OPENGATE

OPENGATE logo

Opening Pathways to Employment through Nontraditional Geospatial Applications in Technical Education
(OPENGATE)

Opening Pathways to Employment through Nontraditional Geospatial Applications in Technical Education, or OPENGATE, is funded through the National Science Foundation as a collaboration between five partner institutions in the University of Arkansas system. The goal of the three-year project is to increase access to education in location-based technologies to prepare students for employment in a wide variety of industries.

Traditionally, the primary job market for professionals with strong geospatial backgrounds has been limited to large urban areas, but surveys among regional employers in Arkansas have shown an interest in increasing the number of employees with knowledge of location-based services in addition to their industry-specific expertise.

The integration of these additional skills will help to increase the efficiency, competitiveness, and sustainability of businesses and government in the rural heartland. To achieve this goal, four partner institutions — Cossatot Community College of the University of Arkansas, Phillips Community College of the University of Arkansas, University of Arkansas Community College at Batesville, and University of Arkansas Community College at Morrilton — are integrating location-based technologies into existing curricula, with the fifth partner, the University of Arkansas Center for Advanced Spatial Technologies, or CAST, serving as a technical resource.


Associated Awards and Grants

Opening Pathways to Employment through Nontraditional Geospatial Applications in Technical Education (OPEN-GATE), National Science Foundation (2016)


News & Media

U of A Geospatial Technologies Experts Present Research, Workshops at Regional Symposium, Arkansas Newswire, 09/27/17

Conference Combines Location-Based Technologies With Student Preparation for Employment, Arkansas Newswire, 09/07/17

U of A Center to Lead Effort to Expand Geospatial Education Across State, Arkansas Newswire, 08/15/16

CAST to Lead Effort to Expand Geospatial Education, Research Frontiers, 08/15/16

Project website:

opengate.cast.uark.edu

Funding provided by:

National Science Foundation

Principal Investigator

Jackson Cothren
jcothre@uark.edu
479-575-5421

Co-Principal Investigators

Tamara Griffin
tamara.griffin@uaccb.edu
870-612-2022

Debby King
dking@pccua.edu
870-338-6474 ext. 1241

Hanna Ford
hlford@uark.edu
479-575-7127

Fred Limp
flimp@uark.edu
479-575-7909

Key Personnel

Brian Culpepper
brian@cast.uark.edu
479-575-8745

Malcolm Williamson
mdw05@uark.edu
479-575-2734

Tags:

Technology Education