New York University
U.S. Department of Transportation
University Transportation Center C2SMART
City Tech partnership
$48,000
June 1, 2023 – May 31, 2029
Hamidreza Norouzi – Construction Management/Civil Engineering Technology Department, City Tech
Ivan Guzman- Construction Management/Civil Engineering Technology Department, City Tech
Kaan Ozbay – Principal Investigator, New York University
City Tech is a partner with the C2SMART Transportation Center consortium led by New York University (NYU) a designated U.S. Department of Transporation University Transportation Center (UTC). As part of the consortium, City Tech students have access to C2SMART’s student-targeted programs and initiatives, including the Student Learning Hub, Student-Driven Research Projects, Entrepreneurship, and more. City Tech has a robust Undergraduate Research program, pairing approximately 280 students with faculty mentors and providing stipends to offset tuition costs. As part of the program, students engage in workshops, field trips and end of semester collegewide post sessions. However, there are more eligible students than funding provides for. Under this proposal, City Tech will receive funding to grow the following initiatives for its students:
- Funding for undergraduate research conducted by a City Tech student and pairing with a faculty mentor from another consortium institution, if an appropriate faculty members are not available at City Tech.
- Funding for travel, presentations, and student competitions.
- Participate in a research Symposium to be attended by students from all consortium institutions and inviting professional-level staff to attend.
- Trainings/professional development. City Tech faculty can participate in instruction during C2SMART’s training programs for DOT and industry Professionals.
Columbia University
National Science Foundation Cultural Transformation in the Geoscience Community Program
Implementing Novel Solutions for Promoting Cultural Change in GeoScience Research and Education (INSPIRE)
$1,061,858
11/01/2022–10/31/2027
Reginald Blake – Associate Provost and Dean of Curriculum and Research, City Tech
Hamidreza Norouzi – Construction Management/Civil Engineering Technology Department, City Tech
Vicki Ferrini – Principal Investigator, Columbia University
City Tech Co-PIs will be part of the project executive committee and will assist in setting overall program direction, adaptation, process and policy development, monitoring and evaluation, and communications. Dr. Norouzi will co-lead the Bridge Scholars cohort, and Dr. Blake will co-lead the Visiting Fellows cohort in coordination with the lead PI at Columbia University, Dr. Ferrini. City Tech team will be responsible for implementation of the community engagement activities including recruiting and overseeing a community liaison, pedagogical consultant activities, summer program with high school teachers and students, and organizing professional development activities for high school teachers during academic year and summer. For the 4-week summer program, the City Tech team will develop training materials, will organize the presentations by Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory (LDEO) scientists, by the Bridge Scholars and by the Visiting Fellows. In addition, they will coordinate with the cohorts to engage community participants (teachers and students) in their research. In addition, Drs. Blake and Norouzi will participate in the ARMOR project development and implementation. The City Tech team will also include a graduate student/research staff to assist in implementation of proposed activities.
Borough of Manhattan Community College, CUNY
National Science Foundation
Equitable Pathways to Artificial Intelligence
$49,461
06/15/2024–05/31/2027
Xiaohai Li – Computer Engineering Technology Department, City Tech
Ching-Song Wei – Principal Investigator, BMCC
Artificial intelligence (AI) has transformed the way data is analyzed to produce meaningful information and has created an unprecedented demand for trained AI technicians. The goal of this project is to develop educational and career pathways in AI through the creation of an online AI certificate program. The certificate program will provide stackable credentials and credit for prior learning, be guided by an industry advisory board, and implement national recommendations for AI education. Students will be taught using real-world projects and project-based learning. The certificate program will serve high school students, incumbent workers, and second-degree seekers and will feature enrichment activities such as industry workshops, internships, and career panels. The resulting certificate program will be the first AI certificate in the CUNY system that will prepare students to pursue careers in industry as entry-level AI technicians. Beyond its immediate objectives, the program will seek to cultivate a talent pipeline, addressing the shortage of AI technicians, diversifying the talent pool, and establishing a national model for preparing diverse students for successful AI careers. The instructional materials developed will become part of the college’s permanent course offerings. The project team will use both quantitative and qualitative measures to assess the project’s effectiveness and will use these measures to adjust the program as needed. This project will serve as a model for other academic institutions interested in developing a comprehensive program aimed to help address the shortage of well-qualified and skilled AI technicians. This project is funded by the Advanced Technological Education program that focuses on the education of technicians for the advanced-technology fields that drive the nation’s economy.
Northeastern Illinois University
National Science Foundation
CISE-MSI: RPEP:S&CC:Information Systems meet CUltural COmpetencies (IS-CUCO): Enabling data-driven decision-making in underserved Hispanic populations
$192,744
10/1/2021 -9/30/2025
Benito Mendoza – Computer Engineering Technology Department, City Tech
Marcelo Sztainberg – Principal Investigator, Northeastern Illinois University
The United States Department of Agriculture reported that in 2020 more than 34 million residents struggled to secure enough food to sustain an active and healthy lifestyle. Underrepresented communities, such as Hispanics in urban areas, make limited use of Information Systems (IS) when making decisions to access resources such as food. The goal of the Information Systems meets CUltural COmpetencies (IS-CUCO) project is to integrate cultural, linguistic, data, and infrastructure factors into IS that provide access to food-security services such as food pantries. The project focuses on the development of IS to increase their use by Hispanics and other underserved populations. The project members are from Hispanic Serving Institutions (HSIs) located in communities with large Hispanic populations (New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago, and El Paso). IS-CUCO builds research capacity and trains the next generation of professionals who develop more inclusive IS. Key activities for the IS-CUCO project include identifying how cultural, linguistic, data, and infrastructure factors impact the use of IS by Hispanic populations and incorporating these factors into the software engineering process. The project uses an innovative community-based approach that brings together an interdisciplinary research team from the social sciences, computer science, and software engineering across HSIs serving diverse Hispanic populations. Expected outcomes include: i) knowledge base of key IS-usage factors that support the effective design of food-security IS targeting Hispanic communities; ii) software-engineering models and practices that inform development of food-security and related IS to meet the needs of diverse communities; and iii) increased capacity at the participating HSIs with respect to research, curricular, and co-curricular activities. This project can potentially transform the way organizations in urban areas address information needs of underserved populations to support their decision-making. The collaborations created in this project with local organizations will foster sustainability and adoption of the expected outcomes.