NEW ORLEANS — Kandis Vogel, a student in the Delgado Community College Science Laboratory Technology program, attended the National Science Foundation (NSF) Advanced Technological Education (ATE) Principal Investigators Conference in Washington, D.C. last month. Details were shared in a press release.
The American Association of Community Colleges, with the support of the National Science Foundation, held the conference, which brought together about 900 people to focus on critical issues related to advanced technological education. Key people working on NSF ATE projects across the country participated.
Conference attendees represented community colleges, business and industry, secondary school systems, and four-year colleges covering projects in a wide variety of areas such as information technology, engineering technology, micro- and nanotechnologies, chemical technology, biotechnology and others.
During the conference, Vogel received an award and presented a poster on her experiences at Delgado, illustrating how these experiences have prepared her for an exciting career in the biotechnology field.
As a Delgado student, Vogel completed an internship with TMS Biosciences, conducting mass spectrometry analysis of blood samples for transplant patients. She is exploring other possibilities in forensic sciences with the biotechnology company Innogenomics, and is considering working on an advanced degree.
Two years ago, Delgado Community College received a National Science Foundation grant of $184,904 to support the Science Laboratory Technology program. James F. Guenther, Ph.D., is the principal investigator for the grant.
Over 880 participants representing more 260 active NSF ATE projects were present at the annual conference, where they shared information about curriculum development, student enrollment and retention, educational approaches, industry partnerships and grant development.
