Research & Commercialization News
Vicki Sauter Wins "Gateway to Innovation" Award for UMSL
Professor Vicki Sauter, Ph.D.
For creating a series of high school IT outreach programs, Vicki Sauter, Professor of Information Systems, won a Gateway to Innovation Community Outreach Award. The award was presented to Sauter on April 30, 2009, at the second annual Gateway to Innovation Conference.
"I was flattered to have been nominated and am thrilled to win," Sauter said. "It will be great publicity for the programs and for the University." She also noted that she was accepting the award on behalf of the entire team that worked on the programs.
The Community Outreach Award is presented to organizations that have made an outstanding contribution to the St. Louis region in the prior year through their charitable efforts. Some examples of volunteer efforts include helping local learning institutions, rehabilitation centers, shelters, etc., through:
- Volunteering employee time to teach IT
- Providing IT hardware/software at reduced prices or for no charge
- Mentoring others in their IT development
- Offering scholarships to IT students
As noted in a 2008 report from the RCGA/Greater St. Louis Works Planning initiative, “Some young people with technology aptitude never get on track with IT careers because of an early lack of focus and direction.” They proposed creating a "model for collaborative programming, connecting and motivating young people with promising IT careers."
In response to this need for early motivation for IT students, the IT workforce needs of St. Louis companies, and the region's need for high-paying jobs, Suater designed a three-part program to provide youth with access to a rich blend of IT applications and professionals, and encouragement to study in the field:
Imagine IT!
The core program, Imagine IT!, provides high school sophomores a view of the opportunities of the IS Profession. Sixty students were selected from Soldan International Studies, Francis Howell, and Rockwood Summit High Schools. They toured facilities at IBM, Microsoft, Boeing, or Monsanto and discussed opportunities with those companies. The students then converged at UMSL for lunch, a tour of the campus. The students shared their experiences and compared the many options of an IS professional. They had a chance to visit classrooms, meet faculty and students, and discuss curriculum.
Xtreme IT!
Xtreme IT! extended the experience of the Imagine IT! by offering an intensive week-long experience for high school students interested in IS careers. The students were exposed to a range of IT applications and they experienced life in dorm living and at a University. UMSL recruited 15 local companies to participate in this event, and students saw firsthand how IT is being used from tuning a race car to managing power outages (and more!). In the classroom they learned some programming, and saw how businesses were using Social Networking tools that emulate Facebook and MySpace.
Imagine IT Reunion!
Imagine IT Reunion! brought together the students from the spring program to meet again as they entered their junior year in 2008. They visited Microsoft for a “learn and fun” experience where they talked with IS professionals about careers at their companies and the field and were treated to an x-box party (complete with pizza). Student members of this group also participate in a Facebook Group and are subscribed to an electronic discussion group to facilitate networking with professionals, professors and other students.
The pilot program has been a resounding success and is expanding in 2009 to include more students from other high schools. This outreach effort has taken hundreds of volunteer hours and thousands of dollars of community funding -- all brought together by the community outreach leadership of UMSL Professor Sauter and significant support from the IS Advisory Board. Together they are reaching out and identifying high school students and nurturing their interest in a career in IS to help meet the needs of the St. Louis Community.