Austin Community College has received a $7.5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Defense to expand its semiconductor workforce training programs, the college announced Thursday.
The University of Texas and the Texas Electronics Institute, a consortium of institutions and partners supported by the Texas Legislature, distributed the funding to ACC. The funding came from an $840 million grant awarded to the University of Texas and the Texas Electronics Institute by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, a federal agency that invests in innovative technologies for national security and develops national research and prototyping facilities.
Read more: University of Texas’ Texas Electronics Institute secures $840 million for semiconductor microsystems development
Alyssa Reinhart, workforce development director for the Texas Electronics Institute, said ACC partnered with the group on the DARPA application to position itself as a strong partner in addressing industry needs. The university said ACC is the only community college out of 18 academic partners involved in the project.
“The ACC is great, they’re right there with us and they’re supporting us with this,” Reinhart said.
Semiconductors are the chips that make smartphones, computers and other technology work. Congressional and state lawmakers are pushing for greater investment in semiconductor manufacturing facilities and workforce training to help the U.S. meet the growing demand for semiconductors needed for national security and technological development domestically, rather than outsourcing that demand from the industry.
ACC has been working with industry partners for a decade and is a recognized leader in semiconductor manufacturing, with U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo visiting the community college twice in just over a year to offer her department’s support. ACC also launched a curriculum last fall to train workers to become manufacturing engineers while on the job, and has connections with multiple industry partners.
The $7.5 million award will enable ACC to expand its existing semiconductor workforce programs, support UT’s efforts with DARPA grant funding and develop workers capable of operating new facilities and equipment.
“As UT operates a more extensive research-based facility, they’re going to need their engineers to do the same,” said Laura Marmolejo, dean of advanced manufacturing at ACC. “We can support that by providing that training and customizing it to the needs they define.”
Marmolejo said the award is an example of productive regional cooperation that could become a national model for meeting the needs of the semiconductor industry.
Reinhart said DARPA grants and the partnerships that support them have historically inspired transformative innovation.
“The iPhone came out of DARPA,” she says. “This is where cutting-edge research happens.”
In March, UT, ACC and the Institute announced the creation of a new Semiconductor Training Center to jointly support workforce development. UT will provide research expertise and ACC will provide workforce training for engineers and manufacturers. This new grant marks another step in the partnership to expand training opportunities, educational programs and work experiences.
Reinhart said the semiconductor industry is a rare unifying cause at a “catalyzing, invigorating moment in history.”
“The last time federal and state investment came together around one core goal was the Space Race,” Reinhart said. “The industry was already at risk of having a talent shortage and not having enough qualified workers, so the industry is capitalizing on that and trying to expand the talent pipeline at all levels, in all disciplines, to fill that gap.”
Read more: How UT and Austin Community College are tackling the semiconductor workforce shortage
Marmolejo said ACC is working to expand its manufacturing base in north, central and south Austin to better serve local industry and local students.
“Students are starting to realize that the cool things they love, the gadgets, are still very dependent on overseas production. The more we can do here, the less risk there is that they won’t have access to the technology they need and love,” Marmolejo said. “Whatever their interest, this is a great avenue for people to build a career.”
