Collaboration Among Institutions to Bring Geospatial Technology to an Underserved Rural Region

The University of Maine at Machias and Washington County Community College, the two smallest and most remote public institutions in Maine, provide important education and workforce development services in a rural and economically-challenged region. Through an innovative collaboration supported by the National Science Foundation, the two institutions have developed geospatial technology (GST) programs designed to meet the specific workforce needs of the region, affording students with the opportunity to pursue degrees, certificates and minors. Prior to this effort, neither school had the resources to maintain a GST laboratory or to offer courses consistently. The region had almost no GST capacity with which to manage critical environmental resources and grapple with economic, public safety, and public health challenges. Several statewide studies had shown a growing need for more GST technicians and training for incumbent workers. The new programs are designed to produce a small number of specialist technicians with associate's degrees and a large number of ancillary users with significant GST expertise from courses, certificates or minors. Course content is shaped by workforce research in Maine and elsewhere, and all courses are offered in either blended, online or short-term intensive formats to provide access to incumbent workers and extend the geographic reach of the programs. Through the university's Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Service Center, students from both institutions engage in real-world projects, and are linked with employers via internships. This has the added plus of providing low-cost and no-cost GIS services to area clients, generating demand. Many of these projects and internships lead to work for graduates, even through the economic downturn. By creating courses that serve multiple audiences, each contributing a small number to the total enrollment, the programs constitute a sustainable model that serves the growing needs of the region without creating competing programs at the two institutions. Even so, enrollment remains a challenge, especially in advanced courses. Future efforts will focus on raising awareness about GST among employers and students in area schools to boost enrollment.