctoral and Professional Research

Education Leadership

  1. Hands-on STEM Experiences for Special Education Students �(Mitzos, Glenn, Egenrieder)
  2. Hands-on STEM Experiences for English Language Learners �(Saxton, Glenn, Egenrieder)
  3. Innovation-Space Design, Budgeting, and Implementation �(Marinoble, Glenn, Egenrieder)

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8. Master’s, Doctoral and Professional Research

Computer Science and Engineering Education

  • Modeling Strategies for Targeting STEM Program Outreach to Schools �(Sistrunk, Egenrieder, Chen)
  • University STEM and STEAM Lab Partnerships (Sabarre, Giovanetti, Egenrieder)
  • Public Engagement in School District Boundaries (Ramakrishnan, Egenrieder, Glenn)

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8. Master’s, Doctoral and Professional Research

Professional Research

  • NSF Minority Girls in Computer Science (Yamaguchi, Berge, Egenrieder)
  • DARPA Mobile Handheld BioThreat ID (Kaufhold, Trammell, Egenrieder)
  • After-School Programs for At-Risk students (Egenrieder)
  • Teacher Affective Behaviors and Student Perspectives (Egenrieder, Sun)
  • Teacher Professional Development Experiences (Egenrieder, Glenn, Sun)
  • Elementary STEM Leadership (Glenn, Egenrieder)
  • Hands-On Activity Planning, Standards-Alignment, and Implementation �(Egenrieder, Sabarre)
  • Correlations in Strengths, Interests, Values and Career Interests �(Egenrieder, Glenn)
  • Technical HS Internship and Mentorship Best Practices (Egenrieder, Sabarre, Sun)

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9. Workforce Experiential Learning Partnerships

  • Building to Teach / Teaching with Small Boats (6-12)�(Teaching Science, Math, and Technology)
  • DoDEA X-STEM and US STEM �(Keynote / Technical Career Exploration)
  • IOT and Smart Cities / STEM Events �(HS STEM Event and Legislative Events)
  • Urban Alliance and On-Ramps to Careers�(Technical Career Exploration, Entrepreneurship)
  • Leadership Fairfax, Leadership Arlington
  • Girls’ STEM Initiatives
  • Senior Experience programs

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10. Internships and Mentorships

Opportunities for Interns:

  • Demystify adult workspaces
  • Patterns in processes, behaviors, teams, and supervision
  • Build relevance between education and adult life
  • Reinforce workforce pathways
  • Demystify adult life

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High School and Undergraduate Internships

Internships representing:

  • Alexandria City
  • Arlington County
  • DC Public Schools
  • Falls Church City
  • Fairfax County
  • Loudoun County
  • Prince George’s Co., MD
  • Virginia Tech
  • UDC, George Mason, and other regional universities

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Important Areas for Experiential Learning Research

Opportunities for Employers:

  • Corporate ROI
  • Mentorship
  • Rising Leaders
  • Pedagogy/Andragogy for Young Adults

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Follow-up or visit:

Dr. James A. (Jim) Egenrieder, Director

JimE@vt.edu or STEM@vt.edu

571-482-8298

Virginia Tech/UVA Northern Virginia Center7054 Haycock Rd., Falls Church, VA 22043

www.Thinkabit.Tech

@VT_ThinkabitLab

These slides:

www.goo.gl/KVDXey