TY - GEN
T1 - An unusual partnership
T2 - 119th ASEE Annual Conference and Exposition
AU - Nilakanta, Rema
AU - Biasetti, Giada
AU - Nambisan, Shashi S.
PY - 2012/1/1
Y1 - 2012/1/1
N2 - There is a critical need to identify ways to reach future transportation professional early and increase minority representation in the transportation workforce. This paper discusses Vamos!, a free Spanish e-zine designed to increase awareness among Hispanic teens and Spanish speaking youths about careers and educational opportunities in transportation. Vamos! is published by a transportation research institute at a large Midwestern university. The paper discusses the motivations and beginnings of Vamos!, summarizes efforts to develop the e-zine, and the outcomes of these efforts. These strategies have the potential to address current financial challenges faced by US academic programs, especially in the areas of outreach and workforce development. In 2009 Vamos! was established as the Spanish version of Go!, which is a successful online magazine in English on educational and career opportunities in transportation. Since August 2010 Vamos! has involved two unlikely partners: the Institute for Transportation (InTrans) and the Spanish program at Iowa State University (ISU). The partnership began as a class experiment in a Spanish translation course. This has evolved into a promising internship program involving students, faculty, and community members. This unusual network of support has sustained Vamos!, injected it with new perspectives and energy. Further, this initiative has helped raise the awareness among non-transportation student interns about transportation as a field of study and for career opportunities.
AB - There is a critical need to identify ways to reach future transportation professional early and increase minority representation in the transportation workforce. This paper discusses Vamos!, a free Spanish e-zine designed to increase awareness among Hispanic teens and Spanish speaking youths about careers and educational opportunities in transportation. Vamos! is published by a transportation research institute at a large Midwestern university. The paper discusses the motivations and beginnings of Vamos!, summarizes efforts to develop the e-zine, and the outcomes of these efforts. These strategies have the potential to address current financial challenges faced by US academic programs, especially in the areas of outreach and workforce development. In 2009 Vamos! was established as the Spanish version of Go!, which is a successful online magazine in English on educational and career opportunities in transportation. Since August 2010 Vamos! has involved two unlikely partners: the Institute for Transportation (InTrans) and the Spanish program at Iowa State University (ISU). The partnership began as a class experiment in a Spanish translation course. This has evolved into a promising internship program involving students, faculty, and community members. This unusual network of support has sustained Vamos!, injected it with new perspectives and energy. Further, this initiative has helped raise the awareness among non-transportation student interns about transportation as a field of study and for career opportunities.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85029098818&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85029098818&partnerID=8YFLogxK
M3 - Conference contribution
AN - SCOPUS:85029098818
SN - 9780878232413
T3 - ASEE Annual Conference and Exposition, Conference Proceedings
BT - 119th ASEE Annual Conference and Exposition
PB - American Society for Engineering Education
Y2 - 10 June 2012 through 13 June 2012
ER -