In addition to the GEI grant, UW-Eau Claire received a second Growth Agenda grant for a project to broaden the impact of undergraduate research on student success and economic development in Wisconsin. Together, UW-Eau Claire\u2019s grants represent almost one-third of the nearly $1.4 million awarded through the Growth Agenda grant program.<\/p>\n
The purpose of the GEI is to develop and promote skills needed for today\u2019s students entering the geospatial workforce. Geospatial technology is a term used by industry and government to refer to the tools (hardware and software) used in global positioning systems (GPS), geographic information systems (GIS), computer cartography, remote sensing and field sensors that help in acquiring, storing, processing, analyzing and communicating information connected to a specific location.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese cutting-edge technologies are used to map, visualize and analyze the world around us,\u201d said Dr. Christina Hupy, an associate professor of geography and GEI project lead. \u201cIncreasingly, geospatial technologies and the resulting spatial data are in high demand as their utility in decision-making and problem-solving becomes evident across industries ranging from health care to business development. The GEI aims to increase the number of Wisconsin graduates placed within successful careers in the geospatial industry, as well as related industries, by directly improving access to high-quality academic programs and innovative educational opportunities.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe demand for graduates with geospatial talent is clear,\u201d said Dr. Patricia A. Kleine, provost and vice chancellor for academic affairs at UW-Eau Claire. \u201cThe Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International predicts Wisconsin will see an $88 million economic impact from 2015-17 with $1 million in taxes and 665 new jobs created. UW-Eau Claire\u2019s experience in spring 2013 with an inaugural offering of a geospatial certificate provides a solid foundation to meet a burgeoning need in the state.\u201d<\/p>\n The GEI program advances the University of Wisconsin System Growth Agenda goals of increasing the number of Wisconsin graduates, developing a workforce to meet industry needs and fostering engagement with industries that serve local communities, Kleine said.<\/p>\n \u201cThe initiative capitalizes on the collective expertise and passion of UW-Eau Claire faculty in geography, business, physics and computer science as well as their strategic relationships with geospatial-related businesses,\u201d Kleine said. \u201cIt engages students in real-world learning situations and experiences with cutting-edge technologies that align directly with industry needs and developments.\u201d<\/p>\n The GEI has three core goals that will have a broad institutional impact and produce systemic change, Hupy said.<\/p>\n The first goal is to develop informative relationships between UW-Eau Claire faculty and geospatial business partners in Wisconsin. Faculty will meet with industry experts during a summer curriculum summit to gather input on existing curriculum, collaboratively design innovative and relevant course work, and create high-impact activities that engage students directly with geospatial professionals, such as internships, cooperative writing, development of intellectual property and cooperative problem-solving.<\/p>\n \u201cPartnerships with geospatial professionals will help us determine the industry-relevant skills and qualifications needed in the workforce,\u201d Hupy said. \u201cIndustry experts will help guide our curriculum to ensure our students are getting the most relevant education needed to be productive and skilled employees immediately after graduating.\u201d<\/p>\n The second goal of the GEI is to create a sustainable and relevant internship program with geospatial-related businesses. The internship program will connect students with Wisconsin geospatial businesses and provide all participating students a relevant workforce experience allowing them to develop talent, build professionalism, begin networking and acquire the confidence to graduate and enter a lifelong career in geospatial technology, Hupy said.<\/p>\n The third goal of the GEI is to transform geospatial education at UW-Eau Claire by developing new course offerings, additional certificates and a comprehensive geospatial major. Grant funds will be used for course development to fully integrate computer programming into the geospatial curriculum. In the newly proposed geospatial major, students will build a strong foundation in programming by taking an existing course offered in the computer science department as a prerequisite to the required geospatial courses. Several new courses based on cutting-edge and high-demand technology, such as business location analytics, Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) and Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) technology, will be developed and integrated into the curriculum.<\/p>\n \u201cThese technologies are in high demand, yet they are not accessible to our students,\u201d Hupy said. \u201cCurrently, no other University of Wisconsin System campus is offering this type of cutting-edge curriculum. Students will benefit from firsthand experience with survey-grade GPS, fixed-wing UAS, rotary UAS, telemetry equipment, infrared and thermal infrared cameras, and powerful workstations. As a result of the new course offerings, the geography and anthropology department will design and implement a geospatial comprehensive major, as well as additional certificates in UAS offered jointly with the physics department; and a business geographics certificate offered jointly with the College of Business. The comprehensive major is transformative because it will include curriculum infused with cutting-edge technologies; industry-relevant, student-centered curriculum; and integrated learning throughout.\u201d<\/p>\n Ayres Associates, a multispecialty engineering consulting firm headquartered in Eau Claire, uses a geospatial component in almost every project it works on, including environmental, transportation, land use, hydrology, agriculture and business analysis, said Adam Derringer, project manager at Ayres Associates.<\/p>\n \u201cFrom our perspective, we see a vital need for our staff to have knowledge of geospatial information,\u201d Derringer said. \u201cOther universities in Wisconsin have GIS programs that seem to focus on a particular sector such as environmental or business. What can be more difficult to find are institutions that teach students a more comprehensive understanding of how different forms of geospatial information can work together or those that make a concerted effort to focus on emerging technologies in the geospatial field. This is where UW-Eau Claire differs with its plans to work side by side with industry professionals to not only build a modern and relevant curriculum, but also continue working with geospatial professionals to keep it relevant. In addition, UW-Eau Claire will require internships and place students in the workforce to get real-world experience.\u201d<\/p>\n The GEI will not only benefit Ayres Associates as a single company; it will benefit new and existing Wisconsin businesses as a whole, Derringer said.<\/p>\n \u201cTechnologies like UAS will also open up small site projects in fields such as archeology, transportation, surface monitoring, field analysis and more,\u201d Derringer said. \u201cIn other words, projects that were once deemed cost-prohibitive using traditional aerial mapping systems will soon be feasible using UAS technology and a ready retrained workforce.\u201d<\/p>\n UW-Eau Claire alumni working in the geospatial field also are interested in the expanded curriculum the GEI will create. Jacob Wise, a 2011 geography graduate currently working as an aerial estimator with Haverfield Aviation headquartered in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, said returning to UW-Eau Claire to expand his knowledge in geospatial technology, especially LiDAR technology, would be advantageous and is highly encouraged by his employer.<\/p>\n \u201cThe geography and anthropology department at UW-Eau Claire provides skills to undergraduate students that many other universities throughout the country don\u2019t offer until graduate school,\u201d Wise said. \u201cThe enhancement in the curriculum will continue to set UW-Eau Claire geospatial majors above other university graduates by focusing on industry-required skills and knowledge. As a graduate of UW-Eau Claire, many of the skills I learned in geospatial courses have been used in the workplace on a daily basis. With the GEI\u2019s focus on expanding geospatial education, I can see UW-Eau Claire becoming known as the nation\u2019s top geospatial university.\u201d<\/p>\n For more information about the Geospatial Education Initiative or the Growth Agenda for Wisconsin grant, contact Dr. Christina Hupy at hupycm@uwec.edu<\/a> or 715-836-3313, or visit the Geospatial Education Initiative<\/a> Web page.<\/p>\n UW-Eau Claire News Online<\/strong><\/p>\n Find UW-Eau Claire news online at www.uwec.edu\/news.<\/strong> You’ll find recent and archived news releases, links to other campus news, upcoming events, a news tips submission form, news media resources and more.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" EAU CLAIRE \u2014 Geospatial education at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire is undergoing a significant transformation to provide students with real-world training, skills and workforce readiness necessary for successful careers in the growing geospatial industry. An interdisciplinary Geospatial Education Initiative (GEI) developed at UW-Eau Claire by a team of faculty members from the geography and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":2116,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","institution":[96],"story_category":[],"class_list":["post-1894","campus_story","type-campus_story","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","institution-uw-eau-claire"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/campus_story\/1894","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/campus_story"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/campus_story"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1894"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2116"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1894"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"institution","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/institution?post=1894"},{"taxonomy":"story_category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/story_category?post=1894"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"geospatial](\"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/forwisconsin\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/378\/2014\/09\/UWEC_GeoSpatial-Lab-199x300.jpg\")
<\/a>The U.S. Department of Labor has listed geospatial technology and its use as one of 14 “high-growth, high-demand and economically vital sectors of the American economy” and estimates its growth rate to be almost 35 percent annually.<\/p>\n