WHAT WE HAVE LEARNED: • • • • • Continue to refine and identify issues to make the business partnership beneficial to all Integrate student technical skill and business skills in the IT curriculum Develop a plan to manage skills learning across courses and across time Collaborate with the business partners to develop best practices for navigating the CSS problem Recognize that evidence of learning will serve both business and CSS goals

SUPPORTING THE BUSINESS PARTNERSHIP

Involving the business community in the student learning process through a problem-based learning vehicle, such as the CSS project, can have an energizing effect on the community as a whole. The educational institution takes on a more active role in the community to set in motion CSS partnerships; the faculty builds personal and professional business relationships and understands first hand, industry needs, which can then be brought back to the institution for adaptive action.

The business community provides role model expertise for student learning of business values and as such, takes a more proactive role in educational outcomes; business partners also are able to preview the future work force through this process. The student realizes a comprehensive education, obtaining technical, theoretical, contextual, and adaptive expertise; gains diverse cultural experiences; and forms personal and professional ties to the community. Upon graduation, these established ties could well lead to the student remaining in the community's work place contributing to the community's economy.

To actively adapt the learning environment to build student skills competency that provides correlation to IT industry values, the collective CSS partnership is solidifying efforts to analyze and improve current curriculum schema, the management complexities of context-to-content navigation, and motivational strategies to unite the community in future IT leadership development.

EDS representative at Saturn Corporation, the CSS pilot project business partner