Emerging Technologies

Featured Publication:

Mechatronics: A Technology Forecast

Texas State Technical College's Emerging Technologies identifies emerging technology trends, evaluates potential workforce implications and recommends new courses and programs for two-year colleges in Texas. The purpose of this program is to ensure Texas employers continue to have the highly skilled workforce necessary to compete in an increasingly global and technologically complex marketplace.

Identify and recommend new career and technology education curriculum for Texas. In today's increasingly technological and global marketplace, higher education must proactively anticipate future market demands. TSTC Emerging Technologies provides timely insights, analysis and recommendations for college leaders to support informed curricular decisions. Each publication provides recommendations and supporting data regarding the development of new curriculum, revisions to existing curriculum and other wildcard considerations that may impact occupational demand and market projections.

Enhance the economic competitiveness of Texas. Career and technology education (CTE) enhances the economic competitiveness of Texas by providing a competitively skilled workforce matched with industry needs. TSTC Emerging Technologies helps ensure colleges are informed about emerging technologies and potential curriculum impacts through regular publications, newsletters and events.

Produce detailed analysis on emerging technology topics. TSTC Emerging Technologies publications address each of the following areas to varying degrees based on available information:

• anticipated employment,
• drivers and constraints,
• size and location of market,
• connection(s) to existing curriculum,
• ability and ease of replication,
• physical and capital costs,
• industry and education partnerships to be leveraged,
• anticipated timing of curriculum,
• national best practices,
• a company inventory,
• faculty qualifications, and
• recommendations.

Guide grant funding and grant writers to support new CTE curriculum development projects. Developing new CTE courses and programs is expensive and time consuming. Moreover, launching new programs often requires faculty hires and expensive equipment and lab space. TSTC emerging technologies help generate funding and support for colleges interested in developing new CTE curriculum by providing guidance, recommendations, supporting data, sample curriculum and important industry contacts for grantees and grantors.

This program fulfills a legislative mandate enacted by the 76th Congress, which charges Texas State Technical College with developing and administering a program to identify, evaluate, and forecast potential emerging technology programs which are likely to have a positive impact on the State's economy (SB1819). This program was originally funded by Carl D. Perkins through the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board.