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The Geographic Information Systems Technology Implementation Project (GIS-TECH) proposed by Del Mar College (DMC) will train advanced technicians in the areas of building and converting large relational databases, installing GIS data servers and effectively using GIS for domain-specific applications. DMC, Corpus Christi, Texas is the 12th largest Hispanic serving institution in the nation, enrolling over 25,000 students, 57% Hispanic, 60% female, and predominately first generation college.

Dr. Phillip Davis, Professor, Department of Computer Science, DMC, will serve as PI and Project Director. Ms. Barbara Dufrain, Professor, Department of Computer Science and GIS at DMC, will serve as Co-PI. Mr. Miguel Pavon, Administrator with the Borderlands Information Center at the Texas Natural Resources Information Center,

State of Texas, will serve as Co-PI. Ms. Ann Johnson, Higher Education Manager, Environmental Systems Research Institute, Inc. (ESRI), will serve as Co-PI. Dr. James Walls, director Texas Center for Applied Technology, Texas Engineering Experiment Station will serve as Co-PI.

This proposal will provide critical linkage between GIS research and the instructional technology for providing a rapidly deployable technician program. The DMC project, unique in its approach, focuses on the inclusion of currently available computer technology skills needed to implement and effectively use GIS. These skills are missing from current GIS technicians since existing GIS training programs do not include or effectively incorporate them in their curriculum.

The intellectual merit of DMC's GIS-TECH project is that it breaks new ground and brings currency to technician training in its objectives to give workers GIS-specific IT skills. This design will significantly strengthen technicians by enabling them to use the full range of GIS capabilities to handle essential tasks such as building and converting large relational databases, installing GIS data servers or effectively using GIS.

The broader impact of the GIS-TECH will promote a diverse 21st Century workforce targeting minority students, K-12 educators, industry and municipal workforce personnel who desire GIS training and certificates. GIS-TECH will provide a unique model to adapt existing GIS programs to expand their training in IT-specific skills.

The GIS-TECH model will provide a curriculum and training model replicable across the nation in colleges and secondary-schools. The project's purpose is to address the demand for qualified GIS technicians in both private industry and public workforces in a variety of fields. Qualifications will include those skills and competencies identified by DACUMS (Grays Harbor, the Northwest Center for Sustainable Development, The Fox Valley Technical College and studies done by Mississippi State University for GIS Workforce Development through a NASA grant.