Robot dogs, solar-powered submarines, and drone races. University of Arkansas - Fort Smith representatives witnessed this cutting-edge unmanned technology and more during the annual Association of Unmanned Vehicles International (AUVSI) Xponential conference last week in Denver, where they connected with industry partners to strengthen their recently-approved associate degree in unmanned technology.
Dr. Ken Warden, dean of the College of Applied Science and Technology, along with Dr. Edward Serna, chief of staff and vice chancellor for strategic initiatives, attended the three-day conference, where they met with industry representatives and collaborative educational institutions for AV抖阴鈥� new associate degree in unmanned aerial systems. The degree was approved last month by the Arkansas Department of Higher Education with specializations in operations/maintenance and analytics.
鈥淭his conference gave us an invaluable opportunity to interact with top-ranking industry professionals from companies like Lockheed Martin, Aeromorphology, Pegasus and Aeryon who are leading the design, development and implementation of this technology across all industry sectors,鈥� Warden said. 鈥淭his conference validated our curriculum design to ensure we are offering timely and relevant instruction.鈥�
AV抖阴 also met with representatives from Atlantic Cape Community College, who they are partnering on a National Science Foundation grant to improve curriculum and instruction in unmanned aerial technology.
Highlighting the visit was the inaugural advisory board meeting for the program held by AV抖阴, where they discussed program details with professionals across industry sectors including entrepreneurial, military contracting, education and agriculture.
鈥淭he technology is here and the jobs are coming,鈥� Warden continued. 鈥淭he advanced technology we witnessed in Denver last week will be impacting our community in a very short period of time and AV抖阴 is working hard to ensure our workforce is up-to-speed.鈥�
For more information about the UAS program, contact Diana Hall, assistant to the dean of the College of Applied Science and Technology, at 479-788-7785 or diana.hall@uafs.edu