The Center of Excellence is now accepting up to five IT degrees/certificates from Washington State Community and Technical Colleges for the Spring 2012 quarter for a review session from industry professionals

The Center is now opening up the application process for IT degrees and certificates. Any Washington State CTC can submit one information or computing technology degree or certificate for a two-hour review session by IT industry professionals. This service is offered at no charge to the participating college(s).

The reviews will take place May-June 2012, and reports will be issued to the colleges by June 2012. The reports summarize the recommendations made by the industry review team, as well as provide a high-level workforce trend scan, employment trends if applicable, and possibilities for emerging trends that might impact curricular changes or developments.

The application submission deadline is Friday, April 6, 2012.

Find out more about the process, the history, and access to the application online form.

Payment is negotiable.

We are hoping to have the training sometime between late February and early June 2012.

Please contact Maureen Majury at maureen.majury@belleveucollege.edu or 425.564.4229.

The report includes an executive summary, and the ten Centers of Excellence each provide a Center description, an initiative with system savings (or, the return on the investment), as well as a vision for 2011-2012.

The Center of Excellencefor Information and Computing Technology, after a process of extensive research, wrote and published an information and computing technology trends report, Emerging Workforce Trends in Information and Computing Technology: 2011 to 2018…: STEM Career Pathways for the Washington State Community and Technical College System, in early March 2011.

Four primary economic and education issues are detailed and analyzed as well as proposed solutions are explored in the 74-page report:

• The currency economy’s effect on education, employment, and innovation
• The occupational outlook for career pathways aligned to STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) disciplines
• The importance of preparing students for careers in STEM
• Considering 2025 global predictions and how new or hybrid occupational pathways will emerge in order to create energy and environmental solutions through the use of information and computing technologies
• A complimentary copy was sent out to each of the 34 community and technical college workforce administrators.  The Center is currently selling copies with a special rate for Washington State educators.

“This is a very interesting and comprehensive report.  Well done!!” Rich James, Director of Staffing, F5 Networks

System Savings:  $65,200

Systems Savings and Impact:

The Centers of Excellence have created an impact report to demonstrate the state’s return on investment, highlight positive achievements, describe individual center impact on the community and technical college (CTC) system as a whole, demonstrate connections made between industry and educators, and report cost savings by showcasing Center events, products, projects, research and services.

The return on investment from these highlighted projects, services, research, or products from the eleven Centers’ approximates $15 million dollars. The annual core funding for the ten Centers is $1.2 million, with performance funding at a minimum of $0 to a maximum of $550,000. The Center initiatives have recovered the initial annual investment of $1.2 million. The aggregate return on the combined value of each Center’s projects and initiatives far exceed the annual core and performance funding.

Click on the report cover to read the pdf version.  You can request a hard copy of the report by contacting any Center of Excellence in Washington State.

This event is free.   And, all those who attend (and, are present) are eligible for an XBox 360 /Kinect package prize drawing. Breakfast and lunch will be provided.

Rich James, Director of Staffing for F5 Networks, is this year’s keynote.

Join us on Wednesday, April 20, 2011 at the Carlson Theater, Bellevue College.

Register here!

Click on the program above to download.

For teachers bringing at least 30 students in a bus, please contact maureen.majury@bellevuecollege.edu or

This is a great opportunity to showcase your video skills, find out about a career in information and computing technology, add something substantive to your resume, and start becoming comfortable in an interview situation.

Recognition Awards as follows:

• $1,000 for first place
• The Center of Excellence for Information and Computing Technology’s industry advisory board will be judging the videos. All five will be published on the Center’s website.

Submission Deadline is:  Friday, May 20, 2011

Prize Announcement:  Friday, May 27, 2011

The following resources were developed and are available for download and dissemination.

Bringing Together Student: Success and Workforce Development: The Next Challenge for Community Colleges by Dr. Jim Jacobs, Macomb Community College

Stem to Stern Student Outcomes

Stem to Stern Preliminary Findings from Employer Research

For more information, please contact Cheryl Vermilyea,Cheryl.vermilyea@bellevuecollege.edu Phone: 425-564-2431

The Center of Excellence for Information and Computing Technology recently had an in-depth orientation on three Microsoft programs that are available to faculty and students at no-cost.  The Students to Business (S2B), Imagine Cup, and Dream Spark programs are exciting and designed to engage, stimulate innovation and competition, provide opportunities for valuable certifications, and help your students find entry-level and internship positions.

The Students to Business (S2B) program is a Microsoft® Community Initiative designed to connect Microsoft partners and customers with qualified students for entry-level and internship positions.

The objective of the S2B program is to inspire local businesses to communicate the competency requirements for new talent, to evaluate the skills of students ready for an entry-level job or internship and collaborate with Microsoft and local education institutions to provide the curriculum and training needed to ensure students are prepared to meet the innovation needs of company’s around the globe.

Using your local Microsoft Students to Business (S2B) program your university can:

• Register students to receive Microsoft-job opportunities in your region
• Connect to local industry leaders for technology spotlights and career mentoring
• Offer students internships and jobs using Microsoft Technologies
• Promote course offerings to students looking to enhance their career skills
• Enhance your universities reputation with the local software industry.

Imagine Cup: Solve the World’s Toughest Problems

The Imagine Cup encourages young people to apply their imagination, their passion and their creativity to technology innovations that can make a difference in the world – today. Now in its eighth year, the Imagine Cup has grown to be a truly global competition focused on finding solutions to real world issues. Register and find out more…

Competition Categories

• Software Design
• Embedded Development
• Game Design
• Digital Media
• IT Challenge

Dream Spark: Dream Today. Create Tomorrow

DreamSpark provides professional-level developer and design tools to students and educators around the world at no charge. These Microsoft tools will help you advance your learning and skills through technical design, technology, math, science, and engineering activities.  High Schools, Vocational and Trade Schools, Community Colleges, and Universities are all eligible to participate in the DreamSpark program. Simply put, any accredited school around the world is eligible.  DreamSpark has loads of products! You can see the entire list by visiting the DreamSpark home page all of them are listed for easy access.

Oh, and by the way? These are the serious versions for serious people. We’re talking, the big-time stuff.

Looking Ahead, John Perera, General Manager, Educational Marketing, Microsoft

Web 2.0 Technologies for Your Classrom, Jean Kent, North Seattle Community College

Online Collaborations: SharePoint 2010, Office Web Apps, Web Services, Lance Baldwin, Business Development Manager, Education Product Groups, Microsoft

Shared Source, Windows Academic and Faculty Curriculum Resources: Supporting Teaching and Research World-Wide, Arkady Retik, Director, Windows Group, Microsoft

Productivity in the Age of Information Overload: Office 2010, Scott Kennedy, Solution Specialist, Microsoft Corporation

Join us on Wednesday, April 21, 2010 at the Carlson Theater, Bellevue College.

Dan Waters an Academic Developer Evangelist at Microsoft is this year’s keynote speaker.

On Dan: For over three years, Dan’s job has been to ignite the passion and creativity in technical students by demonstrating all the great things technology careers have to offer. Dan started a web design company at 15 and spent his pre-Microsoft career as a software developer working in many industries, including retail, healthcare, manufacturing and distribution.
In his spare time, Dan really enjoys being a dad (twice now!). He loves to snowboard and write music, cook, and of course, travel.

Register here!

Microsoft is sponsoring this gift with a Xbox 360 and multiple Xbox games and other giveaways for the grand prize raffle drawing.  Breakfast and lunch are being provided. This event is free, so register now.

For teachers bringing at least 30 students in a bus, please contact maureen.majury@bellevuecollege.edu or info@coeforict.org for a bus stipend as well as a subsidy for a substitute teacher.

“We will have a complete new computer science program on campus both a direct transfer and Associate of Applied Science degree options (for our students).  (The) goals were met.  (The) project was complete on time with great detail. Questions were asked regarding changes and they were implemented in the report.”

Clyde Rasmussen, Dean of Professional and Technical Programs

Request a scope of work proposal and quote today.