The federal government is making investments in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM). To that end, U.S. Department of Commerce’s (DOC) Economic Development Administration (EDA) recently awarded 11 recipients of the 2023 STEM Talent Challenge, a national competition overseen by EDA that supports STEM programs to train talent and fuel regional innovation economies across the nation.
The $4.5 million competition provides up to $500,000 in funding for programs that complement their region’s innovation economy, create pathways to good-paying STEM careers, and build talent pipelines for businesses to fill in-demand jobs in emerging and transformative sectors.
“Through the STEM Talent Challenge program, we’re making substantial investments in communities across the country to encourage innovation, create opportunities, and build local workforce pipelines in everything from semiconductor manufacturing to artificial intelligence (AI) development,” says Gina Raimondo, secretary of commerce.
“The STEM Talent Challenge helps communities leverage their greatest asset: people,” says Alejandra Y. Castillo, assistant secretary of commerce for economic development.
“We’re thrilled to partner with these 11 grant recipients to strengthen training programs and apprenticeship opportunities that will ensure individuals can build careers in STEM fields in their communities. This program builds on EDA’s mission of seeding the emerging and critical industries of tomorrow, and ensuring we’re strengthening a workforce that can propel these sectors to success.”
The 11 awardees, selected from a pool of 90 applicants, will leverage an additional $4.7 million in matching funds from a variety of private- and public-sector sources. The grantees’ projects support work-and-learn programs to increase America’s STEM-capable workforce in the emerging and transformative sectors such as aerospace, biomanufacturing, cybersecurity, data science, geospatial, AI, information technology (IT), and advanced manufacturing.
The STEM Talent Challenge grant recipients include:
- Austin Community College District (Austin, TX)
- Project: STARS Training Program (Semiconductor Technician Advanced Rapid Start)
- Grant Amount: $364,548
- Bowling Green State University (Bowling Green, OH)
- Project: Advancing Regional Talent in Smart Technology Enabled Manufacturing
- Grant Amount: $332,828
- CodePath (Atlanta, GA)
- Project: Pathway to Tech in Atlanta
- Grant Amount: $500,000
- Electrical Training Institute (San Diego, CA)
- Project: Resilience in a STEM Economy (RISE) Program
- Grant Amount: $496,693
- Goodwill of Western Missouri and Eastern Kansas (Kansas City, MO)
- Project: Bridge to Technology and Careers in Greater Kansas City
- Grant Amount: $499,196
- Liberty Science Center (Jersey City, NJ)
- Project: High Schools of the Future
- Grant Amount: $500,000
- Middlesex Community College (Lowell, MA)
- Project: Industry-Integrated Computer Aided Design Expansion Program
- Grant Amount: $409,410
- St. Petersburg College (St. Petersburg, FL)
- Project: Geospatial/Artificial Intelligence (AI) STEM Training Program (GSTP)
- Grant Amount: $323,832
- South Texas College (McAllen, TX)
- Project: STEM Registered Apprenticeship Program
- Grant Amount: $283,262
- University of Arkansas System (Fayetteville, AR)
- Project: BioAR Train Biomanufacturing Workforce Initiative (BTBWI)
- Grant Amount: $493,521
- Washington State University (Pullman, WA)
- Project: Washington’s High-Demand Advanced Civil Engineering Workforce Development
- Grant Amount: $252,933
Source: eda.gov