Podcast Guest:
Nancy Louwagie, PI, NSF ATE Distance Education and Learning In Vacuum technology for Employment Readiness
Tom Johnson, Adjunct Instructor, Vacuum Technology Dept., Normandale Community College
April 2024 | 22:09
Episode 52: Show Notes, Slides, Transcript
The podcast episode features Nancy Louwagie and Tom Johnson from Normandale Community College discussing their project on integrating emerging technologies into education. Nancy and Tom explain the importance of vacuum technology in various industries and detail Normandale’s program, which offers degrees and certificates in vacuum and thin film technology. They also discuss the evolution of their curriculum, including remote access equipment and automation, and its impact on students’ skills development, industry relevance, and troubleshooting abilities.
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Nancy Louwagie is Chair of the Engineering Technology Programs Department at Normandale Community College in Bloomington, MN. She graduated from North Dakota State University with a bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering and from the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities with a master’s degree also in Electrical Engineering. She worked in test and quality engineering positions at Honeywell, Angeion, and Boston Scientific in the Twin Cities. At Normandale, she has taught the Quality Practices and Measurement and Introduction to Vacuum Technology courses. She currently serves as the Principal Investigator and the co-Principal Investigator respectively for Normandale’s National Science Foundation, Advanced Technological Education DUE #1700624 and #2000454 grant project awards.
Tom Johnson is an Adjunct Instructor in the Vacuum Technology department at Normandale Community College in Bloomington, MN. He graduated from the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities with a bachelor’s degree in Aerospace Engineering and Mechanics. He has spent most of his 30+ career in the design, manufacture, and sales of process instrumentation. He currently owns a manufacturer’s rep agency, Engineered Sales Co., which distributes process instrumentation, valves, and controls to a wide variety of industrial applications.
