|Home | About Us | Products | Services | Programs | NSF Grants | Partners |   Programs > Center for IT Excellence > February 2005   CITE Home   About CITE   Events   Job Shadow   Newsletter   Student Resources Advancing IT Education and the Workforce in Washington State Newsletter February 2005   Instructor Job Shadow Opportunity The 2005 CITE Instructor Job Shadow Program will provide an opportunity for instructors in community and technical colleges and high schools to observe first hand the advances of technology in the workplace. The goal is to equip instructors with the knowledge and skills to infuse relevant IT practices in the classroom to benefit their students and programs. The opportunity will lead to increased industry awareness of schools with potential for greater involvement. The Instructor Job Shadows will range from 3 to 5 days in July and August 2005. If you are interested in participating, please contact Kelley Beverly at 425-564-4230 or by email. More information will be forthcoming in our next newsletter and on our website.   Articles of IT Interest- this month's topic: VoIP and Convergence Technologies “Perhaps the single biggest benefit of IP telephony is it virtualizes the user, so they have no ties to physical equipment," observes Irwin Lazar, a senior analyst at Burton Group Inc. as quoted in the Computerworld article titled: "VoIP Case Study: Fashion Designer Gets Hip to IP". VoIP is forthcoming however it may affect your quality of service, manpower and pose new security issues. Find out how in the Searchsecurity.com article titled: "VoIP 2005: Better watch what you say" . As open source software communications influences the VoIP market, look for increasing providers and services. Read this and more in the Information Week article titled: "VoIP Pioneer Predicts A Roiling 2005 for IP Telephony". What does the National Institute of Standards and Technology say about VoIP? Find out in the Computerworld article titled: 'Deploy VoIP With Care, Feds Warn". Network World highlights deployment challenges and successful installations of fortune 500 companies in the article titled: "Customers Find Different VoIP Benefits". Interesting piece concerning the prerequisites for VoIP training in the ITWorld article titled: "VoIP is real - So who do you send for certification and training?". Converting your text email messages to voice and listening to them? You really can. Find out more in the Computerworld article titled: "Users cite VoIP convenience, cost savings". Can voice workers and data workers play well together during a deployment of convergent services? "Voice, Data Teams At Odds Over VoIP", a ComputerWorld article explores this issue. The Seattle Times gains centralized management and better efficiency from a recent upgrade to VoIP as reported in the ComputerWorld article: "VoIP Case Study: Newspaper Centralizes Call Routing".   Convergence Technologies Emerging quickly are needs for workers to be fluent in understanding and integrating both data and voice traffic. There are several two-year programs across the United States offering telecommunication convergence Associate Degrees. Here’s just a few we’ve located: Clover Park Technical College, Lakewood, WA Telecommunication Technologies. Florida Community College, Jacksonville, FL Telecommunications Engineering Technology (Converged Networks). Cuyamaca Community College, El Cajon, CA Telecommunications Networking Degree. Dakota County Technical College, Rosemont, MN Information Technology & Telecommunication Convergence. Arapahoe Community College, Littleton, CO Convergent Technologies Degree. Are you considering a convergence program at your institution? Contact CITE for assistance.   Convergence Technologies Professional (CTP) Certification Program CTP certification is a unique credential that helps to address the current shortage of professionals skilled in convergence technologies, by ensuring that individuals are proficient in the industry-established skills necessary for meeting industry needs. Individuals can pursue important new job opportunities and companies can differentiate themselves to customers by using only certified personnel to sell, install and support convergence technologies solutions. In Washington State, there are two CTP training providers: Bellevue Community College and Clover Park Technical College. For more information about the CTP certification and becoming a CTP training provider, please visit ctpcertified.com. Clover Park Technical College offers an Associates Degree which aligns with the CTP certification requirements. (see above for program information) BCC offers a non-credit wired and wireless certificate programs aligned with the CTP certification through Continuing Education. For class information, please visit Computers and Telecommunications website.   Convergence Lab at Collin County Community College, Frisco, TX The National Science Foundation (NSF) has awarded Collin County Community College District (CCCCD) a $2.4 million grant to develop a degree in the field of convergence technology. The grant - the largest in college history - officially began August 1 and will extend through July 31, 2008. Read more...   Top 10 Industry Certifications Named for 2005 Do students inquire about leading industry certifications and credentials? Have you considered incorporating certification skill demands to your curriculum? The CertCities annual guide to the 10 fastest-growing certifications for 2005 is available. Note that these are the top 10 certifications projected by "fastest growth", not necessarily the 10 "most popular". Microsoft Certified Professional (MCP) still leads the way by highest volume certification, but read on for more information about the top 10 growth certifications projected for 2005. Read more...   WA State Working Connections IT Faculty Development Institute: August 23 - 26, 2005 Now in it’s seventh successful year! The Working Connections IT Faculty Development Institute serves the community and technical college faculty with professional development and training on emerging technology and latest trends. The institute will be held Tuesday, August 23 through Friday, August 26, 2005 at the BCC campus. New Applications in Office 2003 Project Management Professional Certification IT in the Health Care Industry Programming Database and Web Hardening Networks, Wireless Networking and Security, and Information Data Assurance Open Source Programming Environments For more information contact Maureen Majury at mmajury@bcc.ctc.edu or by phone at 425-564-4229   Imagine Cup 2005: Encourage your students to compete "Imagine a world where technology dissolves the boundaries between us." This is the theme of Imagine Cup 2005, a U.S. Software Design Invitational. This competition, designed and sponsored by Microsoft Corporation, will recognize students who demonstrate excellence in software design. Teams will be judged on their ability to develop innovative solutions utilizing Microsoft® .NET, Web services, client devices, and/or related technologies. The Imagine Cup rewards students whose skill and creativity showcase the Microsoft Windows® platform and .NET Framework to create practical and unique contest entries that address the competition theme. Registration closes March 1, 2005 so get your students involved! Cash prizes range from $10K - $25K and the chance to win a trip to Japan! For more information, visit the web site at: imagine.thespoke.net/us.   Do you have a website for your IT programs? We would like to list all the IT programs at the CITE website as a resource for students and industry. Email your website url to us at CITE or contact Kelley Beverly at 425-564-4230.   How can CITE assist your institution? At CITE, our mission is to be a resource arm to the Community and Technical Colleges and high schools of Washington State. Let us hear from you to discuss your needs and how we can be of service to you. Email us at CITE.   Calendar: Local events of IT interest Keep up to date with future events geared for students, faculty and staff. Check our events page for updates. If you know of an event that may be of interest please email CITE with the details.   Free Subscription Services To continue receiving the CITE newsletter, please complete the request form found on our website. If you wish to discontinue receiving our newsletter, please email us at CITE.

NWCET is a division of Bellevue Community College, and is partially funded by National Science Foundation grants.