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Lt. Governor Polito Announces $2.5 million In Funding for Statewide Advanced Manufacturing Training
January 2019
QCC President Dr. Luis Pedraja enjoys watching QCC Professor of Electronics Engineering Technology, James Heffernan show Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito how a robotic hand works.
Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito and Benjamin Aryeh, Student Trustee
Representative James J. O'Day speaks at QCC during the Lt. Governor's announcement of the $2.5 million in grant funding for advanced manufacturing training.
Professor James Heffernan discusses the equipment in the Mechatronics lab at QCC with President Dr. Luis Pedraja and Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito.
QCC alumni discuss the manufacturing programs they were in at QCC with Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito, as Associate Professor of Manufacturing Technology Damian Kiernan and President Dr. Luis Pedraja look on.
QCC President Dr. Luis Pedraja introduces the Lt. Governor.
Leslie Greis, owner of Kinefac Corporation and founder and managing member of Perennial Capital Advisors, LLC speaks at QCC.
A robotic hand, CNC machines and a packed-house were on tap January 14, as Lieutenant Governor Karyn Polito joined Quinsigamond Community College President Luis G. Pedraja, regional workforce leaders, state and local officials at QCC’s QuEST Center to announce $2.5 million in grant funding to four regional consortiums, through the Advanced Manufacturing Training Program. It was a particularly special time for QCC to host this event in the QuEST Center, as it was the third anniversary of the opening of the building, which is dedicated to technology.
The state-wide program was designed to address the skills gap in the manufacturing industry by creating a fully-coordinated manufacturing training system that will connect residents to full-time employment, and meet the needs of regional industry.
“Since October 2017 we’ve added over 3,500 manufacturing jobs in Massachusetts,” said Lt. Governor Karyn Polito.
The event featured the awarding of grants to each of the four regions in the Commonwealth. The Central region received $638,750 for the training and placement of 160 individuals. Manufacturing represents 10% of the Commonwealth’s total economic output.
“As the skillsets continue to evolve, students and the workforce are going to require more advanced training. These skills are vital to the success of advanced manufacturing,” QCC President Dr. Luis Pedraja.
Since 2015, the Advanced Manufacturing Training Program has invested more than $5 million in workforce development, and this year’s award round nearly doubled the yearly investment over previous years. This round also further aligns the program with the efforts of the Workforce Skills Cabinet to regionalize workforce development approaches, and better streamline resource access points for job-seekers and employers. In April 2017, the Workforce Skills Cabinet launched regional teams to gather and analyze data to better understand the needs of local employers, existing skill gaps in the talent pipeline, and determine high-growth industries with long-term hiring needs.
“QCC works closely with manufacturers to ensure a strong and solid pipeline of workers are available to help them grow and prosper,” Dr. Pedraja said. “We thank the Commonwealth and the Administration for the funding to continue our efforts to be able to train our students for the jobs of today, and tomorrow.”
To learn more, visit QCC’s manufacturing programs.
