Technology Student Association

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Technology Student Association
Motto "Learning to live in a technical world."
Formation 1978
Type Youth organization
Legal status Inter-Curricular Non-profit organization
Headquarters Reston, VA
Region served

 United States  Germany

 Peru

 Scotland
Membership 150,000
2,000 (Chapters)
Official languages English
Parent organization AIASA (American Industrial Arts Student Association)
Website TSAweb.org

The Technology Student Association (TSA) is an international Career and Technical Student Organization made up of over 150,000 Middle School and High School Technology Education Students. TSA is the premier CTSO dedicated to STEM Standards: Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics. Students have opportunities to compete, lead and learn about these topics through leadership and competitive conferences at Regional, State, and National levels. The organization's motto is "Learning to live in a technical world."


Contents

[edit] Competition

Competitive events are separated into middle school and high school levels, with students competing only with their respective age group. Competitions take place at the local, state, regional and national level. A component of leadership is often entailed in events at both levels, with some events being devoted to leadership (such as the Leadership Challenge).

All TSA competitions are correlated with national science, technology, engineering and mathematics standards. Expert judging by technology educators and industry representatives inspires the best from participants. Members are rewarded not only with medals or trophies, but also with memories of the camaraderie and the challenge of a TSA conference. Sample middle school events include Agriculture and Biotechnology Issues, Career Prep, Electronic Gaming and Go Green Manufacturing. High school events include Animatronics, Computer Aided Design (CAD)and Desktop Publishing. Visit http://www.tsaweb.org/Competitions for a complete list of the TSA competitions. .[1] Scores are out of 100 points and based upon a nationally developed rubric. Winners are chosen based on these scores. In many events, finalists (top 10) move onto a second round of competition which usually involves an interview with the judges about the project. First, second, and third place winner are awarded a trophy at the national level.[2]

[edit] History

TSA became an independent organization in 1978, when AIASA Inc. was formed to oversee the activities of the American Industrial Arts Student Association. Between the foundation of AIASA as an independent organization (it had formerly been a part of the American Industrial Arts Association) and 1988, the association grew and began to take shape.[3]

In 1988, the AIASA changed its name to the Technology Student Association, due to the shift of Technology Education's focus from Industrial Arts to mainstream technology. The next year, the official logo was adopted, having been submitted by a chapter advisor. In 1990, the logo received a trademark from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.[3]

Today, the Association has grown to include over 150,000 members. [1] It has established an Honor Society, manages numerous competitive events and has partnerships with several organizations.

TSA's Mission Statement: The Technology Student Association fosters personal growth, leadership, and opportunities in technology, innovation, design, and engineering. Members apply and integrate science, technology, engineering and mathematics concepts through co-curricular activities, competitive events and related programs.

[edit] Structure

The levels of TSA are national, state, and local with a unified membership structure. Local chapters, established by advisors and students in schools with technology education programs, are led by a group of officers. Students at the local level work on projects and compete at local, state and national conferences.

State associations are led by a team of state officers, sometimes called an executive council. TSA State Advisors oversee the state delegations. State officers are usually elected by voting delegates from each state chapter.

On the national level, The TSA, In. Board of Directors leads the association. The national staff administer programs as decided by the TSA, Inc. Board of Directors and a six member national officer team supports these efforts and represents them to the membership. The national officers are elected by voting delegates from each chapter during the annual national TSA conference. The six National Offices are the President, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer, Reporter and Sergeant-at-Arms. These offices form the basic core of most local and state teams, although others have been added in some cases.

State, national and local conferences offer members a chance to compete in various competitive events and attend leadership building events. General Sessions involving a keynote speaker, awards ceremonies, and service project activities are common.

[edit] Partnerships

TSA has partnered with several other organizations and companies. TSA programs and competitions focused on STEM include: TEAMS - TSA coordinates the TEAMS (Test of Engineering Aptitude, Mathematics and Science) program. This national annual high school competition encourages students to work collaboratively and apply their math and science knowledge in practical, creative ways to solve real everyday engineering challenges; UNITE - With funding from the U.S. Army Educational Outreach Program (AEOP), the UNITE program is targeted toward talented high school students and helps prepare them for college through summer classes. These summer classes, held at 9 colleges and universities throughout the US, introduce students to an academic experience which closely parallels that of a first-year student in a university engineering program. Through academics, hands-on activities, and team-based learning, students explore the connections between math and science and real world applications; Engineering Alliance - Developed through a partnership between Project Lead the Way (PLTW), TSA and SkillsUSA, Engineering Alliance offers a series of classroom level competitions and leadership development activities designed specifically for PLTW-affiliated middle and high school pre-engineering instructional programs; VEX Robotics - The TSA VEX Robotics Competition provides students with a hands-on co-curricular competition for learning about science, technology, engineering and mathematics through robotics. TSA VEX Robotics tournaments are conducted in conjunction with TSA state conferences followed by a championship event at the annual national TSA conference.

Additionally, TSA has a service partnership with the American Cancer Society (ACS), which are parts of their National Service Project. TSA members raise money to promote advocacy and research in the ACS, and the ACS issues Spirit of Service awards at each national conference. In the past, conferences have hosted Relay for Life events on site.[4]

[edit] Official Attire

TSA Official Attire includes a navy blue blazer with a TSA logo patch. This patch usually contains the state's name in the upper bar. Official Attire also includes an official TSA tie, a white dress shirt or blouse which will be changed by 2013-2014 to a blue dress shirt with the TSA logo on it, light grey pants or skirt, black shoes and black socks. [5]. At the 2011 National Conference in Dallas, it was announced that a royal blue shirt embroidered with the TSA logo would replace the white shirt as required atire by 2014.

[edit] Current National Officers

  • President - Pratyusha Gupta, Delaware
  • Vice President - Austin Vest, Georgia
  • Secretary - Ashlee Shryock, Oklahoma
  • Treasurer - Chip Bollendonk, Colorado
  • Reporter - Marie Sabillo, Alabama
  • Sergeant-at-Arms - Jason Dreyzehner, Virginia

[edit] Notable alumni

[edit] National Conference Locations

Year Host State Location Hotel/Conference Center
1978 (AIASA) Same as location Memphis, Tennessee unknown
1980 (AIASA) Same as location Gatlinburg, Tennessee unknown
1981 (AIASA) Same as location Tulsa, Oklahoma unknown
1982 (AIASA) Same as location Norfolk, Virginia unknown
1983 (AIASA) Same as location Houston, Texas unknown
1984 (AIASA) Same as location Knoxville, Tennessee unknown
1985 (AIASA) Same as location Orlando, Florida unknown
1986 (AIASA) Same as location Wichita, Kansas unknown
1987 (AIASA) Same as location Baton Rouge, Louisiana unknown
1988 (Name becomes TSA) Same as location Dowingtown, Pennsylvania unknown
1989 (TSA) Same as location Winston-Salem, North Carolina unknown
1990 (TSA) Same as location Corpus Christi, Texas unknown
1991 (TSA) Same as location Tulsa, Oklahoma unknown
1992 (TSA) Same as location Richmond, Virginia unknown
1993 (TSA) Same as location Nashville, Tennessee unknown
1994 (TSA) Same as location Orlando, Florida unknown
1995 (TSA) Same as location Chicago, Illinois Hyatt-O'Hare Regency
1996 (TSA) Same as location Louisville, Kentucky Galt House Hotel
1997 (TSA) Same as location Washington, D.C. Hilton Towers
1998 (TSA) Same as location Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania unknown
1999 (TSA) Same as location Tulsa, Oklahoma Tulsa Convention Center
2000 (TSA) Same as location Atlanta, Georgia Hyatt Regency Atlanta
2001 (TSA) Same as location Richmond, Virginia Greater Richmond Convention Center
2002 (TSA) Same as location Denver, Colorado Adams Mark Denver
2003 (TSA) Same as location Orlando, Florida Rosen Centre Hotel
2004 (TSA) Same as location Nashville, Tennessee Gaylord Opryland
2005 (TSA) Same as location Chicago, Illinois Sheraton Chicago
2006 (TSA) Same as location Dallas, Texas Adams Mark Dallas
2007 (TSA) Same as location Nashville, Tennessee Gaylord Opryland
2008 (TSA) Same as location Orlando, Florida Rosen Shingle Creek
2009 (TSA) Same as location Denver, Colorado Sheraton Denver Downtown Hotel
2010 (TSA) Delaware Baltimore, Maryland Baltimore Convention Center / Baltimore Marriott Inner Harbor / Hilton Baltimore Hotel
2011 (TSA) Same as location Dallas, Texas Gaylord Texan
2012 (TSA) Same as location Nashville, Tennessee Gaylord Opryland
2013 (TSA) Same as location Orlando, Florida Rosen Shingle Creek

[edit] State Delegations

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b "Our Story". TSAweb.org. Technology Student Association. http://www.tsaweb.org/Our-Story. Retrieved 2010-08-20. 
  2. ^ "Competitions". TSAweb.org. Technology Student Association. http://www.tsaweb.org/Competitions. Retrieved 2010-08-20. 
  3. ^ a b "History". TSAweb.org. Technology Student Association. 1995-04-24. http://www.tsaweb.org/History. Retrieved 2010-08-20. 
  4. ^ "National Service Project". TSAweb.org. Technology Student Association. http://www.tsaweb.org/National-Service-Project. Retrieved 2010-08-20. 
  5. ^ "Oklahoma Career Tech - Technology Students Association". http://www.okcareertech.org/tsa/. Retrieved 2010-08-20. 

[edit] External links

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