ATEEC Partners

CORE PARTNERS

Eastern Iowa Community College District

The Eastern Iowa Community College District (EICCD) is the sponsoring institution for ATEEC. EICCD consists of three college campuses: Clinton Community College, Muscatine Community College, and Scott Community College. The District strives to provide accessible quality educational programs and services which anticipate and respond to personal and community needs and expectations. These efforts will reflect an active commitment to excellence, to lifelong learning and to cooperation with all segments of the community.

Hazardous Materials Training and Research Institute

The Hazardous Materials Training and Research Institute (HMTRI) was established in 1987 by the Eastern Iowa Community College District and Kirkwood Community College, which have long been active in environmental health and safety education and training. The purpose of the Institute is to promote worker protection and the maintenance of a clean and safe environment through education and training. HMTRI is recognized as one of a select number of national centers for excellence by several federal agencies, including the Environmental Protection Agency, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, and National Science Foundation.

Partnership for Environmental Technology Education

The Partnership for Environmental Technology Education (PETE), a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization, helps facilitate, augment, and broker partnerships with educational institutions, industry, and government.

Six regional independent partnerships make up the PETE network. Serving the 50 states, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. territories, the PETE network includes over 500 community and technical colleges, representing one-third of America's two-year institutions. Business, industry, and governmental agencies are integral to the PETE network also.

PETE's central belief is that education is the key to long-term environmental quality and economic stability. PETE is the framework, which allows education to develop. From the student to the teacher to the environmental professional, PETE provides the resources and knowledge to establish strong environmental practices and programs.

University of Northern Iowa

The University of Northern Iowa (UNI) is a quality, state-supported university of approximately 14,000 students, located on the west side of the Cedar Falls/Waterloo metro area in northeast Iowa. Completed in the fall of 1994, the Center for Energy and Environmental Education provides space for instructional and support facilities, and serves as a model of energy efficiency and environmental awareness. The mission of the center is to nurture a positive environmental ethic and to develop environmental literacy in children and adults. This mission is carried out through educational programming, instructional materials development, educational research, and community outreach.

MULTI-PROJECT PARTNERS

National Renewable Energy Laboratory

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) is a leader in the U.S. Department of Energy's effort to secure an energy future for the nation that is environmentally and economically sustainable. NREL's Office of Education develops and implements science programs that engage the young minds of our future leaders, scientists, and engineers. Connecting education to research, teachers and researchers inspire students to explore sustainable energy solutions to meet our future needs.

Valuing the important role that educators play in encouraging and guiding young minds, NREL offers opportunities to teachers that revitalize their research interests and skills, while giving them additional classroom science applications and technical content. As the country's primary laboratory for renewable energy and energy efficiency research, NREL stands apart as a leader in science education, committed to excellence in teaching and learning.

FUNDING PARTNERS

National Science Foundation

The National Science Foundation (NSF) is an independent federal agency created by Congress in 1950 "to promote the progress of science; to advance the national health, prosperity, and welfare; to secure the national defense…" NSF is the only federal agency whose mission includes support for all fields of fundamental science and engineering, except for medical sciences. It is tasked with keeping the United States at the leading edge of discovery in areas from astronomy to geology to zoology. So, in addition to funding research in the traditional academic areas, the agency also supports "high-risk, high pay-off" ideas, novel collaborations and numerous projects that may seem like science fiction today, but which the public will take for granted tomorrow. And in every case, NSF ensures that research is fully integrated with education so that today's revolutionary work will also be training tomorrow's top scientists and engineers.

Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS)

The Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) is the primary source of federal support for the nation’s 122,000 libraries and 17,500 museums. The Institute's mission is to create strong libraries and museums that connect people to information and ideas. The Institute works at the national level and in coordination with state and local organizations to sustain heritage, culture, and knowledge; enhance learning and innovation; and support professional development.

Libraries and museums help create vibrant, energized learning communities. Our achievement as individuals and our success as a democratic society depend on learning continually, adapting to change readily, and evaluating information critically.

OTHER ATE CENTERS

The ATE Impact site provides information about all of the NSF-funded Advanced Technology Education Centers.