Advanced Technological Education: Developing an Effective Regional Educational Framework for STEM Technician Talent Generation for the Bakken Region

This ATE project at Williston State College addresses the growing need for skilled STEM technicians in Western North Dakota's energy sector by creating a sustainable pipeline of students through expanding outreach, targeting rural communities, and establishing a certification in Electronic & Industrial Controls (E&IC). The project offers significant and lasting impacts on the regional workforce, energy sector, and the region's rural communities. With approximately 19,000 oil-producing wells in the Bakken oil field and projections indicating that the energy industry will sustain itself for decades, it is crucial to develop a skilled workforce capable of meeting the demands of the expanding energy and IT sectors. The institution offers a modular, competency-based curriculum through the development of stackable credential pathways and collaboration with rural high schools. The project enables students to acquire specialized STEM skills, addressing the energy sector's needs. This project also incorporates information technology skills such as networking and programming, in response to industry demand, which helps students gain proficiency to offer expertise to their employers and peer networks. This project is funded by the Advanced Technological Education program that focuses on the education of technicians for the advanced-technology fields that drive the nation's economy. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.