2024 Fall Forum on Engineering Technology

Despite hurricanes Helene and Milton, the 53rd state-wide Forum on Engineering Technology was a success! Due to Hurricane Helene, the Fall 2024 Engineering Technology (ET) Forum, planned for September at Palm Beach State College, had to be rescheduled virtually on November 8th. Participants from eleven colleges, two universities, and five other industry/educational vendors joined three hours of a very condensed agenda with colleges’ updates, current challenges, and hot topics.

The fall ET Forum agenda included:

• A special report from Palm Beach State College
• An update about the National Science Foundation (NSF) grant “Updating Florida’s ET Pathways for I4.0
• A group discussion focused on faculty loads, common rubrics, and feedback on the AS ET degree program database (core and specializations)
• College program updates, and
• Updates from our Educational vendors. 

In addition, the forum incorporated a presentation about supporting competencies for collaborative problem-solving and the importance of employability skills by Dr. Will Tyson, Professor of Sociology at the University of South Florida.

The Forum on Engineering Technology (ET Forum) has served as an important vehicle for bringing together Florida’s diverse and geographically dispersed community with common issues and challenges. FLATE works with the ET Forum network to strengthen the consortium, share its administrative activities and projects, provide professional development, bring industry and academia together, and engage in statewide curriculum frameworks review and reform. Over the years, it has become a true community of practice. 

The Forum meets twice a year and has convened forty-eight times at over 24 different Florida colleges. The ET Forum with FLATE guidance and leadership continues to grow strong by recruiting interested colleges; hosting industry professionals from companies near the host institution; providing professional development for emerging and relevant technologies; participating in FDOE statewide curriculum frameworks reform and change related to ET disciplines and providing extensive networking and opportunities for sharing and collaboration amongst colleges.

The Florida Engineering Technology Forum serves as a model organization for other disciplines and career clusters in Florida as well as technical disciplines in other states. Presentation and recordings are available on the FLATE wiki: PBWorks/Presentations.

Mark your calendar for the 2025 spring ET Forum at Pasco Hernando Stat College, April 3-4, 2025.

For more information on the Forum and/or A.S.E.T degree visit http://fl-ate.org/projects/et-forum.html