Benefits: The "educational ladder" creates benefits for students, the optics industry, and the state of New Mexico
HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS: BENEFITS
West Mesa High School Photonics Academy
Key Benefits
- Curriculum created to meet critical skills and technical workforce needs.
- Familiarity with math, physics, and optics lab.
- An intensive program of enrichment activities to provide understanding of careers.
- Full preparation to enter the job market.
- Close collaboration with local industry via internships and employment.
- Ground floor entry in upcoming technology areas.
- Stepping stone for higher education for youth.
- GPA increases from 3.2 (2002) to 3.5 (2003).
- Family benefits by having a first generation go to college.
College Prep Benefits
Articulated Credit: The Photonics Academy has articulated curriculum with Albuquerque TVI, and they provide students concurrent enrollment opportunities which, when completed, earn students credit at both WMHS and TVI.
For more benefits see: www.aps.edu/aps/wmhs/atca/student_benefits.html
Job Mentorship
Students enjoy the benefits of close collaboration with local industry through internships and employment at world class facilities, and via the following forms of job mentorship:
Job Shadowing – Small groups of first-year academy students visit businesses and facilities to observe and interview professionals. In addition, guest lectures and industry site tours are offered.
Paid Internships – Industry partnerships provide exceptional learning opportunities for future employment when students engage in after-school and summer employment.
HIGHER EDUCATION: CAREER OPPORTUNITIES
Albuquerque Technical Vocational Institute
- As a progressive community college, it provides higher education, skill development and workforce training relevant to contemporary needs.
- The largest and most comprehensive community college in New Mexico, with 24,000 students on four campuses.
- A Biophotonics Option has been developed within the Photonics Technology curriculum at TVI, and in collaboration with the University of California, Davis.
- The "Albuquerque Model", including TVI, empowers students to return to school, to evaluate the full range of career pathways, and to stay current with new developments, keeping up with the future.
- From the point of view of the student, there is a seamless transition between educational opportunities and enhanced career.
- Offers displaced workers, from age span 18-50, retraining for a new career.
- A great option for retraining in an upcoming new technical field.
- With the US job market having a serious undersupply of workers for jobs requiring an associate degree (or equivalent advanced training), the photonics technician job market has identified a similar shortfall (24,000 as projected by the Center for High-Technology Materials, University of New Mexico).
University of New Mexico
- This emerging field of photonics promises in demand high paying jobs, and UNM has a program to help students achieve great careers in this direction.
- UNM's Optical Science and Engineering Program has graduated 100 PhDs, enrolling students from all over the world.
- Offers the opportunity to pursue cutting edge, cross disciplinary research in optics.
- Internships at UNM's internationally respected Center for HighTechnology Materials. (A research group at UNM's Center for High Technology Materials won the Photonics West 2001 Award for best paper, representative of its excellence in research.
- UNM's internship program allows the employer to become familiar with a student over time, prior to hiring an individual full-time.
INDUSTRY: BENEFITS TO NEW MEXICO
- Sandia National Laboratories/the Defense Programs Complex has more available trained photonics technicians to meet national security needs.
- Economic development is inextricably linked with workforce development. Both the state of New Mexico and Albuquerque benefit.
- The economy improves as more companies move to the area for the advantage of an experienced workforce.
- Optics is a clean industry, maintaining the environmental integrity of the state.
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