2025 CCRSM Partners Connect

How do you help college faculty and ISD teacher understand and/or debunk assumptions about one another and dual credit students? How do you help college faculty and ISD teachers understand the uniqueness of teaching modality and understand the dual credit student? How do you maintain quality without sacrificing communication, collaboration, and commitment? With a significant rise in dual credit partnerships, Northeast Lakeview College's Academic HSP Team has identified several misconceptions between high school dual credit faculty and college dual credit faculty. This presentation aims to explore effective strategies for bridging the gap between these two groups. We will delve into methods for helping college faculty and ISD teachers understand and challenge assumptions about one another and dual credit students. Additionally, we will discuss how to help both groups appreciate the uniqueness of different teaching modalities and the specific needs of dual credit students. By addressing common assumptions and identifying the unique strengths each group brings to the table, we aim to foster a collaborative environment that enhances the dual credit experience for high school students. Maintaining quality without sacrificing communication, collaboration, and commitment is crucial. Therefore, we will highlight the importance of holistic professional development tailored to the specific challenges and opportunities of teaching dual credit courses. By the end of this session, participants will have a deeper understanding of how to create a more cohesive and effective dual credit program that benefits both educators and students.

Participants will gain an understanding of the CCRSM network, and the vital role of Institutions of Higher Education layered in the CCRSM Benchmarks, Design Elements, and Outcome Based Measures. This session will help guide participants in understanding Texas CCRSM and the role of IHE partners. This session is recommended for IHE liaisons, faculty, advisors and other support staff working with ECHS and/or P-TECH models.

Organizations are complex, dynamic systems in which people affect the success or failure of intended outcomes (Greenberg & Baron, 2003); the more complex the work, the more involvement from individuals and teams is needed to achieve success.

Beginning in 2018, The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley began to partner with school districts within the organization’s geographic region to develop new collegiate high schools, focused on creating educational opportunities leading towards completion of a bachelor’s degree. The concept for the program evolved from longstanding partnerships already in place at the university; however, the new program would entail creating three unique high schools, each with their opportunities and challenges. Developing this program required an “interpreter” who could translate roles, responsibilities, tasks, norms, and expectations between the university and K-12 partners.

This session will explore lessons learned and best practices gleaned over the course of seven years and multiple phases of program development including academics, facility construction, and ongoing continuous improvement.

Participants will leave the session:
1. With an overview of critical elements needed to establish effective educational partnerships between K-12 and postsecondary sectors.
2. Having engaged in substantive discussions on elements needed for effective teams.
3. With examples of adapted project management tools that have proven useful when managing large-scale educational projects.

Participants will gain an understanding of the CCRSM network, and the vital role of Institutions of Higher Education layered in the CCRSM Benchmarks, Design Elements, and Outcome Based Measures. This session will help guide participants in understanding Texas CCRSM and the role of IHE partners. This session is recommended for IHE liaisons, faculty, advisors and other support staff working with ECHS and/or P-TECH models.

The semiconductor industry is currently witnessing unprecedented growth, driven by a national effort to bring manufacturing back home for national defense purposes and to gain greater control over the chip supply chain. This expansion is predicted to create nearly 115,000 jobs nationwide by 2030, with 39% of those positions requiring technicians equipped with a certificate or a two-year AAS degree. To address the anticipated technician workforce gap in North Texas, the North Texas Semiconductor Workforce Development Consortium (NTxS-WDC) was established by the Department of Education grant P116Z23026. This coalition of local semiconductor companies, community colleges, universities, and a non-profit organization is working to increase the pipeline of skilled workers. This presentation will highlight our mission, focusing on partnerships with the CCMR community and local ISDs to raise awareness of the industry and develop advanced manufacturing certifications at the high school level.

Our Theory of Change has identified three key strategies for growing the technician workforce. First, we aim to increase enrollment at community colleges for training for advanced manufacturing degrees. Within our community college partners, how this is accomplished varies based on their capacity and students served, with some needing to expand lab space and hire instructors and others increasing recruitment and scholarships. The second strategy is to promote advanced manufacturing related certifications at the high school level, which is essential for scaling the workforce, as community college capacity will ultimately be limited. The third strategy involves increasing awareness of the semiconductor industry and sparking interest in STEM careers. Despite semiconductor chips being the backbone of nearly all modern electronics, the industry remains largely unknown to today’s youth. Therefore, efforts to increase awareness of this critical sector must go hand in hand with expanding training programs.

The consortium has adopted a multi-faceted approach to generate interest in the semiconductor field. Some community colleges have hosted summer camps to introduce students to electronics and robotics, while one college has equipped a mobile mechatronics trailer to bring technology outreach directly to rural students. Additionally, the consortium sponsored projects such as gamifying the semiconductor industry through a Minecraft modification and creating digital media to highlight the industry’s impact, educational pathways, and career opportunities. At the request of our educator partners, the consortium also developed a four-hour field trip that offers more in-depth exposure than a typical career fair. We further established a week-long professional development program for teachers and a one-day event for counselors to familiarize them with the field. Many of these programs have thrived thanks to the valuable partnerships formed within the education ecosystem.

To equip students graduating from high school with certifications that would allow them to work directly as technicians, the semiconductor industry promoted a new regional program of study in electronics technology within the manufacturing career cluster. Currently approved in ESC Regions 6, 10, 11, 12, and 13, the program provides students with a fundamental understanding of electrical systems needed for this career path. This program has been successfully integrated by two of the consortium partners: Dallas College and Grayson College. The presentation will review the unique approach that each took, the challenges faced with implementation, and the importance of strong partnerships across the ecosystem.

Fill up your cup and get ready to sip on some fresh ideas. We’re excited to share the latest strategies from Tarrant County College District that are serving up success for our dual enrollment faculty. Adjunct faculty teaching at our partner high schools, and high school faculty serving as embedded instructors are crucial to the success and growth of our dual enrollment programs, yet each group requires a unique blend of support to thrive. We will discuss our Embedded Faculty Liaison structure, embedded faculty training event, and our faculty safety resources. These well-received tools have been key to enhancing our faculty training and engagement. We’ll share our methods, then open the floor for a solutions-based discussion on your faculty support concerns. Like a well- crafted latte, there are many layers to dual enrollment faculty support, so let get our ideas percolating and brew up some solutions together.