VGCC expert helps develop Logistics Security training
Vance-Granville Community College is partnering with a community college on the other side of the country on a project to improve training on logistics security for businesses and industries. Tacoma Community College in Washington State was recently awarded a $344,055 grant by the National Science Foundation to develop enhanced curricula that will educate workers on secure logistics in settings such as manufacturing, distribution, ports, airports, inland waterways, and highways. Security has been a “hot topic” for businesses and organizations involved in transportation and distribution since the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, and the field of secure logistics has grown in depth and complexity in recent years.
Walter E. Martin, VGCC’s Director of Logistics Technology and Director of the North Carolina Consortium for Logistics Education (which also includes Wake Technical Community College and the Kenan Institute of Private Enterprise at UNC-Chapel Hill), advised TCC Information Technology and Logistics program chair Erika Bowles on the grant application content. Martin was also a consultant for TCC in 2006 when he helped create their Logistics degree program. Now, he will participate in the research funded by the NSF grant. Also partnering on the project is Dr. Noel Greis, Director of the Center for Logistics and Global Strategy at the Kenan Institute.
“This project expands existing curricula to include more advanced topics and continuing education in direct response to industry demand and furthers collaborative efforts with other institutions,” according to the grant. “Working extensively with industry partners, this project is developing targeted learning materials that focus on the various strategies and best practices used to safely and securely transfer goods from the manufacturer to the consumer.” Martin and Greis will help identify and document relevant, comprehensive case and classroom exercise scenarios that enhance the learning experience by providing real-world examples for students. Learning materials such as these will be integrated into existing logistics degree and certificate programs and will be made available to businesses across the country, for educating management as well as workers at all levels of their organizations.
Based in Arlington, Virginia, the National Science Foundation (NSF) is an independent federal agency created by Congress in 1950 “to promote the progress of science; to advance the national health, prosperity, and welfare; to secure the national defense.” An essential element in NSF’s mission is support for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education, from pre-K through graduate school and beyond.
VGCC recently added a 16-hour Secure Logistics certificate to the two-year Global Logistics Technology degree and other certificates the college was already offering. VGCC logistics courses are available online and on-campus. For more information on logistics training at VGCC, call Walter Martin at (252) 738-3259.
