Issue link: http://winesandvines.uberflip.com/i/62409
In 2011 NSF issued a third grant that enabled VESTA to become a National Center of Excellence, expanding its partnership to include higher education institutions in California, New York, North Carolina, Oregon and Washington. Why VESTA? The expansion of the wine industry in the Midwest is startling. In the 16 states participating in the VESTA Regional Center, the number of wineries increased from 2,788 in 2004 to 6,030 today, according to WinesVinesDATA. The VESTA vision was created as a response to appeals from the wine industry in mid-America, where technically educated and trained individuals were in demand. That challenge remains true today. VESTA's vision for the future The program's vision is the same today as it was in 2003; only the scope of the effort has expanded. VESTA is committed to becoming a nationally recognized resource providing the foundations in science, mathematics and technology that are critical to developing a workforce to support the rapidly expanding U.S. grape- and wine- production industries in the 21st century. VESTA's online curricula delivery VESTA developed and deployed a groundbreaking distance- education model that enables faculty and students (especially in rural areas) to participate in its educational programs regardless of VESTA's online education model allows students to complete assign- ments with a more flexible schedule. state boundaries. This model will be broadly implemented to enable the education of a workforce at the national level. In addition, VESTA will be increasingly focused on women, veterans and other under-represented populations in this industry. Similarly, VESTA is expanding its program to accommodate students for whom English is their second language. The core VESTA courses are designed to take advantage of the online medium. Students are guided through units and complete assignments with the flexibility of "anytime learning" within a prescribed timeframe. Content is presented through print-, web- and audio-visual platforms to accommodate different learning styles while creating and reinforcing the sense of a learning community. Wines & Vines JAnUARY 2012 151