|
Winning Robotics team from the HSI-funded program at Vaughn College of Aeronautics and Technology.
Submission by Kurrin Abrams, analyst at Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs) and Hossein Rahemi, professor and chair project director of HSI-STEM Engineering and Technology Department at Vaughn College of Aeronautics and Technology
From May 3 to 5, representatives from 72 national and international universities and colleges attended the 2022 VEX U World Championship at the Dallas Convention Center. Invitations to the VEX U Robotics World championship will were only granted to teams that were a tournament champion or excellence award recipient of a regional competition. Hispanic-serving institution Vaughn College of Aeronautics and Technology's robotics team were the recipients of both the “Excellence Award” and the “Robot Skills” at the Vaughn College Regional Robotics Tournament, as well as an “Excellence Award” recipient at the WPI VEX U Robotics Regional Tournament.
The Vaughn College Robotics team went on to win the highest award, the “Excellence Award” at the 2022 VEX U Robotics World Championship. The judges noted that Vaughn’s team best exemplified “the best overall robotics program” and that they “want the team be emulated by other teams. Vaughn's robotics team is now the third top world team in the robotics skills challenge competition and the first in autonomous programming.
Vaughn College extended its thanks to the staff of the Department federal grant staff (Title III, Part F, HSI-STEM, and Articulation grant) who provided the necessary support to engage Vaughn’s students in STEM-related scholarly and professional activities.
Nyya Flores Toussaint is a Title VI Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) fellowship alumnus within the International Foreign Language Education (IFLE).
Submission by Carolyn Collins, analyst in International and Foreign Language Education (IFLE) and Lindsay Dudley, program manager for the Kimberly Green Latin American and Caribbean Center at Florida International University (FIU)
Title VI Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) fellowship alumnus Nyya Flores Toussaint worked with Florida International University (FIU) faculty member Nick Andre to develop the first Haitian Creole language course that was recently launched through Duolingo. Toussaint graduated from FIU in 2017 with a bachelor's degree in international relations and certificates in Haitian studies and Latin American and Caribbean studies. He studied Haitian Creole with the support of a FLAS fellowship through FIU's Kimberly Green Latin American and Caribbean Center (LACC).
Toussaint's advice for foreign language speakers is to bravely speak their new language. He shares more, "We live in a society that is obsessed with being correct, yet language learning is all about being loud and wrong! Although we may receive feedback about our mistakes, we must keep at it, embrace the feedback, and allow that feedback to be our feedforward towards honoring the truth of the language."
Toussaint is currently a scholar of linguistics, international affairs, and the sociology of religion. Under the mentorship of André, he continues to leverage his interest in using educational technology to formulate pedagogy for students of Haitian Creole via Duolingo. The Duolingo course teaches over 2,500 Haitian Creole words through over 23,000 translation exercises. The FIU/Duolingo project is the only free online Haitian Creole course that follows the standards of the Akademi Kreyòl Ayisyen (Haitian Creole Academy).
NACIQI members meet to provide recommendations regarding accrediting agencies that monitor the academic quality of postsecondary institutions and educational programs for federal purposes.
Submission by George Alan, Ph.D The National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity
The National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity (NACIQI) was authorized and reconstituted by the Higher Education Opportunity Act of 2008. NACIQI provides recommendations regarding accrediting agencies that monitor the academic quality of postsecondary institutions and education programs for federal purposes. The committee complies with all requirements of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA) and the Government in the Sunshine Act.
During fiscal year (FY) 2021, NACIQI reviewed 17 applications from accrediting agencies for renewal of recognition, one compliance report from an accrediting agency; and one (1) agency during the period of recognition. NACIQI also heard from 30 oral commenters in FY 2021.
At its winter 2022 meeting, NACIQI reviewed five accrediting agencies, including the American Podiatric Medical Association's, Council on Podiatric Medical Education, the North Dakota Board of Nursing; the Council on Chiropractic Education; the Commission on English Language Program Accreditation; and the Joint Review Committee on Education in Radiologic Technology. The committee recommended recognition renewal for all five agencies.
The summer NACIQI meeting occurred virtually, July 19-22, 2022. Information on NACIQI meetings is posted on the NACIQI website.
Elizabeth Daggett is an analyst in the Accreditation Group in the Office of Policy, Planning, and Innovation division of in the Department's Office of Postsecondary Education. Elizabeth works with 64 accrediting agencies and state agencies and presents reports to maintain standards across higher education. Daggett finds purpose in her work knowing that all students that attend an accredited institution or program are affected by it.
Says Daggett, "If we find an agency non-compliant with the regulation, they have to make a change. [Agencies] are required to review institutions and programs for student achievement, curricula, faculty-student support services, financial aid, program length, and even student complaints."
When she is not working on accreditation for higher education, Daggett enjoys visiting the South of France and exploring the variety of French beverages and cuisine.
|
|
