STC to Receive Title III Funds for Fourth Year

SAVANNAH – Savannah Technical College has received notice that it will receive the U.S. Department of Education Title III fund for Predominantly Black Institutions (PBI) for the fourth consecutive year.  According to this notice, $250,000 will be funded to the college in October of 2014. The College has been slated to receive a total of $1.25M for the grant during five years.

Title III PBI formula funds are awarded to institutions that have at least 40% minority and at least 50% low-income or first-generation college students. The grant’s goal is to strengthen student success and retention across seven instructional programs through specialized training and the development of a sustainable technologies learning community.

The grant has supported the College’s newly designed Learning Community to support Industrial Technology programs with math and computer courses. Students in these courses receive contextualized instruction, which provide concrete examples for industry-specific use of abstract concepts. For example, construction students learn that they need to learn concepts like area, perimeter and volume for construction work estimates. Drafting students learn the importance of mastering unit conversions for drafting projects. By offering class instruction based on specific examples that relate to the students’ field of study, the Learning Community has increased students’ success in these classes.

Sixty students have enrolled in the Learning Community’s courses during the past three semesters.  In Spring 2014, 100 percent of those who completed the computer class passed, and 77 percent of students enrolled in the learning community’s math course successfully passed the course.

Previous years’ funds also were used to purchase immersive learning educational tools including a three-dimensional (3D) learning system, an alternative fuel vehicle, a wind turbine and a drafting replicator.

One benefit 3D trainers provide is a safe instructional environment. Students in STC’s alternative fuel vehicle class learn how to safely remove an AFV battery with the interactive 3D controls the trainer provides. Students in Electrical Utility Technology learn how to work with equipment in a power plant without leaving the classroom.

Through the purchase of an alternative fuel vehicle last year, the College was able to offer specially designed training on the diagnosis and repair of these vehicles that feature hands-on experience working with this new alternative fuel technology. A total of 24 students have received AFV training.

Beginning with Fall Semester 2014, the grant will expand to include STC’s general studies area. The 3D trainers will be used for general science courses like biology, chemistry and physics. These trainers will supplement the College’s on-site lab classes. Many of these natural science courses are included in the 27 core curriculum courses transferable to University System of Georgia institutions from Technical College System of Georgia (TCSG) institutions accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges.

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#1448 | May 19, 2014
Media Contact: Amy Shaffer, APR
912.443.5512 or ashaffer@savannahtech.edu