The following presentation gives you a better understanding of what the Youth Technology Academy (YTA) and Advanced Technology Academy (ATA) try to accomplish.

1. George
Bilokonsky
Director College Pathway
Programs
Cuyahoga Community College
Responsible for managing the daily operations of the Youth
Technology Academy program, both the in-school youth projects
and the Advanced Technology Academy out-of-school youth
project, with emphasis on developing relationships with schools,
Contact Information: students, parents, businesses, regulatory and community agencies.
Phone: 216-987-6302 Responsible for building a comprehensive workforce development
Fax: 216-987-6303 model for technology preparatory programs that support STEM
George.Bilokonsky@tri-c.edu training in the CMSD high schools and lead into fast-track technical
training for youth once they graduate from high school.

2. YES YOU CAN
Using STEM Hands-on
to Motivate Youth
NAWP Conference Presentation of
George Bilokonsky and Robert Stewart
Cuyahoga Community College (Tri-C)
May 17, 2011

3. Youth Technology Academy (YTA)
• Year-round STEM training program
• Recruits Cleveland-area in-school youth
• Provides preparation for technical and
engineering careers
• Supported primarily by Workforce Investment
Act (WIA) funding from Cuyahoga County’s
Workforce Development Department

4. Typical YTA Recruit
• Sophomore or junior in high school
• Average GPA is 2.62
• Likes to work with his / her hands
• “A little lost”
▫ Not sure what they want to do
▫ May be in trouble in school,
but not with the law

5. YTA Program Design
Provides clients with three levels of
training:
1. STEM-Based Academic
2. Applied technical
3. Work readiness

6. YTA Program Design:
STEM-Based Academic Training
• Math tutoring improves students’ math skills
• Enrollment in Introduction to Engineering course (EET-
1100) gives students intensive math instruction
▫ Incorporates VEX Robotics hands-on lab activities
▫ Helps students grasp the role of math in technical and
engineering applications
• Enrollment in Tri-C engineering and/or manufacturing
technology courses earns college credit for high-school
students
▫ Coursework paid through Ohio’s Post Secondary Enrollment
Options Program (PSEOP)
▫ Includes coursework in Engineering Design, CAD,
Instrumentation Control, Computer Applications and
Programming, Machine Tool Theory

7. YTA Program Design:
Hands-on Technical Training
Weekly after-school VEX Robotics activity
▫ Teaches students how to design, build, and program a VEX robot
to perform given tasks
VEX competitions held periodically
▫ Teach students how to test, trouble-shoot, modify their robot
designs under pressure
FIRST Robotics program
▫ Designed for the more experienced students
▫ Provides students with the opportunity to design and build a
robot under the guidance of NASA engineers and other adult
mentors
▫ Teaches students all about the iterative engineering process

8. YTA Program Design:
Work Readiness Training
• Work-readiness coaches provide
workshops that teach students the skills
required to succeed in the workplace
• Understanding of work-readiness is
reinforced through on-line tutoring
activities
• Students develop preparedness for
further education and eventual
employment in high-skills careers

9. How the Training Is Accomplished
• Modified distance-learning model uses Polycom
units to broadcast to participating high schools
• Certified teachers serve as Technology
Ambassadors at participating schools
• YTA coordinators and field specialists assist the
Tech Ambassadors

10. Why Robotics?
• Robotics is exciting and holds students’
attention
• Designing, programming, building, and trouble-
shooting robots helps students develop STEM
knowledge and skills
▫ Students take college-level STEM coursework
▫ Students gain experience with hand tools (wrench, screwdriver, etc.) and
machine tools (lathe, milling machine, etc.) while building Robots
• Competition is a team building experience

11. YTA in Action: Public Service Announcement
Produced, Directed & Filmed by YTA Students

12. Does it work?
Comparison of YTA Student Graduation Rate
with CMSD Average and State Average Graduation Rates
100%
90%
80%
70%
60%
Graduation Rate-YTA
50%
Graduation Rate-CMSD
40%
Graduation Rate-STATE
30%
20%
10%
0%
2006 2007 2008 2009 AVERAGE
06-09
2006 2007 2008 2009 AVERAGE 06-09
Graduation Rate-YTA 100% 100% 100% 100% 100%
Graduation Rate-CMSD 52% 55% 62% 54% 56%
Graduation Rate-STATE 86% 86% 87% 85% 86%

13. Does It Work?
Highest College Attended by YTA/Project
Students
Following High School Graduation
70.0%
60.0%
50.0%
40.0%
30.0% %
20.0%
10.0%
0.0%
Did Not Attend Highest = Two- Highest = Four-
College year year
Highest College Attended by YTA/Project Students
Following High School Graduation
%
Did Not Attend College 13.5%
Highest = Two-year 64.8%
Highest = Four-year 21.7%
Total 100.0%

14. Keys to success - YTA
• Technology Ambassadors in the high schools
▫ Each TA recruits students from one high school
▫ TAs facilitate PSEOP classes on site with remote instructor
▫ TAs oversee student participation in tutoring
▫ TAs conduct VEX lab activities, coach teams in building
VEX robots, and attend & coordinate competitions
• Support from School Administrators and Parents
▫ Involve Administrators and Parents in competitions
▫ Motivation from robotics team spreads to other studies
 Grades go up
 Tardiness / unexcused absences go down

15. Advanced Technology Academy (ATA)
• Founded in 2007 to prepare Out of school youth
(age 18 – 21) for Technical Employment
• Nearly 200 inner city youth served since
inception
• Nearly 70% of them are currently employed or
enrolled in post secondary education

16. Typical ATA Student
• 18 – 21 years old
• High School Diploma or GED
• Average grades or slightly below
• Likes to work with his / her hands
• Interested in finding a job before starting college
• May never go to college

17. Learning is twofold
• Someone teaches you the basics
• Practice, practice, practice

18. ATA Model
• Employer selects candidate at closed Job Fair
• ATA provides instruction for Certification
▫ Digital Cabling
▫ Manufacturing
▫ Welding
▫ CISCO Networking
▫ Soldering
▫ Other skills as identified by employer
• Employer provides the practice
▫ 100 hour paid Internship
▫ Funded by WIA
▫ No cost to employer

19. Paid Internship
• WIA Grant pays for 100 hours at minimum wage
at no cost to the employer.
• An open job is available with every internship
• Student is hired by company if performance and
attendance are satisfactory

20. What does Employer need to do?
• Have a valid entry-level opening available if
candidate is successful
• Define skills needed for the entry-level job
• Provide supervision / hands-on training during
Internship
• Track hours worked, and approve Time Sheet
• Evaluate Intern, and make a hiring decision at the
end of the Internship

21. Keys to success - ATA
• Strong support of neighborhood groups
▫ Community Development Corporations
▫ Chambers of Commerce
▫ Non-profit agencies
• Strong support of employers
▫ Structured internships
▫ Donations for ancillary costs
▫ Employer Advisory Committees

22. Community Impact
• CMSD and Suburban Schools
• Neighborhood groups
• Employers

23. Why Collaborate with a
Community College?
• Obvious Reasons:
▫ Community colleges are designed to prepare the
workforce
▫ They offer resources for your program
▫ They want to work with you
• The not-so-obvious reason why
community colleges want to work with
your program
▫ FTEs & Tuition

24. FTEs & Tuition
Programs that enroll youth in college courses bring two revenue streams to the
college: Revenue from FTEs and revenue from tuition
• What are FTEs?
—The FTE is a unit of measure on which the state bases funding to
academic institutions.
One FTE (Full Time Equivalent) is equal to 30 credits
An FTE can be achieved by enrolling 10 students in a 3-hour
course, 15 students in a 2-hour course, or any number of students
that factor to 30 when multiplied by the credit hour value of the
course
For every FTE the institution provides, the state of Ohio pays the
institution $5,363
—EXAMPLE: 15 students taking EET-1100, a 2-hour course, bring
$5,363 in FTE revenue

25. FTEs & Tuition
• What about tuition?
—Cuyahoga Community College charges a tuition of $84.56 per credit
hour
—EXAMPLE: The 15 students taking EET-1100 each pay $169.12 in
tuition, bringing tuition revenue of $2,537
• Add the two together :
—FTE revenue and tuition revenue go into the institution’s general fund
—EXAMPLE: The 15 students enrolled in EET-1100 bring a total of
$7,900 ($5,363 plus $2,537) into the general fund – or $527 per
student enrolled

26. The Big Picture
• YTA enrolls 100 students per semester in coursework at
Tri-C (generally 2-credit-hour course)
• These students bring a total of $105,800 in FTE and
tuition revenue to the general fund per year

27. The future of Youth Programs
• Multiple funding sources
▫ Workforce Investment Act
▫ National Science Foundation
▫ Department of Labor
▫ Environment Protection Agency
▫ Local Philanthropic Foundations

28. Contact Information
George Bilokonsky
Director, Youth Technology Academy & Advanced Technology Academy
Tel.: 216-987-6302 • E-Mail: George.Bilokonsky@tri-c.edu
Mary Kay Bitterman
Program Manager, Youth Technology Academy
Tel.: 216-987-6298 • E-Mail: MaryKay.Bitterman@tri-c.edu
Robert Stewart
Program Manager, Advanced Technology Academy
Tel.: 216-987-3347 • E-Mail: Robert.Stewart@tri-c.edu
Cuyahoga Community College • 2900 Community College Blvd., MHCS-203 • Cleveland, OH 44115